much valuable time has been lost in the distribution of
orders among a score or so of concerns which have had facilities for
making shells, ordnance, and so forth. Competitive bidding for parts
of contracts has held back the finished product and successful bidders
have frequently been handicapped by inability to obtain necessary
machinery.

Now plans for accelerating manufacture in all war lines have been
launched by David Lloyd George, the new British Minister of Munitions,
and in the shadow of his influence J.P. Morgan & Co. have practically
brought to a conclusion plans to centre future war orders in a few
great companies, with the General Electric Company as the dominant
unit.

The extent to which the banking house used its tremendous influence is
problematical, but it is history that Mr. Lloyd George has been
bringing all pressure to bear to increase England's supplies, and with
them the supplies of the remaining allies, since British purchasing
agents are, to a large extent, looking after the interests of France
and Russia, and it may be inferred that the Morgan firm has been as
active as possible in carrying out the wishes of the European nations.

Persons in touch with the progress being made in war orders state that
the British authorities have become greatly concerned over their
supplies of ammunition at hand and in process of manufacture. While
orders aggregating many hundreds of millions of dollars have been
placed in this country and Canada, deliveries have been disappointing.
Canadian plants got to work early in the war, but the delay in
ordering supplies in the United States and other neutral countries has
seriously affected the efficiency of the allied armies in France and
Poland, it is said.

The experience of the American Locomotive Company is typical of the
situation. After negotiations which covered several weeks, the company
procured a contract which is said to amount to approximately
$65,000,000 for shells. During the discussion of terms, and even
before, the Locomotive officials were busy buying the necessary lathes
and other machinery, but installation of equipment and the training of
men could not be done in a few days. The contract was definitely
closed six weeks ago, but the company has only begun to turn out the
shells at its Richmond plant, and it was said in authoritative
quarters that several weeks more would pass before anything like a
substantial output would be possible.

The cen