"Once the docks are cleared of the valuable freight for which our men and associates in the war now wait in vain, then again our energies and power may be turned to manufacturing, more efficient than ever; so that a steady and uninterrupted stream of vital supplies may be this nation's answer to the Allies' cry for help....
"This is war. Whatever the cost, we must pay it, so that in the face of the enemy there can never be the reproach that we held back from doing our full share. Those ships, laden with our supplies of food for men and food for guns, must have coal and put to sea."
GARFIELD'S PLAN FOR FUEL ECONOMY, 1918—19
After the trying experiences of the winter of 1918, the Fuel Administration began to prepare in the following summer for another prospective shortage in coal supply. Fortunately the following winter was remarkably mild throughout the country. But the plans outlined by the Fuel Administration are more than useful as a matter of record. They may be used as a model under other conditions of fuel shortage. The following passage from the Fuel Administration Bulletin illustrates the plan of campaign:
"Fuel economy is being given intensive study in connection with steam plants and industrial uses. An organization is already in existence, provided with engineers and inspectors who will visit every one of the two hundred and fifty thousand steam-producing plants in the country with a view to the improvement both of equipment and firing practice. This is expected to save twenty million tons of coal.
"The economical use of power in factories will be in the hands of organized shop committees. The power loads of the public utilities throughout the country are being studied with a view to readjustments which will result in large saving.
"In many cities the isolated power plants which use an extravagant amount of coal in proportion to the power produced will be urged to obtain more economical power from large producing stations.
"The introduction of 'skip-stop' schedules on all the street railways is expected to save a million tons of coal. The consolidation of ice plants will yield a still larger tonnage. Unnecessary outdoor lighting, including advertising signs and display illumination, will be reduced. Hotels, office buildings, apartment houses, and public buildings are being asked to join in rigid economy of light and heat.
"Every American citizen will be asked to clean his furnace, keep it in repair, and study economical firing. Instructions prepared by the highest authority will be furnished by the Fuel Administration.
"If every one joins in this movement, from the owner of an industrial plant to the householder with his furnace and cook stove, if indoor and outdoor lighting is reduced to the amount absolutely needed, if houses are not overheated, the furnace dampers properly adjusted, and the ashes sifted, it will be possible to save from fifty to seventy-five million tons of coal without serious inconvenience to the American people."