The Pittsburgh Press (August 24, 1941)
EAST ASSURED GAS SUPPLIES FOR LABOR DAY
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Quota boosted for weekend; Senate probe of shortage forecast
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By O. H. Knight, United Press staff writer
Washington, Aug. 23 –
Plans for an equitable supply of gasoline for the East Coast motoring public over the Labor Day weekend were announced tonight, as favorable Senate committee action was forecast on a resolution for an inquiry into the seaboard oil shortage.
Acting Defense Petroleum Co-ordinator Ralph K. Davies announced that oil companies supplying the bulk of gasoline used on the East Coast had agreed on the Labor Day weekend delivery plan.
It involves carefully rationed deliveries to filling stations next week, from Monday through Friday, and permitting the stations to get full deliveries on Saturday, Sunday and Monday. Deliveries on those two days, Aug. 30 and 31, will be charged off against the stations’ September quotas, as will Labor Day deliveries on Sept. 1.
Senate probe lively
Chairman Josiah W. Bailey (D-NC) of the Senate Commerce Committee predicted that the group next week would approve a resolution by Senator Francis Maloney (D-CT) for a special five-man Senate inquiry to determine whether there is no actual need for rationing as on the East Coast.
It was considered possible that the Commerce Subcommittee appointed to consider the resolution might make a preliminary investigation of its own, perhaps summoning Mr. Davies or oil company officials who may be in town at the time.
Even if approved by the Commerce Subcommittee and then the full committee, the Maloney resolution would still be subject to approval of the Senate. It was not known at this time whether it could win such approval.
To calculate quotas
Under the oil companies’ Labor Day weekend plans, the suppliers will calculate the amount of gasoline due each of their filling stations for the balance of August under last week’s 10% reduction order. From these figures they will divide up the number of gallons left each distributor into five equal daily quotas for delivery from Monday through Friday.
On the basis of their daily deliveries, the filling stations would have to work out some form of rationing for customers, since the supply available each day will be limited.
By permitting the Labor Day weekend deliveries to be charged off against normal September quotas, the plan advanced by the oil companies may cause some shortages towards the end of the month. But officials here had nothing to say regarding that possibility.
Congressional dissatisfaction over the East Coast oil shortage stems largely from conflicting reports on the availability of railroad tanker cars to deliver supplies from Southern and Southwestern oilfields to Atlantic Seaboard point.
Mr. Davies has said that his office has not been able to locate the cars. But J. J. Pelly, president of the Association of American Railroads, declared that there are 17,557 cars available to move 200,000 barrels of oil daily to the East Coast at any time that Mr. Davies wants them.
Congressional critics of the rationing program are also perturbed by reports from an oil industry official that the industry has been asked to supply 100 additional tankers to expedite shipment of petroleum to Britain.
A Senator, quoting the oil industry representative, said that the request for 100 more tankers – more than one-third of the present tanker fleet – was received three weeks ago.