tion, making whatever people want and affording maximum employment, just as quickly as possible. The plan is simple in outline. Detailed procedures for putting it into effect will be developed promptly. The plan provides as follows: There will be only one preference rating, in addition to the present emergency AAA rating, and this rating will be reserved exclusively for military programs during the war against Japan. All other production will be unrated. Manufacturers will be permitted to accept unrated arter's but they will be obliged to fill rated military orders ahead of all other business. After Germany's collapse no programming of civilian production will be necessary. The information which the War Production Board has on the available supplies of materials, components, facilities, and manpower indicates that maximum civilian output can be achieved without detailed priorities regulation from Washington. The War Production Board will retain its Industry Divisions and its Industry Division Requirements Committees whose job will be to make certain that no one is permitted to procure an unreasonable amount of any material or product, that needed materials and components are made available to top essential civilian activities such as transportation, utilities, and fuel, and that small business is given an equal opportunity to secure materials and supplies. A very few allocation orders will be continued for materials that remain tight, such as lumber, textiles, and certain chemicals. For example, it will be necessary to continue strict controls of the use of lumber, particularly for major construction projects. The Controlled Materials Plan for allocating steel and copper will be continued only for the quarter in which hostilities in Europe cease. Paul V. McNutt, Chairman, War Manpower Commission, who was present at the meeting, endorsed the program outlined and indicated that the WMC will shortly announce a program for manpower after Germany's collapse, designed to dovetail with the WPB procedure. Mr. Krug said in deciding upon immediate and drastic elimination of production controls that War Production Board is planning on keeping its steering gear and brakes in good condition. During the past three years, the WPB industry divisions have developed methods that have been notably successful in dealing quickly and effectively with industrial problems. This "know-how" will be kept available for immediate use as needed. Also available will be the Industry Advisory Committees, the authority to allocate materials and to schedule production of components when supply becomes critical. If troubles should occur in military production or civilian output, WPB will be able to handle them on a spot basis. With the removal of controls on production, industrial, civic, and labor leaders in every community will be called upon to use their ingenuity and resourcefulness to overcome the home front difficulties on the way back. NO RELAXATION OF RESTRICTIONS ON BURLAP OR ROPE ANTICIPATED BY WPB Officials of the Cordage Branch of the War Production Board's Textile, Clothing and Leather Bureau said September 7 that they cannot foresee the possibility of any revocation or relaxation of present orders controlling the production or use of cordage or burlap, which might be expected upon the collapse of Germany. This statement was made to clarify any misunderstanding or misapprehension that may exist in the minds of cordage manufacturers or users as a result of WPB's recently announced policy of cutbacks on "X" day--the end of the European phase of the war. Present short supplies of burlap and cordage-making fibers are caused by the war with Japan and until some of the territories now occupied by the Japanese can be freed, no easing of restrictions on burlap or cordage can be forecast, it was explained. Fourth-quarter 1944 military requirements for burlap and rope are so great that it is impossible to foresee any relaxation of restrictions on burlap or rope for civilian needs, the officials said. WPB ASKS COOPERATION IN USE OF TRANSPORTATION FACILITIES An intensive drive to secure the full cooperation of the Nation's shippers and receivers in getting more use out of existing transportation facilities during the coming peak load months was announced September 3 by the Transportation and Storage Division of the War Production Board. The Office of Defense Transportation recently reported that "rail car loading are currently exceeding 1943 levels, rail hauls are growing longer, heavier loadings carried per car and the ton-mile total are still moving impressively upward." The Storage and Transportation Division issued the following statement: "With this as the current situation, it should be obvious that the seasonal traffic peak this fall and the continued heavy load during the winter months will not allow any relaxation of efforts towards the best utilization of transportation facilities. In fact, what is needed is an intensification of efforts to conserve transportation facilities. "It is a well recognized fact that the wholehearted cooperation of shippers and receivers of freight has been of immense value in making possible the carriage of the unprecedented traffic load throughout the war emergency. We are calling upon industry to re-examine its practices and opportunities towards this end. "Haulage equipment is now being utilized to a greater degree than ever before and there is no surplus available for the increased load expected. The answer to the transportation problem appears to lie in a reduction in turn-around time of rail freight cars. For instance, a reduction of one day would make available approximately 140,000 more freight cars for loading during September, October, and November. Shippers and receivers of freight can do much towards making this possible. "Among the suggestions to improve the transportation situation are the following: "(1) Load all equipment immediately after placement and release cars to the railroads with full and correct billing instructions without delay. "(2) Load cars so they can be unloaded from either side; stow and brace shipments in cars carefully so as to avoid damage, thereby making unnecessary the replacement of shipments. "(3) Unload cars immediately upon receipt and release to the railroads without delay equipment that is not to be reloaded after removing all dunnage and debris and closing doors in .order to keep the interior dry and clean. This should also be done on Sundays and Holidays. "(4) Boad all cars to capacity. (5) Order only the number of cars required for immediate loading. "(6) Keep in contact with local railroad authorities in regard to switching schedules, etc., and arrange loading and unloading operations accordingly. "(7) Be prepared to adjust loads to utilize different sizes or types of equipment when exact, ideal requirements cannot be met. "(8) Utilize the form of transportation most readily available. "The War Production Board will inform the industries of the Nation at industry advisory committee meetings in Washington during the next few weeks that the coming months probably will prove to be the most critical of the war for transportation. Industries will be urged to take immediate steps to expand the utilization of existing rail equipment through the saving of at least one day in the freight car turn-around for the remainder of this year. "Efforts should be made to conserve not only railroad facilities, but also highway and waterway transportation. The critical situation in regard to heavy duty truck tires, the shortage of trucks and gasoline and the manpower shortage make it particularly important that every possible ton-mile of highway haulage be conserved." ODT ACTS TO ELIMINATE DELAYS IN UNLOADING REFRIGERATOR CARS Col. J. Monroe Johnson, Interstate Commerce Commissioner and Director of the Office of Defense Transportation, announced September 5 that ICC Service Order No. 180, which provides penalties for holding railroad refrigerator cars beyond a reasonable time for unloading, will again become effective September 9. Heavy seasonal movements of perishable freight at this time combine with the shortage of ice to constitute an emergency requiring the maximum use of all railroad refrigerator cars, in the opinion of the National Refrigerator Advisory Committee consisting of representatives of railroads, shippers, refrigerator car owners, and the ODT. The ICC has accepted the Committee's recommendation that the existing suspension of ICC Service Order No. 180 be terminated on September 9. The order therefore becomes effective again on September 9 without further notice. ICC Service Order No. 180 established demurrage charges on any refrigerator car loaded with any commodity not unloaded within the 48 hours free time. After the free time, the charges are $2.20 a day for the first two days, $5.50 for the third day, $11 for the fourth day, $22 for the fifth day, and $44 for each succeeding day. These heavy demurrage charges are intended to make any holding of refrigerator cars for storage beyond five days too costly to be profitable. Service Order No. 180 was originally recommended because delays in unloading refrigerator cars were seriously affecting the available supply of such cars for shippers, said Colonel Johnson. The order, originally scheduled to become effective February 11, 1943, was suspended to February 16; was effective from February 16 to April 6, and was suspended April 6 to August 5, and the suspension was continued to September 9. USE OF TERM "GRAYFISH" IS DISCUSSED BY FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION In reply to an inquiry from the Service, the Food and Drug Administration on September 15 discussed the use of the term "grayfish" to identify on labels for canned products the fish frequently known as the dogfish. An excerpt from the letter follows: Long before the name "grayfish" was coined in 1916 or 1917, this species was known as the dogfish. Many authentic publications give priority to the name dogfish and it is our observation that among fishermen the name dogfish is rather universally applied. If the question were one of which name was first applied and has the wider usage, we should have to conclude that the term dogfish is entitled to priority. However, we recall very well the promotion of this fish a quarter of a century ago as a food fish under the name "grayfish" and the enclosed abstract from the Scientific American of February 9, 1918, amplifies our recollection. In certain literature describing this fish we find the name "grayfish" given as the preferred name. On the theory that frequent usage of a name over two decades or more constitutes sufficient evidence to establish it as a common or usual name, we will not press our objection to the term "grayfish" as a label designation unless it develops that consumers are misled. This is with the understanding that the fish used are actually those of the genus Squalus and are not the larger and more typical members of the shark family such as the soupfin, which must be labeled as shark. ARTICLE ON VOLATILE BASES IN FISH PUBLISHED An article "Determining Volatile Bases in Fish"--a comparison of the precision of certain methods--by Maurice E. Stansby, Roger W. Harrison, John Dassow, and Marie Sater, was published in the Industrial and Engineering Chemistry, Sept. 1944, Vol. 16, No. 9. The article was prepared at the Service's technological laboratory at Seattle, Washington. Fresh Fish Trade AUGUST LANDINGS AT NEW BEDFORD SLIGHTLY ABOVE AUGUST 1943 Landings of fishery products during August at New Bedford, Mass., totaled 7,245,000 pounds, valued to the fishermen at $611,700, according to data published in Current Fishery Statistics No. 147 by the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The August landings were approximately the same as those in July. Compared with August 1943, when 7,068,000 pounds, valued at $502,500, were landed, it was an increase of 2 percent in volume and 22 percent in value. During the month, 176 craft made 437 trips to the fishing grounds. The over-all weighted average price per pound received by the fishermen for their catches during August was 8.44 cents as compared with 8.48 cents during July and 7.11 cents during August 1943. The principal items landed during August were haddock and yellowtail, which accounted for 65 percent of the total catch. Total landings for the first eight months of 1944 amounted to 58,710,000 pounds, valued at $4,595,300, Compared with 1943, this was an increase of 34 percent in volume and 7 percent in value. The total weighted average value for the first eight months of 1944 was two cents lower than that of 1943, averaging 7.83 cents per pound compared with 9.86 cents for 1943. THREE-PORT LANDINGS DECLINE DURING AUGUST, BUT 8-MONTH TOTAL LEADS 1943 BY 8 PERCENT Fishery products landed at the ports of Boston and Gloucester, Mass., and Portland, Maine, during August totaled 41,297,000 pounds, valued at $2,147,000 to the fishermen, according to Current Fishery Statistics No. 144, released by the Fish and Wildlife Service. The production was 5 percent less than August 1943 and 9 percent under July 1944. The weighted average price for all landings was 5.20 cents per pound compared with 4.66 cents for July and 5.25 cents for August 1943. During the month, 246 vessels made 1,057 trips to the fishing grounds compared with 1,134 trips by 221 vessels during August 1943. For the first eight months of 1944, the total landings were 251,440,000 pounds, valued at $14,142,500, an increase of 8 percent in volume compared with the corresponding period of 1943. The weighted average price received for the period was 5.62 cents per pound compared with 7.13 cents in 1943. Landings by Fishing Vessels at Boston and Gloucester, Mass., and Portland, Maine Boston Gloucester Portland 105,652 35.45 434.777 251,440,456 5.62 545.515 7.79 108,105 2.71 542,706 48.85 875,222 231,671,477 7.13 14,984,571 6.33 15,612,704 5.83 14,468,109 Weighted average of prices per pound paid to fishermen. 837.748 5.17 149,555 3.70 - NEW YORK FISH RECEIPTS UP 5 PERCENT IN AUGUST Receipts of fresh and frozen fishery products at New York's salt-water market during August increased 5 percent compared with July while showing practically no change from August 1943, according to the Service's Market News office in New York City. A falling off of Long Island production, especially of scup, was offset by increased receipts from other points, allowing an overall gain from July. Shrimp receipts recorded the outstanding gain in poundage in August, and swordfish receipts continued to increase greatly, production far exceeding the quantities anticipated earlier in the season. Receipts of Fresh and Frozen Fishery Products--Salt-water Market, New York City* This year the production of shrimp in August remained considerably below last year's record total, according to the Service's Market News office in New Orleans. A number of the plants were canning more of their shrimp this season due to the comparatively low price ceilings on frozen shrimp and because they were granted increased prices for two large sizes of canned shrimp. Hard crab production was above that of last year in all areas. Prices in Eastern markets have remained at levels favorable to the crab fishermen and fishing has been active. For the first 8 months of 1944, oyster production was 33 percent less than in the comparable period in 1943. The retail and restaurant trade in oysters was comparatively quiet. Production of Fishery Products in the Gulf States* |