Facts & Figures

Sinews of Peace. If tired steel workers hoped that the end of war orders would mean a cut in overtime, they were disappointed. Last week, in a back-breaking effort to keep pace with steel orders, many steelmen were still putting in 60 to 96 hours a week. Mills were operating at close to 80% of capacity, highest peacetime production ever, with no let up in sight this year.

Unfair. Railroad men winced at airline advertising gleefully announcing the end of air-travel priorities by Oct. 15. Quietly the railroads were urging that: 1) the Office of Defense Transportation relax its ban on sleeping-car runs of less than 450 miles; 2) the Army turn back a few of the 895 sleepers grabbed from the railroads in July, when troop movements were at their peak.

Short Careers. The U.S. Maritime Commission put up for sale, as junk, four Liberty ships war-damaged beyond repair. Two of them had been torpedoed, one had been bombed, one had crashed into another vessel, was gutted by fire. If the ships are bought for scrap, purchasers must agree to destroy all motors, engines and other salvageable gear. Reason: to keep these items off an already glutted market. So far the Maritime Commission has received bids for two of the ships: $3,100 and $9,100 (they had cost upward of $1.5 million apiece).

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