Report of the Thirty-First National Conference on Weights and Measures, 1941 Page: 2
This report is part of the collection entitled: Technical Report Archive and Image Library and was provided to UNT Digital Library by the UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.
Extracted Text
The following text was automatically extracted from the image on this page using optical character recognition software:
National Bureau of Standards
So that the members of the Conference may have the opportunity
of seeing the Holbrook tablet, this has been dismounted and brought
here to our meeting room for the day. [At this point, Mr. Smith
unveiled the tablet, which rested on an easel on the rostrum.]
In order that you may have a mental picture of the appearance of
the Holbrook and Fischer tablets as these are mounted at the Bureau,
a photograph was made of a section of the wall of the office of the Divi-
sion of Weights and Measures, and this is reproduced on the lantern
slide which you will now see. [At this point, the lantern slide was
shown.]
It is the hope of the Committee that it has discharged its duties to
the satisfaction of the Conference.
(Signed) R. W. SMITH, Chairmnan,
GEORGE M. ROBERTS,
C. E. TUCKER,
Committee on Fay Stanley Holbrook Memnorial Tablet.
Mr. CROCKETT. I move that the Committee on Fay Stanley Holbrook
Memorial Tablet be discharged, and that we give the Committee a
rising vote of thanks.
(The motion was seconded, the question was taken, and the motion was agreed
to. Conformable to the motion, the Conference expressed its thanks to the Com-
mittee by rising at the call of the Chairuan.)
THE WEIGHTS AND MEASURES OFFICER AND THE PROGRAM FOR
NATIONAL DEFENSE
By DIcKsON RECK, Economist, Consumer Division, Office of Price Administration
and Civilian Supply, Office for Emergency Management
This is a time of national crisis. You all know that, and most
people are conscious of it. I think as the weeks go on they will be
even more conscious of it. It is a time when every American wants
to know just what problems we face, and particularly how he can
most effectively contribute to their solution. I take it that you want
to know how these problems look to us here in Washington, what we
are doing to solve them, and particularly how you, as weights and
measures officers, can fit into the picture. That is a big picture, but
I will try to sketch the outline and fill in with a little more detail those
parts which most directly interest you.
First, let's look at the military program. We are procuring the
necessary and essential items for a force of 2,000,000 men, and certain
critical items for 800,000 more. On top of this, we are building a two-
ocean navy and arranging to be the arsenal and provisioner of England
and other anti-axis countries.
What does all this add up to ? In the calendar year 1940 we spent
4.3 billion dollars on defense, which was only the start. It is esti-
mated that in the 2 calendar years of 1941 and 1942 we must spend
approximately 40 billion dollars upon defense, and the only limiting
factor will be the speed with which we can produce planes and tanks
and ships and other necessary war equipment and supplies.
This, then, is the first big economic problem we face: How to pro-
duce the material listed in the military program just as fast as is
humanly possible.2
Upcoming Pages
Here’s what’s next.
Search Inside
This report can be searched. Note: Results may vary based on the legibility of text within the document.
Tools / Downloads
Get a copy of this page or view the extracted text.
Citing and Sharing
Basic information for referencing this web page. We also provide extended guidance on usage rights, references, copying or embedding.
Reference the current page of this Report.
United States. National Bureau of Standards. Report of the Thirty-First National Conference on Weights and Measures, 1941, report, 1941; Washington D.C.. (https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc171007/m1/26/: accessed April 25, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.