The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1952-01-24
Commercial Men
Plan Steps In
Case OF Attack
Travelling Statesmen
Give Thought About
Possibility OF Atom
Bomb Assault Soon
BY SAM DAWSON

NEW YORK R-The farmers
daughter isn't the only thing on
the travelling Salesman's mind
these days. The atom bomb has
changed all that.
If bombs fall on an American
city, what happens TO the business
man who may be visiting there
or to yourself If you're caught off
home base? Always supposing, OF
course, that you aren't a casualty
Travelling statesmen aren't the
only businessmen involved. Bust
nessmen are constantly on the go
these days, visiting branches of
the company or material sources,
consulting government bureaus,
seeking new sales outlets.
Many travel in their own cars:
some in company planes. If a
bomb falls, will these cars or
planes be confiscated? Will the
transient be speeded on his way,
or informed, or pressed into relief
duties? And will Re be allowed 10
communicate with his worried
family?
Varied, and sometimes conflict
ing. rules are set up in the dif.
ferent states, according TO the Blu
reau of Salesmen's National ASso-
Citations. It's members are organ
izations in the apparel and shoe
trades. The businessman who may
be caught away from home by
some sudden attack on the United
States could find his return trip
one great puzzle and confusion, the
bureau says, unless uniform rule
can be worked out
To find out what would happen
to its travelling members, the Ma
tional Association of Women's and
Children's Apparel SaleSmen--a
member of the bureau--has polled
the civil defense directors of the
4S states and the District of Co
lumbia and has 81 replies. Here's
what might happen TO you in some
of these 81, if surprise attack
singled one of them out:
Colorado plans to impound all
vehicles for disposition at stra-
logically located traffic detention
points throughout the state" the
association report shows. And the
association says IS per cent of its
members travel by car and il
thinks that's fairly representative
NJ travelling statesmen as whole.
these days
Georgia, Maryland, Ohio and the
District of Columbia plan to in
tern the travellers or draft all
able. bodied ones for relief work.
Connecticut and Rhode Island,
on the other hand, are quoted as
saying they win speed all tran
sients out of the state as quickly
as possible. Connecticut urges
statesmen never to let their gaso-
line tanks 60 below the half way
mark--"a half tank of gas will
take you to the border from any
point in the state
Idaho has an eye on the 10000
tourists who are likely TO be in
Northern California When the
weather isn't too unusual-and so
Idaho plans TO ration gasoline IN
event of trouble to keep eastbound
transients from draining the state
dry. Business travellers are urged
to carry Identification cards to ex-
pedite movement through road
blocks, Idaho tells the assocla-
ton.
Eight states are reported by the
association as having no specific
rules as yet covering the travel
lers within their borders should an
attack come. They are Florida,
Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Mississip-
pi. Missouri. Pennsylvania and
Texas.
Most survivors OF bombing
would give first thought to getting
in touch with their families, In
most states civil defense and mill
tary needs will take all commune
cation facilities at once. Some
states, however. such as Califor-