Kankakee Valley Post, Volume 10, Number 48, DeMotte, Jasper County, 17 October 1940 — GENERAL HUGH S. JOHNSON Says: [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

GENERAL HUGH S. JOHNSON Says:

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Washington, D. C. WAR BASIS FOR INDUSTRY? Some of my columnar war crying colleagues say that American industry ought to be put on a war basis right now. Their argument is that one reason why France fell was that, under a peace structure, she could not mobilize her industry for war production, had to declare war to pep up the nation and did it all leisurely and far too late. They say also that “business as usual” kept England from getting ready soon enough and, finally, they point to the snail-like slowness of our present rearmament program. With all that about France, England and our slow progress, I agree. Perhaps I could agree also with the conclusion about putting our industry on a “war basis,” if I knew what the words mean—or if they did. Of that I am in doubt. If it means that American industry should now be put under industrial amateurs, I know of no more certain way to slow or even paralyze war production. If it means that we should get some dynamic and experienced leadership of the industrial war effort and give it appropriate authority, no comment was ever more significant—or more correct. That kind of leadership and administration would not, however, as some of this comment suggests, be obliged just to s?t all peace-time production aside in a kind of adjournment to make way for our war needs. There is plenty of industrial capacity in this country for both needs. > Qur industry needs an orchestra leader with a real baton who can keep it in harmony and rhythm for the new tune—but it doesn’t need to be chained to the benches of any slave galley with a sort of romanized Simon Legree to increase the, stroke with a cat-o’-nine-tails. * * * Our trivial World war experience may be informing. Our speedup of shipbuilding, both of merchant and warcraft, approached the miraculous. Charlie Schwab had charge of part of it. In a plant where al Iparts of a fabricated ship were being assembled and the engine department was far ahead of the co-ordinated schedule for it and ofher departments, he took time out for a short picnic for the workers in the yards. There were no speeches but, when the time for them came, Charlie pulled a surprise—the complete engine, mounted on truck wheels, gay with flags and preceded by a band came rolling out under a large transparency which read, “All dressed up and no place to go.” That plant speeded up production immediately. Of course, we can’t do this job with ballyhoo, but ballyhoo is part of it. We need every incentive and pressure of “go-get-it,” unified, experienced and inspired leadership to get speed without confusion and waste. We have one of this kind of leadership, only political leadership which insists on retaining personalized control of everything. •V '+ + REARMAMENT Is the rearmament program proceeding rapidly? Sidney Hillman of the national defense advisory commission “advises that no manufacturer who violates the labor laws can be ‘awarded’ a contract for work on the defense program and that the National Labor Relations board will decide, for this purpose, whether'or not an employer is ‘violating.’ ” There are now only two members of NLRB, Leiserson and Smith. The term of Chairman Madden has expired. Due to protests based on charges of his bias and unfairness the President has not reappointed him. The vacancy has existed for weeks. Some observers guess that the President wants to wait until after the election and then reappoint Madden. Smith and Leiserson agree on very few disputed points. Smith is an extreme left-winger—like Madden. Leiserson is middle-of-the-road. What they can’t agree on is put on ice until appointment of a third member with the deciding vote. Over in the selective service draft system, although the new organization is under way, no administrator has been appointed. Some mysterious inner pressures—probably the senile war-minded Stimson—prevented a solution of this problem which was perfection—the experienced and judicious veteran of the World war draft, Gull ion, for administrator—the young, expert and vigorous Hershey as its chief executive. Either alone would have been satisfactory. The team couldn’t have been bettered. As in NLRB, no responsible head has been appointed. Hershey has been “detailed” to go through in an “acting” capacity. In the name of mere mediocrity, why? The big job in the draft is the beginning—setting up the selective service system and selling it to the people. That requires experience, expertness—even genius. After that it is a routine mechanical job. This beginning also requires some prestige or position in the administrator. It certainly requires unquestioned authority and ful] responsibility. *