The Coming Fight for Fuel and Rubber
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A Delijate Situation Throughout the World in Respect of These Vital Materials is Becoming Apparent Tl-IE future of world oil supplies holds the possibilities of many headaches. One faction in the U.S A. pins its faith to a continuance of supplies from the oilfields of the North Americas continent. Another group, apparently carrying U.S. Government interests with it, is actively pursuing a policy, based on the feared eArly exhaustion of domestic supplies of crude, of acquiring interests inforeign oilfields, chiefly in the Arabian and Persian Gulf region, believed by some to be the 'richest in the world.
This policy, of course, brings international diplomacy into the oil picture, and in the recent report of the Truman Committee on the subject, the aspect of securing oil from such proprietary American-owned or leaSed oilfields seems to have eng ,s,ecl the attention of the Committee.
The possibility of the Mediterranean being closed or there being artificial bars on the approaches to these foreign oilfields, either in the Atlantic or the Indian Oceans, suggests that naval agreements with the powers concerned must be an integral part of the policy; it may, in times of crises, which cannot be ruled out, even necessitate the policing of the seas concerned, the implications of which can be unpredictable.
. There Is, one might reasonably conclude from a survey of these. activities, much . to be .said' for the development in all countries, -or possibly groups of countries, of their own fuel and power resources in place of oil. Mineral and vegetable raw materials, scientifically and intensively developed with autarchy or a measure of such in view, would appear to be more than desirable, and even essential.
In this country there is nothing to prevent immediate action being taken, but it must be by the authority—the Minister of Fuel and Power—taking over the direction of the efforts of the many research bodies, each at present Nvorking fot 'its own sectional interest, totally unco-ordinated with the national requirements.
Tied up with fuel is rubber; neither on land nor in the air can either function on transport media without the other, so that what applies to the fuel applies just as urgently to rubber.
The uprooting of our settled policy connected with the Far Eastern plantations has aheady happened, and as with fuel, we have much. reconstructing to do in the post-war days. America has inher hands the means for a rubber autarchy, as concerns both the natural and synthetic varieties. Russia is developing in the same manner and is undoubtedly now largely independent of the outside .world, with, like 'America, both natural and synthetic varieties developed to a commercial stage.
In this country we have done practically nothing with rubber; we are in the same position as with oil—we have none. We have coal for the making of our fuel, and we have land upon which to plant wheat for the manufacture of alcohol fuel and synthetic rubber, also for growing the Russian latex-producing clandelion—kok-saghyz. Germany and her satellite countries are already growing kok-saghyz.