Evening star., 1951-10-07
Latest News Red Steel Output
Wi|IDisturbWest' sConpIucencv
By RondoIph Leigh


Western Europe has been elec-
trifled by translations of excerpts
from recent German book which
gives the most ominous estimates vet
made public on Russia's war potential
in steel.
The book is Die Soviet Union"
by Warner Leimbach, and it is re-
markable not only for it's new data
on Russia. but also for the evalua-
ton OF the Soviet potential in terms
OF actual German use Of almost the
same annual amount of steel over
the period 1939-1944. Russia, of
course, now has many German steel
workers, both in East Germany and
in Russia itself.
The most significant revelations
are made in footnotes or quite cas-
ually. The book itself seems at first
glance to be simply another politico-
historical study, rather than a top
flight military intelligence report.
Ihe g1St OF its story is that Russia
mas much higher fighting" steel
output than she has been generally
credited with. It is in the distinc-
ton between frivolous" automobiles.
household comforts and fancy manu-
factures) and fighting" steel that
the German gives a new meaning to
RUSSIAN production. This is no new
idea, but the detail in which if is
worked out furnishes food for much
thought on this side of the iron
curtain.
Lelmbach was close to and seems
to have drawn heavily on one of the
most priced German Intelligence men,
1t. Gen. Bamler. who was captured
by the Russians at the wars end and
closely questioned Gen. Bamler is
generally rated the best informed
poSt-Hltler German authority on war
production. He was the steel expert
for Adm. Canaris, grand chief of
German Intelligence, who was hanged
by Hitler for being in on the last
great plot against him.
Mon Of Mystery
There is much mystery about Gen.
Bamler. He seems to have ESCAPED
from the Russians, but to have been
followed and slain before he could
give the Allies (if he really wished
TO do 500 the benefit of what he
learned about Russian steel.
There is no doubt that Gen. Bam-
Ter hated Russia and was one of the
most loyal of Hitler's men. The proof
OF that is that Hitler would have him
killed along with Canaris and the
others if there had been the slightest
shadow of suspicion against him.
In any case. considerable revision
upward of general calculations on
Russia now appear to be in order.
The crude steel output of the So
viets for 1850 is put at % million
tons, or about IL per cent above pre-
Vlously accepted estimates. Indicated
output by 1852 is about q per cent
OF that of the United States for next
year. 1t has been anticipated that
Russia's production would continue
to rise, but not as fast as ours, so
that her maximum for 1852 has been
placed at only Is per cent of our
highly stepped up production.
How It's Used
Leimbach's point is that a small
amount Of additional steel, rigor-
ously rationed, can make huge diff
ference in war output. For example,
l million tons of steel would suffice
to double the number of tanks,
planes and submarines which Rus
sla is supposed to be building this
year.
To get some idea of the difference
IN approach to the steel problem in
America, and in Russia or Germany,
we need to realize that our "frivol-
GUS" consumption of steel in 1850 ex-
ceeded the entire Russian output in
that same year. OF course what the
Germans and Russians call frivolous
we call necessary. We go to work
in cars. The Russian or German
either lives in tiny room near the
steel plant. or if he lives at dis
tance. he walks.
With the same amount of steel
tonnage which we "frittered away"
in 1949, Hitler built his entire war
machine between 1899 and 1914. His
24,400 tanks used up only ! million