country as a whole and in the tributary area. In the tributary area the number of employees dropped to 68.2 percent of 1923, or a decrease of 31.8 percent. But in the United States as a whole the number of employees dropped to 57.7 percent of 1923, or a decrease of 42.3 percent. Please refer to exhibit 7 for a graphic comparison.

Exhibit 71: This is a graph showing comparison of percentage figures (trend for 20-year period following 1923) shown in column 1, with those shown in column 3 of exhibit 6, column 1 being the average number of employees of bituminouscoal operations in the United States as a whole and column 3 being the average number of employees of bituminous-coal operations located in the tributary area. In view of the statements made by some of the advocates of the proposed canal, particularly those of the president of the Big Sandy Valley Association, concerning the effect of unemployment and the need for Federal relief in the tributary area, I urge that special consideration be given by the committee to this exhibit.

This exhibit clearly shows, and there are no grounds for denying it, that employment of bituminous-coal operations in the tributary area did drop to a low level during the depression years. But was this condition peculiar to this area? The answer is "No." While such employment did drop in 1932 (the lowest level) to 68.2 percent of the 1923 level, or a decrease of 31.8 percent under 1923, the same class of employment throughout the country as a whole dropped to 57.7 percent of the 1923 level, or a decrease of 42.3 percent under 1923. Furthermore, the lowest depression year of 1932 was, during the depression years, the least favorable to the tributary area as compared with the country as a whole. This exhibit plainly so shows.

Exhibit 8: This exhibit shows for each year during the 21-year period, 1923 to 1943, inclusive, the average number of days worked by the bituminous coal mines throughout the United States and in each of the five counties comprising the tributary area. This exhibit is submitted here because it, in conjunction with exhibit 1 showing actual production, is the foundation upon which exhibit 9 (which follows) is based.

Exhibit 9: This exhibit shows for each year of the 21-year period, 1923 to 1943, inclusive, the potential production capacities of bituminous coal mines and the ratio of actual production to the potential production capacities, based upon 261 working days per year at the same daily rate of production as realized for the days actually worked. It shows this information for the entire United States (column 1) and for the five counties which comprise the tributary area (column 2).

The potential capacity figures for the United States as a whole, as shown in column 1, represent the actual production figures, as shown in column 1 of exhibit 1, divided by the number of days worked, as shown on exhibit 8, and the resultant average daily production for each of the days worked multiplied by 261. These potential capacity tonnage figures, thus arrived at, are the same as those published on page 22 of the United States Bureau of Mines Annual Report of 1944. This same method has been used as to each separate county of the tributary area in arriving at the potential capacity figures shown in column 2.

It will be seen that, during this 21-year period, the ratio of actual production to potential production capacity in the tributary area for each year exceeded the ratio for the United States as a whole, except for the years 1923, 1941, and 1942. This information is shown graphically on exhibit 10.

Exhibit 101: This exhibit is a graph showing for the 21-year period, 1923 to 1943, inclusive, comparison of the ratio of actual production to the potential production capacity for the United States as a whole (column 1, exhibit 9) with similar ratio for the tributary area (column 2, exhibit 9).

This exhibit shows at a glance that, excepting the 3 years 1923, 1941, and 1942, the tributary area has actually produced at higher ratio of potential production capacity than has the country as a whole.

CONCLUSION

The foregoing data should dispel the illusion of the promoters of the canal that the tributary area has not fared as well concerning bituminous coal production and employment as have other producing areas, or that it is in need of preferential treatment from the Government. These data conclusively show, contrary to the unsupported and foundationless claims of the advocates of the canal, that:

1. The trend of bituminous-coal production in the tributary area has not only kept fully abreast of the trend of production of the country as a whole and that of the general competing producing territory east of the Mississippi River, but has been greater; that is, the production in the tributary area has

1 Not printed; on file with the committee.

exceeded relative production either of the country as a whole or that of the general competing producing territory east of the Mississippi River.

2. The number of employees of bituminous coal operations in the tributary area has been relatively greater than that of the country as a whole.

3. In the tributary area the ratio of actual production to potential production capacity has been higher than that of the country as a whole. These indisputable facts should be convincing that the tributary area, without the proposed canal, has maintained a highly favorable position as compared with either the country as a whole or the general producing area of which the tributary area is a part; also that this favorable position of the tributary area is such as to not warrant any stimulation in the form of Federal subsidies at huge expense to the taxpayers throughout the entire country, including the taxpayers in competing producing areas which have fared not nearly so well. Respectfully submitted.

By N. R. LEHMANN,
General Coal Freight Agent,
Norfolk & Western Railway Co., Roanoke 17,

EXHIBIT 1.-Production of bituminous coal

Va.

Authority: GCFA, N. & W., Nov. 1, 1945.

Bureau of Mines of U. S. Department of Interior annual reports, except:

1 For Johnson County, specifically furnished by the Bureau of Mines.

2 For Martin County, used tonnages actually shipped over the Norfolk & Western Ry. since the Bureau of Mines reports are incomplete as to these tonnages.

EXHIBIT 3.-Lake cargo coal-Statement of Lake cargo bituminous coal tonnages from mines in the inner and outer Crescents, which embrace that portion of the Appalachian region extending from Pennsylvania through western Maryland, West Virginia, and southwestern Virginia into eastern Kentucky and Tennessee (including Chesapeake & Ohio Ry. Kentucky district and Norfolk & Western Ry. ThackerKenova group), and, separately, from Chesapeake & Ohio Ry. Kentucky district and Norfolk & Western Ry. Thacker-Kenova group combined, to Lake Erie ports for transshipment via Lakes, for the respective years 1923-44

Office of General Coal Freight Agent Norfolk & Western Railway Co., Roanoke, Va., Nov. 1, 1945. W-m.

EXHIBIT 4.-West-bound coal except Lake cargo coal-Statement of west-bound' bituminous coal tonnages, except Lake cargo tonnages, from mines in the inner and outer crescents, which embrace that portion of the Appalachian region extending from Pennsylvania through western Maryland, West Virginia, and southwestern Virginia into eastern Kentucky and Tennessee (including Chesapeake & Ohio Ry. Kentucky district and Norfolk & Western Ry. Thacker-Kenova group), and, separately, from Chesapeake & Ohio Ry. Kentucky district and Norfolk & Western Ry. Thacker-Kenova group combined, for the respective years, 1923–44

1 To destinations in the general territory Rochester, N. Y., Buffalo, N. Y., Pittsburgh, Pa., and west thereof located north of the Ohio River; also to destinations west of the Mississippi River, the preponderance of these tonnages being to points immediately beyond the Mississippi River.

Office of General Coal Freight Agent, Norfolk & Western Ry. Co., Roanoke, Va., Nov. 1, 1945. W-m.

EXHIBIT 6.-Average number of employees of bituminous coal operations

Authority: Bureau of Mines of U. S. Department of Interior annual reports, except:

1 For Johnson County, specifically furnished by the Bureau of Mines.

2 For Martin County, estimated by applying 1942 average production of 5.97 tons per man per day to actual tonnages as shown on exhibit 1.

Office of General Coal Freight Agent, N. & W. Ry., Nov. 1, 1945.