Full text of Annual Report of the Secretary of Commerce : 43d Annual Report of the Secretary of Commerce, 1955

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ANNUAL

REPORT
of the Secretary
of Commerce

U . S. D E P A R T M E N T
OF COM M ERCE

1955

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43 d A N N U A L

REPORT
of the Secretary
of Commerce

UN ITED STATES
GOVERNM ENT PR IN T IN G OFFICE
W ASHINGTON : 195 5

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
Creation and Significance
The Department of Commerce was designated as such by the
act of Mar. 4, 1913 (37 Stat. 736; 5 U. S. C. 611), which re­
organized the Department of Commerce and Labor, created by
the act of Feb. 14, 1903 (32 Stat. 826; 5 U. S. C. 591), by
transferring out of the former department all labor activities.
The Department seal of blue and gold is crested by the American
bald eagle denoting the national scope of the Department’s
activities; the ship symbolizes commerce; the lighthouse repre­
sents guidance from the darkness, translated as commercial en­
lightenment; the blue denotes uprightness and constancy; and
the gold denotes purity.
The statutory functions of the Department are to foster, promote,
and develop the foreign and domestic commerce, manufacturing,
shipping, and transportation facilities of the United States. Re­
lated functions subsequently have been added or eliminated from
the Department from time to time by legislation or Executive
order; however, the purposes have remained substantially thesame as those for which the Department was established.

For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U. S. Government Printing.
Office, Washington 25, D. C. Price 30 cents

CONTENTS
ORGANIZATION C H A R T ............................................................................................
officials o f t h e D e p a r t m e n t ........................................................................
RANSMITTAL AND STATEMENT BY THE SECRETARY OF COMMERCE . .
i m ediate O ffic e o f t h e S e c r e t a r y ........................................................

Page
IV
v
1
5

Business Advisory Council...................................................................
5
Office of the General C o u n se l..........................................................
6
Office of Public Inform ation..............................................................
9'
Office of Strategic Inform ation..........................................................
9
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Administration . . .
10
Office of Administrative Operations.................................................
11
Appeals B o ard ...................................................................................... 12
Office of Budget and M anagem ent............................................
12
Office of Personnel M anagem ent................................................
14
Office of Publications.....................................................................
15
Office of the U nder Secretary .....................................................
16
Coast and Geodetic Survey .............................................................
17
Patent Office.........................................................................................
22
National Bureau of S ta n d a rd s..................................................... 25
>ffice of the U nder Secretary for T ransportation . . . .
30
Civil Aeronautics Administration.....................................................
31
Defense Air Transportation Administration................................
36
Maritime A dm inistration.............................................................
37
Bureau of Public R o a d s................................................................. 42
Weather B u re a u ......................................................................... . 45
)ffice of the Assistant Secretary for D omestic Affairs . . 50
Business and Defense Services Administration.................................
51
Office of Field S erv ices.........................................................
54
Office of Technical S erv ices.....................................................
55
Office of Business Economics.............................................................
57
Bureau of the C ensus..................................................................... 59
)ffice of the Assistant Secretary for I nternational Affairs . 64
Bureau of Foreign Commerce .........................................................
65
Office of International Trade F a ir s .................................................
68
nland W aterways Corporation .................................................
69
in

ORGANIZATION OF THE U. S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

OFFICIALS OF THE DEPARTMENT
As of June 30, 1955
Secretary of Commerce........................ S in c l a ir W eek s .
Jnder Secretary of Commerce . . . . W a l t e r W illiam s .
Jnder Secretary of Commerce for
T ransportation.................................Louis S. R o t h sc h ild .
Assistant Secretary of Commerce for
International A ffairs........................ S am uel W. A n derso n .
Assistant Secretary of Commerce for
Domestic Affairs.................................L o th a ir T e e t o r .
Assistant Secretary of Commerce for
A dm inistration.................................G eo r g e T. M o o r e .
fcncral Counsel ..............................................P h il ip A. R ay.

Director of Public Information . . . . A lb e r t N. L em a n .
Director, Office of Strategic
Information.........................................E r w in S e a g o .
Heads of Bureaus and Offices Reporting to—
U n d er S ec r e t a r y

of

C o m m erce :

Director, Coast and Geodetic
Survey................. R . F. A. S tu dd s .
Commissioner, Patent Office. . . . R o b er t C. W atson .
Director, National Bureau of
Standards......................A. V. A stin.

U n d er S ec r e t a r y

of C omm erce

for

T r a n spo r ta t io n :

Administrator, Civil Aeronautics
A dm inistration.F r ed e r ic k B. L e e .
Administrator, Defense Air
Transportation Administration . . T h eo d o r e H a r d een , J r .
Chairman, Federal Maritime Board . C la ren c e G. M o rse .
Administrator, Maritime
A dm inistration.............................C la ren c e G. M o rse .
Commissioner, Bureau of Public
R o a d s .............................................C . D. C urtiss .
Chief, Weather B ureau.................... F. W. R e ic h e l d e r f e r .
V

A ssista n t S e c r e t a r y o f C o m m e r c e f o r I n t e r n a t io n a l A f f a ir s :

Director, Bureau of Foreign
C om m erce.....................................L o rin g
Director, Office of International
Trade Fairs.....................................R oy F.

A ssistant S e c r e t a r y

of

C omm erce

for

A ssistant S e c r e t a r y

of

C om m erce

for

K . M a cy .
W illia m s .

D omestic A f fa ir s :

Administrator, Business and Defense
Services Administration . . . . C h a r les F. H o n e y w e l l .
Director, Office of Field Services . G u y E. W y a tt .
Director, Office of Technical
S erv ice s.....................................J ohn C. G r e e n .
Director, Office of Business
E conom ics.................................... M . J o seph M e e h a n .
Director, Bureau of the Census . . R o b er t W. B urgess .
Chairman, Appeals Board................
Director, Office of Budget and
M anagem ent................................
Director, Office of Administrative
Operations .....................................
Director, Office of Personnel
M anagem ent................................
Director, Office of Publications . . .
Director, Office of Security Control .

A d m in istr a tio n :
F r e d e r ic W . O lm stead .

O scar H . N ielso n .
W il lia m M . M a r t in .
C a r lto n H a y w a r d .
D onald R . B urgess .
N ew m an S m ith .

43d A N N U A L REPORT OF THE SECRETARY
OF COMMERCE

Transmittal and Statement
D e p a r t m e n t o f C o m m er c e ,
O f f ic e o f t h e S ecretary ,

Washington, December 30,1955.

Sms:
I have the honor to report to you the services and information provided
to industry and business by the Department of Commerce as its contribution
to the enhancement of the economy and record-high prosperity of the Nation
during the fiscal year ended June 30, 1955.
To the general public there accrued valuable dividends of improved
service and greater economy which, through the policy decisions of de­
partmental official and staff groups, resulted from streamlining our operating
systems and further eliminating waste and duplication.
Reflecting the ever-increasing importance of highway transport for pro­
duction, distribution, and defense, there was undertaken a wide range of
engineering, administrative, and research activities to aid the States in
planning and developing a system of highways adequate to the Nation’s
needs. During the year $671,230,969 of Federal funds were used in the
construction of 22,155 miles of highway, the total cost of which was
$1,280,492,334.
In the maritime field, we took several important steps designed to foster
the progressive development of a modern and efficient United States mer­
chant fleet and the maintenance of the country’s marine industry at the
level required to meet the Nation’s needs in the event of a national emer­
gency. Among the most notable of these steps were an accelerated ship
construction program involving new and replacement vessels for the coun­
try’s fleet, the repair of a limited number of vessels in our national defense
reserve fleets to increase their readiness in the event of emergency and the
1

2

A N NUAL REPO R T O F T H E SECRETARY OF COM M ERCE

development of new designs and propulsion plants for new ships ar
adaptation to existing ships in the active or reserve fleets.
We handled a greatly increased volume and variety of aviation activit
Numerous installations of electronic aids for air navigation and trail
control were made on the Federal airways to help cope with traffic whic
registered such increases as a million and a half more landings and takeof
handled by the Department’s Civil Aeronautics Administration contr
towers in the previous fiscal year. Further to accommodate the needs <
increased traffic, the Federal aid airport program was reactivated with ne
allocations of $22,245,281 to 192 airports. Introduction in the Unite
States of new types of aircraft such as the turboprop Vickers Viscount higl
lighted the need for concentrating CAA safety activities where most neede
and delegating as many other responsibilities as possible to the maturin
industry. A broad study of what could be accomplished in this area w£
launched during the year.
We continued our program of surveying and charting for the promotio
of marine and air commerce and for engineering use. A major accomplisl
ment was the completion of the north-south triangulation arc across th
Brooks Range in northern Alaska to coordinate all future surveying an
mapping in the Territory. Over 44 million nautical and aeronautics
charts were distributed during the year, the largest in the history of th
Department.
Weather service accomplishments included noteworthy advancements i
hurricane, tornado, and severe weather warning services, and the develop
ment of new methods to forecast future weather patterns with the aid o
high-speed electronic computers. We also instituted a program to provid
daily advices to civil defense authorities at the Federal, State, and loca
levels on areas likely to be affected by radioactive fallout in the event o
enemy attack.
We continued to provide science and industry with the precise measure
ment standards and techniques that have become so essential to progres
in our modern technological economy. Improvements were made in scien
tific standards, and accurate data were obtained on materials required foi
new applications in atomic energy, jet flight, and guided missile development
Advances in electronic computing pointed the way toward constructior
of the superspeed computing machines now needed in business operations
as well as in many branches of science and engineering.
Some have deemed the present importance of scientific research to in­
dustrial opportunity a “technological revolution.” Since the Government
is the major sponsor of scientific research and development in this country,
financing over $2 billion worth a year, it places special responsibility upon
the Department of Commerce to “feed back” the end product of this taxsupported research to the national economy. We collect the nonclassified
technical information derived from Government research and disseminate it

ANNUAL REPO R T O F T H E SECRETARY O F COM M ERCE

3

:o industry. This program was substantially strengthened in fiscal 1955
n order that American industry and the consumer may more fully realize
he benefits of our new scientific discoveries.
We supported currently authorized military and atomic energy programs
>y channeling scarce materials to meet defense production projects on
chedule. In cooperation with the Office of Defense Mobilization and
)ther defense agencies, we progressed on the development of industrial
ireparedness programs and measures to strengthen the Nation’s mobilization
>ase.
Through industry divisions of the Department, industry advisory comnittees, industry conferences, and day-to-day contacts with the business
»mmunity, we promoted a broad program of Government-industry co>peration for the exchange of information of mutual interest both to
Jovernment and private enterprise.
Under our area development program we not only assisted 240 comnunities in 42 States in initiating and carrying out industrial and area
levelopment programs but also assisted labor surplus areas by informing
¡xpanding industries of the location advantages of these areas.
The fertility of inventive genius in America represented in the influx
>f new patent applications during the year, which was the greatest in any
'ear since 1931, brought the workload of the Patent Office nearly to an
di-time high and made more urgent the need for measures to cope with
his condition in the interest of preserving the efficacy of the patent system
is a vital contributor to the growth and vigor of our free industrial economy.
The upswing in our business economy was reflected in an increase in the
lumber of applications for the registration of trademarks covering new
products and services moving in the channels of commerce.
The results of the 1954 censuses of business, manufactures, mineral
ndustries, and agriculture, conducted during fiscal 1955, will contribute
greatly to the economic intelligence needed for establishment of sound
business and government policies. They will provide basic data that have
not been available in these various fields for from 5 to 16 years.
We participated in the development of United States policies affecting
foreign trade and investment, in international efforts to liberalize trade
throughout the world, and in tariff and trade negotiations. We acted to
increase travel to and from the United States, participated in foreign tech­
nical assistance programs, and, while tightening security controls on
strategic exports, eased controls on nonstrategic goods. We strengthened
consultation services to business on international trade matters and doubled
our publication of business information.
The international trade fair program, inaugurated by the President in
September 1954, resulted in United States participation in 15 international
trade fairs in Europe and the Far East during 1955. Between 12 and
15 million people visited United States official exhibits which showed

4

ANN U A L REPO R T O F T H E SECRETARY OF COM M ERCE

products contributed by 883 American companies. The program en­
courages two-way trade with other countries, helps American business
to sell more products abroad, and reveals the American way of life and
system of free enterprise to the people of other lands.
A full report of the Department’s accomplishments and expenditures
for fiscal 1955 follows.
Respectfully,
Secretary of Commerce.

T h e P r e s id e n t o f t h e S e n a t e .
T h e S p e a k e r o f t h e H o u s e o f R e p r e s e n t a t iv e s .

Immediate Office of the Secretary
BUSINESS ADVISORY COUNCIL
The Business Advisory Council in 1955 completed 21 years of service to
re Department of Commerce.
The Secretary of Commerce and other Department officials attended six
cheduled Council meetings at which a wide range of subjects was discussed.
The Secretary also requested Committee advice on industrial applications
f atomic energy, the operation of the Business and Defense Services Adlinistration, domestic economic activity, foreign economic policy, industrial
elations policy, mineral policy, patents, and taxation.
Seven new members were invited to serve and 18 active members moved
) graduate status. Two members were lost by death.
The active membership was composed on June 30, 1955, of the following:
Harold Boeschenstein, Chairman, To­
ledo, Ohio
Crawford H. Greenewalt, Vice Chair­
man, Wilmington, Del.
Eugene Holman, Vice Chairman, New
York, N. Y.
Reuben B. Robertson, Jr., Vice Chair­
man, Hamilton, Ohio
Sidney J. Weinberg, Vice Chairman,
New York, N. Y.
John D. Biggers, Toledo, Ohio
James B. Black, San Francisco, Calif.
Fred Bohen, Des Moines, Iowa
Ernest R. Breech, Dearborn, Mich.
Paul C. Cabot, Boston, Mass.
James V. Carmichael, Atlanta, Ga.
Walker L. Cisler, Detroit, Mich.
'■ John L. Collyer, Akron, Ohio
'Ralph J. Cordiner, New York, N. Y.
John Cowles, Minneapolis, Minn.
Harlow H. Curtice, Detroit, Mich.
Charles E. Daniel, Greenville, S. C.
"Donald K. David, Boston, Mass.
Frank R. Denton, Pittsburgh, Pa.
R. R. Deupree, Cincinnati, Ohio
Charles D. Dickey, New York, N. Y.
Marion B. Folsom, Washington, D. C.
William C. Foster, Washington, D. C.
John M. Franklin, New York, N. Y.
G. Keith Funston, New York, N. Y.
■ "Member of Executive Committee.

F. G. Gurley, Chicago, 111.
Robert March Hanes, Winston-Salem,
N. C.
Charles R. Hook, Middletown, Ohio
*T. V. Houser, Chicago, 111.
A. W. Hughes, New York, N. Y.
James S. Knowlson, Chicago, 111.
"Fred Lazarus, Jr., Cincinnati, Ohio
Donold B. Lourie, Chicago, 111.
"Geo. H. Love, Pittsburgh, Pa.
Roswell Magill, New York, N. Y.
Deane W. Malott, Ithaca, N. Y.
J. W. McAfee, St. Louis, Mo.
Thomas B. McCabe, Chester, Pa.
L. F. McCollum, Houston, Tex.
Paul B. McKee, Portland, Oreg.
Geo. G. Montgomery, San Francisco,
Calif.
W. J. Murray, Jr., New York, N. Y.
Aksel Nielsen, Denver, Colo.
A. Q. Petersen, New Orleans, La.
Paul Pigott, Seattle, Wash.
Gwilym A. Price, Pittsburgh, Pa.
Clarence B. Randall, Chicago, 111.
Alden G. Roach, San Francisco, Calif.
Donald J. Russell, San Francisco, Calif.
Charles Sawyer, Cincinnati, Ohio
C. R. Smith, New York, N. Y.
"J. P. Spang, Jr., Boston, Mass.
5

6

ANN U A L REPO R T OF T H E SECRETA RY OF COM M ERCE

Kenneth A. Spencer, Kansas City, Mo.
A. E. Staley, Jr., Decatur, 111.
Robert T. Stevens, Washington, D. C.
R. Douglas Stuart, Ottawa, Ontario,
Canada
Charles Allen Thomas, St. Louis, Mo.
*Member of Executive Committee.

Juan T. Trippe, New York, N. Y.
*John C. Virden, Cleveland, Ohio
Thomas J. Watson, Jr., New York, N. Y.
John Hay Whitney, New York, N. Y.
Langbourne M. Williams, New York,
N. Y.

OFFICE OF THE GENERAL COUNSEL
The Office of the General Counsel provides direct legal advice and
services for the Secretary, the Under and Assistant Secretaries, and other
departmental officials. The General Counsel, the chief legal officer of the
Department, also exercises general supervision of the legal divisions in the
bureaus and offices which have legal staffs and handles legal matters for
those units which do not.
An independent review of the legal staffs of the Department was com­
pleted and the report was made to and approved by the Secretary of
Commerce. Appropriate orders were prepared to carry the recommenda­
tions of the report into effect.
The Office of the General Counsel consists of four basic divisions: Do­
mestic Affairs, International Affairs, Transportation, and General Legal
Services. In addition, there are personnel assigned exclusively to legisla­
tive services under the immediate supervision of the Deputy General
Counsel.
The Office of the General Counsel supplied legal advice and trial services
with reference to loyalty and security hearings. An attorney also served
on the departmental Appeals Board.
The office maintained an active interest in the field of labor-management
relations and in related legislative activity. In this connection, the office
participated in discussions which led to the President’s recommendations
for an increase in the minimum wage under the Fair Labor Standards Act
and for continued State activity to raise unemployment benefits.
The Department also maintained a close interest in the field of antitrust
legislation and participated in various aspects of antitrust activities. The
Secretary of Commerce, as a member of the Attorney General’s National
Committee to Study the Antitrust Laws, took part in the formulation of
studies and reports considered by the Committee.
The Office of the General Counsel is studying these problems from the
legal standpoint with a view to helping the various agencies of the Depart­
ment assist business and industry in their relations with the Government
as a whole.

Legislative Activities

The Office of the General Counsel coordinated the legislative program
of the Department, performed its legislative liaison functions, and prepared

A N NUAL REPO R T OF T H E SECRETARY O F COM M ERCE

7

or reviewed answers to requests from committees or other authorities with
respect to pending or proposed legislation and general requests for informa­
tion. The scope of legislative activities is indicated by the fact that 252
reports were prepared and submitted to the Congress setting forth the views
of the Department and 50 more reports were pending at the Bureau of the
Budget for clearance.
During the same period the Bureau of the Budget requested the views of
the Department on 135 items of legislation. Views on 111 of these items
were prepared and submitted. Eighteen legislative proposals were drafted
by the Department and submitted to the 84th Congress for enactment.
Domestic Affairs
The Domestic Affairs Division performed all legal work for the Business
and Defense Services Administration, Office of Business Economics, Census
Bureau, Office of Technical Services, Coast and Geodetic Survey, National
Bureau of Standards, and Patent Office.
During the year, the Division was especially occupied with an inspection
of the operation by the purchaser of the facilities of the Inland Waterways
Corporation and the study and approval of legal aspects of activities in
the field of industrial mobilization in the event of war, including the readying of plans and orders to assure availability of needed materials and com­
ponents for security and essential civilian use.

International Affairs

The International Affairs Division performed all legal work required by
the Bureau of Foreign Commerce and falling within the responsibilities of
the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for International Affairs. This work
involved principally the Export Control Act and the Department’s new
and expanded program of participation in international trade fairs abroad.
The export control legal work consists of two types: (1) Compliance
work (involving the furnishing of legal advice to investigators regarding
violations cases under investigation) and the prosecution of administrative
compliance cases, and rendering assistance to the Department of Justice in
connection with criminal cases; and (2) the preparation of regulations, the
review of procedures for conformance to regulations, and assistance in the
interpretation of regulations and procedures for licensing officers and the
export trade.
The trade fair legal work included legal phases of contracts with American
firms and individual specialists for design, architectural, and other services
for construction and acquisition in this country of exhibit materials; and
arrangements for the use and display at the fairs, by the Government, of
items furnished by private firms on a temporary loan basis.

8

ANN U A L R EPO R T OF T H E SECRETA RY OF COM M ERCE

The Division provided a variety of legal services arising under th
Foreign-Trade Zones Act, the China Trade Act, and the so-called Britis
Token Import Plan. It was also involved in the preparation of reports t
Congress on legislative proposals in the foreign trade field, such as Trac
Agreements Extension Act of 1955, Customs Simplification Act of 1951
Mutual Security Act of 1955, Philippine Trade Agreement Revision Act c
1955, and miscellaneous tariff bills.

‘Transportation Activities

The Transportation Division reviewed numerous legislative proposal
reports, and regulations prepared by the transportation agencies of th
Department for the approval of the Secretary. These agencies include th
Civil Aeronautics Administration, Maritime Administration, and Burea
of Public Roads.
One of the major legislative proposals drafted by the Division was
bill implementing recommendations of the Presidential Advisory Committe
on Transport Policy and Organization. The Division has participate
and will continue to participate in the legal phases of the Federal-Ai
Highway Act, to be considered at the next session of the Congress.
Legislation providing for the following was enacted into law: Amenc
ment of provisions of the Federal Airport Act relating to obligation an
allocation of funds and annual revisions of the National Airport Plai
completion of the Inter-American highway within a 3-year period, sale o
certain chartered vessels to Philippine citizens, extension of marine wa
risk insurance authority, and sale of the S. S. Monterey and S. S. LaGuardic

General Legal Services

The General Legal Services Division reviewed all contracts entered int
by the Department which must be approved by the Secretary. The num
ber of contracts, leases, bonds, agreements, and similar contractual matter
prepared or reviewed was 186. The Division also prepared or reviewet
the majority of all requests from agencies of the Department for opinion
of the Attorney General or Comptroller General, and other matters sub
mitted to those officials, including reports on litigation; 122 matters referrec
to those officials were handled. The number of legal opinions and othe
legal memoranda rendered amounted to 814.
In addition, this Division reviewed for legal effect all Department Orders
received and processed applications for free use of Government-ownee
patents; maintained legal liaison with the appropriate administrative divi­
sions having to do with personnel, budget, and appropriation problems; anc
rendered day-to-day legal consultative services to the various administrative
divisions. The Division also reviewed matters arising under the Federa
Tort Claims Act.

ANNUAL R EPO R T OF T H E SECRETARY OF COM M ERCE

9

OFFICE OF PUBLIC INFORMATION
In keeping with an “open door” policy on news of Department policies,
programs and services, the Office of Public Information scheduled addi­
tional press conferences and background briefings for the press with
Department officials.
In addition to opening up new areas of coverage for the representatives
of daily press, trade publications, radio and television broadcasters and
other private media, the Office speeded up the daily output of factual infor­
mation, statistics, and special reports on business, industry, science,
technology, transportation and foreign trade which emanate from the
Department’s primary units.
The Office of Public Information also improved its distribution methods
to assure the widest possible circulation of Department news to interested
media.

OFFICE OF STRATEGIC INFORMATION

The Office of Strategic Information was established in the Department
on November 1, 1954. This Office serves as a central point in the Govern­
ment to coordinate international exchanges of information, particularly
with Soviet bloc countries, so as to provide an increased flow of information
to the United States. It serves also as a place where business and industry
may voluntarily seek advice on publishing information which might harm
national defense.
The office is responsible for working out consistent policies for executive
agencies of the Government in handling their own nonclassified publica­
tions which might contain information that would harm national defense
while, at the same time, assuring that the necessary free flow of information
to our own people is not interrupted.
The news media were alerted to the functions and program of the Office,
and more than 600 inquiries for guidance were handled. Two interdepart­
mental advisory committees were established, and representatives from
various Government agencies assisted the Office in studying and recommend­
ing uniform policies for executive branch agencies.
During the current fiscal year the Office will continue to assist business
and industry on a voluntary basis and to advise Government agencies on
matters concerning the publication of information which might be harmful
to national defense. In addition, special emphasis will be placed on the
international exchange of information to insure a well-coordinated exchange
program fox the executive branch of the Government.

10

ANNUAL REPO R T O F T H E SECRETA RY OF COM M ERCE

Office of the Assistant Secretary for
Administration
The Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Administration serves as the
principal assistant to the Secretary on all matters of departmental admin­
istration and management. The primary responsibility of this Office is to
assure the effective administration of the Department’s programs and its
proper representation before other Government agencies. The Assistant
Secretary also provides policy direction to the activities of the Offices of
Budget and Management, Administrative Operations, Personnel Manage­
ment, Security Control, Publications, Appeals Board, and the Agency
Inspection Staff.
During the past year effort was concentrated on increasing the economy
and efficiency of administration. Staff of this office worked closely with
the operating bureaus to assure that technically sound, effective, and
economical management programs were installed and maintained.
The following items exemplify administrative accomplishments during
fiscal 1955:
Establishment of the policy to support the requests of all approved charitable
organizations by conducting an annual combined charities campaign within the
Department. This innovation produced highly satisfactory results with a minimum
expenditure of time by employees in soliciting and collecting as well as contributing
funds.
Approval and support of plans to conduct three exercises designed to test the
readiness of the Department to continue operating under emergency conditions.
Establishment of the Agency Inspection Staff for the purpose of strengthening the
confidence of the public and the business community in the Department by promoting
and maintaining the high standards of office conduct and ethics of officers and
employees in executing the Department’s programs.
Establishment and organization, through the Office of Budget and Management,
of the Office of Strategic Information for carrying out the authority vested in the
Secretary of Commerce by the National Security Council.
Establishment and organization, through the offices reporting to the Assistant
Secretary, of the Office of International Trade Fairs under the supervision and
direction of the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for International Affairs.
Initiation under the direction of a full-time highly qualified safety director of a
comprehensive program of safety promotion, training, and hazard control, with a
2-year goal of 40 percent reduction in injury rate.

In addition, greater emphasis was placed on the development of effective
supervisory personnel and the employee suggestion program. As a result
of the latter activity, the number of suggestions increased 48 percent, from
1,909 in fiscal 1954 to 2,828 in 1955, and dollar savings increased by almost
64 percent.
Toward strengthening the overall management of the Department, the
Assistant Secretary fostered the delegations of authority to the lowest
supervisory level feasible; and to assure continuity in the Department’s;

ANNUAL REPO R T O F T H E SECRETARY O F COM M ERCE

11

perations he advised and assisted the Secretary and other secretarial
fficers on many administrative and management matters.

OFFICE OF ADMINISTRATIVE OPERATIONS
The Office of Administrative Operations provides the immediate Office
)f the Secretary, Business and Defense Services Administration, Bureau of
!’oreign Commerce, and Office of Business Economics with housekeeping
tnd other services, such as procurement, supplies, communications, and
iccounting. It also is responsible for administering the Department’s pro­
grams relating to motor fleet management, safety, records management,
¡roperty and space utilization and allocation, and library facilities.
During fiscal 1955 over 10,600 procurement orders were written. Of
hese, about 29 percent were handled through the imprest fund; others
.vere taken care of by blanket purchase orders which materially reduced
he average transaction cost.
Management improvements were the abolition of central files and the
«location of a central information unit, resulting in savings of $20,000;
streamlining of mail operations involving the handling of about 7,000,000
items; continuous surveying of telephone equipment for the purpose of
educing the number of instruments, with a saving of $26,600; revision
and simplification of procedures for reimbursing the Post Office Depart­
ment for use of the penalty mail privilege, with substantial savings of
clerical time; and reorganization of the central stockroom with adoption
of a new economical stock replenishment system which decreased the average
inventory by $29,000.
A reorganized safety and motor vehicle program was initiated with
2-year major objectives of a 40 percent reduction of accident rates and
a 25 percent reduction of transportation expenses.
The motor vehicle fleet was reduced by 68 vehicles and its maintenance
and operating expenses by $44,000.
In the records field, the removal of 114,000 cubic feet of records from
operating space released personal services, equipment, and space valued at
$285,000 on the basis of a General Services Administration formula. Fol­
lowing a survey of the mail, messenger, and records systems of 1 bureau,
the records management staff recommended the adoption of improvements
with a savings potential of $185,000.
Through maximum utilization and conservative allocation of space, the
Department was able to release to GSA for reassignment 7,360 square feet
of Government-owned space at an annual savings of $12,880 and 13,224
square feet of privately owned space at an annual savings of $20,232.
Reports of Excess Property received from the Department’s bureaus and
offices totaled 1,221 and covered property valued at $3,970,635. Drawing
from this source of supply to fill requisitions saved an estimated $417,735.

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A N NUAL R EPO R T OF T H E SECRETA RY OF COM M ERCE

Most of the remaining items, after being declared to GSA as surplu
property, were sold or otherwise disposed of.
Establishing a new record, the library loaned 112,106 books and othe
publications to patrons. This was an increase of 11,539 over the previou
year. A total of 8,954 volumes were cataloged and 599 were bound. Oi
June 30, 1955, the cataloged collection contained 367,238 volumes; th
current periodicals collection contained 2,367 titles. The 1953 Supple
merit to Department of Commerce Publications was published and thi
Library Reference List was issued each month.
A committee of Government librarians appointed by the Assistant Secre
tary of Commerce for Administration surveyed the Department’s librar
services and submitted recommendations. In accordance with one of thesi
recommendations, a Library Council was established with responsibility
for overall library policies, definition of scope and coverage of collections
and establishment of criteria for operation of libraries within the
Department.

APPEALS BOARD
The Appeals Board for the Department of Commerce serves as an im
partial body to make final decision on certain appeals from the public wher
adversely affected by orders, regulations, or administrative action of the
Department in connection with export control matters, importation o
foreign excess property, and other statutory authority of the Department
It also hears appeals relating to contracts of the Bureau of Public Roads
and other appeals specifically assigned to it by appropriate authority.
During fiscal 1955 the Board disposed of 54 appeals involving 6 forma
hearings. No adverse decision by the Board was carried to the courts

OFFICE OF BUDGET AND MANAGEMENT
The Office of Budget and Management is the central point of control
over the Department’s financial affairs and organizational development.
It develops departmental policy within its area of responsibility, reviews
budget estimates, provides criteria for the control of all funds, reviews
organizational structures, develops organizational plans, and makes con­
tinuing studies of functional and organizational relationships.
The Office reviews departmental administrative and operating practices,
procedures, and methods; evaluates the Department’s programs in terms
of efficiency of management and economy of operations; promotes partici­
pation in the Department’s management improvement program and the
Government-wide joint program for improvement of accounting; furnishes
a central fiscal advisory service to all bureaus; and assists the Assistant
Secretary of Commerce for Administration in assuring continuity in top
management.

ANN U A L R EPO R T OF T H E SECRETARY OF COM M ERCE

13

During fiscal 1955 this Office also planned and coordinated mobilization
activities for the continuity of Government for the Department and assisted
in the development of the national civil defense program.

Budget Activities

The Office of Budget and Management considered regular annual budget
estimates of $1,669,879,609 for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1956. After
review and analysis by the Office, the Secretary of Commerce approved
$1,404,740,000 for transmittal to the Bureau of the Budget. The President’s
budget, which was transmitted to Congress on January 17, 1955, included
$1,210,430,000 for the Department of Commerce.
In addition to the regular annual budget estimates, supplemental appro­
priation requirements for fiscal 1955 in the amount of $410,390,100 were
reviewed. The Secretary approved the supplemental estimates in the
amounts requested for transmittal to the Bureau of the Budget. The Presi­
dent approved $315,031,600 of the 1955 supplemental requests and trans­
mitted them to the Congress for consideration.
Supplemental appropriation requests totaling $156,595,900 for fiscal 1956
also were reviewed. The Secretary approved $133,540,900 for transmittal
to the Bureau of the Budget. The President approved $129,454,000 of these
requests and submitted them to the Congress.
Summary of Balances, Appropriations and Expenditures, Department of Commerce,
Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1955
Unexpended
balance
June 30, 1954

Appropriation
for fiscal year
1955

Total (col­
Expenditure
umns 1 & 2) fiscal year 1955

Office of the Secretary__________________ $7, 280,124
$2, 111, 338
$9, 391, 462
$2, 348, 676
Bureau of the Census___________________
1,017, 367
30, 836, 397
31, 853, 764
26, 996, 844
Bureau of Foreign Commerce 1__________
1,117, 798
5,432,000
6, 549, 798
5, 545,617
Business and Defense Services Adminis6,051, 229
6, 051, 229
5, 232, 710
Civil Aeronautics Administration_______
45,067, 949
131,441, 359 176, 509, 308
121,481, 16&
Coast and Geodetic Survey______________
2, 352, 199
10, 270, 200
12, 622, 399
11,
235, 357
Maritime Administration________________ 186, 768, 583
228, 206,000 414, 974, 583
163, 333, 570
Office of Business Economics____________
918, 347
918, 347
796,144
Patent Office___________________________
1, 116, 643
11,645,000
12, 761, 643
11,249,283
Bureau of Public Roads_________________ 32,056, 156
621,315,000 653, 371, 156
635,931, 739
National Bureau of Standards___________
9, 579,040
6, 319,961
15, 899,001
7, 215,483
Weather Bureau________________________
5,090, 815
25, 368,611
30, 459,426
25, 285,071
Total___________________________ ! 291,446, 674 3 1,079, 915,442 1, 371, 362, 116 41,016,651,662
1 Includes expired appropriations for Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce.
2 Does not include $1,622,321,172 of unfinanced contract authorization.
3 Gives effect to appropriation transfers pursuant to Public Laws 24 and 123.
4 Does not reflect a credit to expenditures of $674,517 in Inland Waterways Corporation account.

Management Activities

Directing its efforts toward further strengthening management, improving
efficiency, and reducing costs throughout the Department, this Office :

Developed and presented to all the Department’s bureaus and offices a five-point
management improvement program. Resultant actions produced not only monetary
benefits but also improvements in overall management and service to the public.

14

A N NUAL R EPO R T OF T H E SECRETA RY OF COM M ERCE

Furnished leadership, counsel, and technical advice which permitted the Coast
and Geodetic Survey to install a new accounting system providing a means foi
improved budget execution.
Reviewed the Hoover Commission reports and recommendations and submitted
comments to the Bureau of the Budget on those recommendations applicable to the
Department.
Surveyed all the Department’s activities that could be considered commercial or
industrial to determine whether any of the services or products supplied for its own
use might be procured from private enterprise through ordinary business channels.
The conclusion reached, following a complete inventory and evaluation, was that
the Department’s activities were not of the type classified as commercial-industrial
according to accepted business practice.
Developed an improved procedure for reviewing and presenting annual budget
estimates that permitted a rapid yet thorough review by Department officials.
Made numerous surveys and studies of the programs, operations, workload, and
manpower of the Department’s bureaus and offices to locate areas which needed
strengthening and made constructive suggestions for improvement.
Established a field review program for the purpose of keeping top management at
both the departmental and bureau levels informed on the operating effectiveness of
field organizations, with excellent results. Visits and studies made at 24 installations
resulted in 83 conclusions and recommendations that were referred to the appropriate
departmental or bureau staff for action.
Under delegation of authority from the Secretary of Commerce and the Assistant
Secretary of Commerce for Administration, developed the Department’s continuity
plans to a state of operational readiness and assisted the Federal Civil Defense
Administration in developing the national civil defense program.
Planned and conducted three test exercises for the purpose of determining the
ability of the Department to carry out its essential functions under simulated emer­
gency conditions.
Participated in the inspection and review of the operations of the Federal Barge
Lines (purchaser of the Inland Waterways Corporation), maintained accounting
records on the Inland Waterways Corporation, and prepared the financial statement
as required by law.

Arrangements were made for a management survey of the Bureau of the
Census by a private firm of industrial consultants for the purpose of estab­
lishing a more complete work program in the Bureau. Attributed to
actions taken early in fiscal 1955 on recommendation submitted by private
management firms near the close of the previous year are significant savings
such as $437,000 in the Bureau of Public Roads and $800,000 in the Bureau
of the Census, as well as many less tangible though equally important
savings and improvements.

OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT

The Office of Personnel Management developed regulations, policies, and
procedures to effectuate the programs stemming from major legislation
enacted during fiscal 1955 in the field of personnel management. This legis­
lation included the Group Life Insurance Act of 1954, title XV of the
Social Security Act providing unemployment compensation for Federal

ANN U A L R EPO R T OF T H E SECRETARY O F COM M ERCE

15

employees, the Fringe Benefits Act of 1954, and the Federal Employees
Salary Increase Act of 1955.
In accordance with the Civil Service Commission’s new appointment
system, employees serving under indefinite appointments who met the con­
ditions specified for entering the competitive service were changed to a
career or career-conditional status.
Other major accomplishments included placing the executive develop­
ment program in operation in all primary organization units; sponsoring
an after-hours training program with classes conducted in the Commerce
building by a local university; instituting a one-package charities campaign
for the Washington metropolitan area which saved considerable time over
the previous practice of handling individual charity drives; placing in
effect a simplified performance rating plan that resulted in a saving of
25,530 man hours, or approximately $58,150; and reviewing and simplifying
the grievance and appeals procedure of the Department, with a resulting
increase in effectiveness and economy in handling appeals and with no
adverse effect on the employee’s right to fair and impartial consideration of
his appeal.
In response to the steps this Office took to increase participation of
employees in suggesting improvements and economies in the Department’s
operations, over 2,800 suggestions were received, of which 423, with an
estimated savings value of $126,000, were adopted.
At the annual awards ceremony, held in February 1955, the Department
awarded gold medals for exceptional service to 11 employees and silver
medals for meritorious service to 106 employees.

OFFICE OF PUBLICATIONS
The Office of Publications handles the publications control and distri­
bution policy functions and the printing and forms design work of the
Department.
Modernization of the Department printing plant was virtually com­
pleted during the year. New equipment and lighting resulted in higher
quality of printing and streamlined production brought about substantial
economies. Although not all new equipment was in use for the full year
or even had been installed, productivity continued to increase. Each dollar
spent for printing wages in the first half of the 1955 fiscal year produced
$1.93 worth of work as compared to $1.57 in fiscal 1953. A while-you-wait
service and a short-form requisition were inaugurated for small jobs.
All divisions pushed the Department’s policy of distribution by sales and
cooperated with the Superintendent of Documents in making known the
availability of business and technical information published by the Depart­
ment. Sales through the Superintendent of Documents rose by $34,000
to $1,354,000 in the 1955 fiscal year, accounting for 25 percent of his sales
and the largest of any Department.

16

ANNUAL REPO R T OF T H E SECRETARY OF COM M ERCE

The Office reviewed 141 projects for publications estimated to cost
$712,000 for printing. Twelve of these projects with estimated printing
costs of $38,000 were disapproved as nonessential, and 21 others were
approved with conditions.
The Office gave special assistance to the Office of Technical Services
to increase the distribution to business of technical reports resulting from
Government research.

Office of the Under Secretary
The Under Secretary of Commerce serves as the principal deputy of
the Secretary in all matters affecting the Department of Commerce and
exercises general policy direction over its bureaus and offices.
In addition he gives particular attention and policy guidance to the Coast
and Geodetic Survey, the Patent Office, and the National Bureau of Stand­
ards, which are directly responsible to him.
The Coast and Geodetic Survey extended triangulation across the diffi­
cult Brooks Range in northern Alaska, which completed the basic geodetic
network of the Territory; completed a special triangulation project along
the coast of Louisiana in cooperation with the oil industry; undertook an
offshore hydrographic survey in the Pacific Ocean for the Department of
the Navy; and continued the successful operation of the seismic sea wave
warning system for safeguarding lives and property in the Pacific area.
The National Bureau of Standards redetermined the velocity of light by
two different methods; developed a radiation measuring device that will
be highly useful for calibrating radioactive sources; gathered much data
on materials needed for high-temperature applications in nuclear energy,
jet aircraft, and guided missile research; calibrated over 150,000 items;
issued more than 25,000 standard samples to industrial and research labora­
tories; and initiated development of a new electronic computer that will
be 50 to 100 times faster than its present machine (SEAC), designed and
built 5 years ago. The computer research, it is hoped, will lead to a device
capable of solving some of the massive problems found in weather predic­
tion, atomic power reactor design, and guided missile development as well
as handling the tremendous volume of Government paperwork.
The vital nature of the Bureau’s program was shown to many high-level
Government officials and industrial and educational leaders at a week-long
open house—the Bureau’s first in 17 years. At that time the Bureau unveiled
a number of significant developments and publicly opened many of the
laboratories whose work is so important to science and industry.

ANN U A L R EPO R T OF T H E SECRETARY OF COM M ERCE

17

The Patent Office accomplishments are best illustrated by an enumeration
of its patent and trademark examining activities. The office received 78,480
applications for patent for invention and 5,523 applications for design
patent; disposed of 55,499 applications, of which 4,355 were for design
patents; and granted 29,473 patents for invention, 116 for plants, and
2,533 for designs. It received 21,515 applications for the registration of
trademark; terminated 19,967 applications for registration of trademark;
approved for 4,588 applications for registration renewals and 1,535 applica­
tions for publication; and registered 16,109 trademarks.
Because of the ever-increasing intake of new patent and trademark regis­
tration applications, the possible use of mechanical devices in conducting
novelty searches of prior art was proposed. This matter was fully investi­
gated by a special committee appointed by the Secretary of Commerce, and
plans were made for implementing the five specific recommendations sub­
mitted by the committee.

COAST AND GEODETIC SURVEY

The Coast and Geodetic Survey performs services essential to the safety
and advancement of marine and air commerce, to surveying and mapping
and other engineering work, and to the economic development of our natural
resources. These services are exemplified in their broad outline in the
hydrographic and topographic operations of the Bureau, the end result
of which is the nautical chart; in the geodetic operations, which provide a
framework for the nautical and aeronautical charts of the Bureau, and for
the surveying and mapping operations of other governmental and non­
governmental agencies; and in the compilation and analyses of basic obser­
vational data for diverse uses by science and industry. These are services
which are recognized as inherently national responsibilities.
Normal functions of the Bureau play an important part in the protection
of life and property at sea and in the air. As a leading maritime nation
and a leader in naval power, our country must have full knowledge of the
seas around it, the extent of fishing grounds and other submerged lands,
the rise and fall of the tide, the direction and strength of sea currents,
the variation of the compass, and a knowledge of magnetic disturbances
that affect communications. As a leader in air commerce, it must have a
continually expanding knowledge of its vast terrain, the natural and man­
made hazards to air navigation, and of all details that find expression on the
aeronautical charts produced by the Bureau.
The basic program of the Bureau was carried forward during the year
in every department of its activities.

Hydrography, Topography, and Tides

Seventeen ships and two shore-based parties were engaged along the
coasts of the United States and Alaska making basic hydrographic surveys

18

A N NUAL R EPO R T O F T H E SECRETA RY OF COM M ERCE

and obtaining other information essential for the production of nautica
charts.
The program of wire-dragging the sealanes along the Atlantic coast tc
locate wrecks caused by enemy submarine operations during World War I]
was continued. Several wrecks were located in the vicinity of Cape Hat
teras, N. C. New hydrographic surveys of Browns Bank and the Gulf o;
Maine were begun.
Along the Pacific coast, the major undertaking was an offshore survey
in the Pacific Ocean sponsored by the Department of the Navy. Electron'
ically controlled hydrography was carried to a distance of 400 nautical miles
Hydrographic surveys were completed in various areas of southeast Alaska
particularly in the area of Prince William Sound, around Prince of Wales
Island, and in Cook Inlet. An uncharted submerged rock with 12 feet
of water over it at low tide was located in northern Cordova Bay in depths
of 360 feet. A special survey was completed in the vicinity of Cape Spencer
to determine the position of an uncharted sunken rock struck by a Coast
Guard cutter. The rock was found at a minimum depth of 8 feet in
general depths of 138 feet. Surveys were also made along the north
coast of the Alaska Peninsula; in the vicinity of the Shumagin Islands on
the south side of the Peninsula; in the Aleutian Islands, in the vicinity of
Adak; and in the Bering Sea, along the southeast coast of St. Lawrence
Island. Deep-sea sounding lines were run to and from the working grounds
in the North Pacific Ocean and the Gulf of Alaska, as part of the continuous
Bureau program of surveying this area.
The topographic mapping program of the Bureau is designed to provide
data for aeronautical charts, including charts of airports, and for the con­
struction and maintenance of nautical charts. Photogrammetry is the basic
method used in such mapping, supplemented by some ground surveys.
Basic mapping was continued in the United States and Alaska, and chartrevision photography was taken of sections of the Atlantic coast, and of a
number of harbors along the Gulf and Pacific coasts. Under the airport
survey program, field surveys were made at 39 airports, and 40 airports were
photographed for compilation of new obstruction plans and for revision of
existing ones. A total of 501 plans were on issue at the end of the year.
A chain of control tide stations was maintained at selected places along
our coasts to provide the fundamental observations for tide predictions,
for charting and mapping, and for other engineering uses, such as the
study of long-period changes in sea level. New stations were established at
the ends of the Cape Cod Canal; in Newport and Anaheim Bays, Calif.; on
Magueyos Island, P. R.; and at Nawiliurli, T. H. Tide records were also
received from 40 places in Latin America through cooperative arrange­
ments with the Inter-American Geodetic Survey. Special reports were
completed on tide surveys in San Francisco Bay, Delaware Bay, and Puget
Sound.

A N NUAL R EPO R T O F T H E SECRETARY O F COM M ERCE

19

Strength of current observations were made at 31 locations in the waters
bordering Massachusetts, Florida, Washington, and Alaska. Observations
were continued at two Atlantic coast lightships. Special current survey
reports were completed for New London Approach, Portsmouth Harbor
Approach, Delaware Bay, Key West Harbor, Puget Sound, and San
Francisco Bay.
Tide Tables (in 4 volumes) and Current Tables (in 2 volumes) were
published during the year to provide advance information on the rise and
fall of the tide and the ebb and flow of the current, for use in marine navi­
gation and in harbor construction work. Daily predictions of tides for
Mergui, Burma, were included in the tide tables for the first time.
The program of observing the temperature and density of sea water at
tide stations was continued. At the end of the year, daily observations were
being obtained from 128 stations. The results of these observations were
published in a series of four pamphlets. Oceanographic observations, in­
cluding bathythermographs, water samples, bottom samples, cores, and
serial temperatures and densities were obtained in conjunction with hydrographic surveys.

Geodesy, Magnetism, and Seismology

The geodetic networks of control in the United States and Alaska were
expanded to provide exact geographic positions and elevations for use in
the national mapping program and for other engineering requirements.
Reobservations were made in the Fallon, Nev., area, which had been sub­
jected to an intense earthquake. In Alaska, a major accomplishment was
the extension of the triangulation across the difficult Brooks Range and
along its northern slope. First-order releveling was undertaken in various
parts of the United States to determine the extent and magnitude of sub­
sidence due to gradual changes, and to determine the changes brought about
by recent earthquakes.
A special triangulation project was accomplished along the coast of
Louisiana in cooperation with the many oil companies engaged in offshore
drilling operations. Steel towers, up to 90 feet in height, were erected on
a number of the offshore platforms to determine the precise locations of
the producing wells. The farthest platform located was about 28 statute
miles from shore.
Astronomic observations to determine first-order latitude, longitude, and
azimuth were made at selected stations in the United States and Alaska.
In the West Indies, second-order latitudes and longitudes were observed at
51 geodetic stations for the determination of the deflection of the vertical.
The area gravity survey in Iowa and adjoining States, comprising 87,000
square miles, was continued. The gravity difference between Idlewild
Airport and Ciampino Airport, near Rome, Italy, was measured, and a
gravity traverse was run between the base point at Idlewild and the Depart­
ment of Commerce Building gravity base in Washington.

20

A N NUAL REPO RT OF T H E SECRETARY OF COM M ERCE

The adjustments of the completed surveys progressed as rapidly as possible,
making use of electronic calculators for the voluminous routine computa­
tions. The adjustments of the network around the eastern end of the Medi­
terranean and several supplementary nets in Central America were com­
pleted. The office processing of the triangulation of Thailand was continued
during the year.
The geomagnetic program of the Bureau is designed to furnish informa­
tion on the deflection of the compass needle and on other magnetic elements
for use in navigation, for surveyors and engineers engaged in retracing old
property lines, and for various technological purposes, such as geophysical
prospecting for oil and other minerals. Magnetic field observations were
made during the year at 6 observatories and 32 stations distributed in the
United States and Alaska. Of the latter, 6 belong to the “repeat station”
net and 26 were newly established ones. A series of five magnetic charts
of the United States for the 1955 epoch was prepared for printing, together
with a similar series for Alaska. The new magnetic observatory at Fred­
ericksburg, Va., including a laboratory for instrumental research and devel­
opment, was completed and was soon to be in full operation.
As part of its earthquake investigation work, the Bureau maintained 8
stations for the detection of distant earthquakes and cooperated in the main­
tenance of 15 other stations. In addition, it operated 71 strong-motion
seismographs in the central areas of destructive earthquakes. Approxi­
mately 1,150 earthquakes were located throughout the world by using
instrumental reports from cooperating stations in this country and abroad.
Of notable interest during the year was a series of earthquakes in the Still­
water Range in western Nevada. The strongest of the group, which occurred
on December 16, 1954, produced vertical displacements of 6 to 20 feet and
horizontal shifts of 4 to 12 feet. Total displacements were the greatest
in North America since the Yakutat Bay earthquake of 1899.
The seismic sea wave warning system for the Pacific Ocean area was
continued during the year in cooperation with civil and military agencies.
No seismic sea waves were generated by the several major earthquakes
that occurred in the Pacific area, but the responsibility of the warning system
was considerable since 9 of these earthquakes required a total of 81 warning
and precautionary actions. The March 18, 1955, earthquake near the east
coast of Kamchatka, the strongest of the year in the Pacific, caused 39
actions to be taken by the Hawaiian authorities. These authorities were
advised on the probability of a seismic sea wave about 50 minutes after the
earthquake occurred.

Nautical and Aeronautical Charts

Nautical and aeronautical charts are intimately associated with a nation’s
economic welfare and with its military security. To safeguard these in­
terests, the Bureau has maintained a policy of publishing accurate and

ANNUAL R EPO R T OF T H E SECRETARY OF COM M ERCE

21

up-to-date charts of the United States, its Territories, and possessions.
Developments in navigational aids and in aircraft design have added greatly
to the Bureau’s responsibility, and have increased the demands for new
types of charts and the modernization of existing ones. At the end of the
year, 807 nautical charts and 1,550 aeronautical charts in various categories
were available to meet the needs of marine and air navigation—an increase
of 84 over the previous year. An important addition to the list of charts
published by the Bureau is the aircraft position chart covering the North
Pacific air routes from Seattle to Tokyo, to meet the needs of civil aviation.
The number of charts distributed during the year reached an all-time
high—over 44 million, or an increase of 4.5 percent over the previous year.
The 4 jet navigation charts covering the United States were in heavy
demand and more than 300,000 copies were printed.

Technical Improvements and Cooperation

The specialized nature of the Bureau’s work requires the use of instru­
ments and equipment not always available commercially and therefore
most of the improvements in these fields are the products of research and
development by its own staff. The Bureau makes use, wherever possible,
of new developments in private industry, and in turn the results of its
researches are made available to commercial establishments.
Significant improvements made during the year in nearly every branch
of the Bureau’s activities will result in added accuracy, greater output, and
reduced costs. Among these were further refinements in the geodimeter,
the instrument that uses a light beam for precision measurement of dis­
tances; new circuit designs, and modifications in existing ones, of the
electronic equipment used in hydrographic surveying; the design and
purchase of a rapid-run magnetograph for the new magnetic observatory at
Fredericksburg, Va.; development of a telemeter system for seismic record­
ing by a radio link of 25 miles between the seismic detector and the
recorder; the purchase of a commercial precision stereoscopic plotting
instrument for use with single-lens aerial photographs; the development of a
mechanical method for applying a vignetted water tint to jet navigation
charts; and the development of a special ink for use on acetate.
The Bureau continued its cooperation with national agencies and with
foreign governments and international organizations. International co­
operation is especially important to insure uniformity in charts for naviga­
tion, and for the exchange of certain fundamental data dealing with the
size and shape of the earth, tides, terrestrial magnetism, seismology, and
astronomy, which are necessary to advance the accuracy and efficiency of
the work generally. Under provisions of existing international coopera­
tion acts, 9 training grants were awarded to 7 countries, 14 trainees of
previous grants continued through this year, and 21 visitors from 13 coun­
tries received instruction in Bureau methods for periods of 1 to 60 days.

22

A N NUAL R EPO R T OF T H E SECRETA RY OF COM M ERCE

The technical mission to Liberia was maintained to direct a surveying and
mapping program and to establish a cartographic service.

PATENT OFFICE

Patent Examining Operation

The Patent Office during fiscal 1955 received 78,480 applications for
patent, over 3,400 more than were received in the preceding year and the
largest number of applications received in any 1 year since 1931. Appli­
cation disposals during the same period numbered 51,144, comprising 29,987
applications allowed and 21,157 abandoned. Thus, receipts exceeded dis­
posals by 27,336 and brought the backlog of pending applications up to
221,872. The decrease of nearly 22,000 disposals from the preceding year
was due to the unusually large number of new applications filed, fewer
examiner assistants because of budgetary limitations, and concentration of
examiner efforts for a considerable part of the year on the examination of
new applications, which result in relatively few disposals on first action.
The action which resulted in reduction of disposals also reduced expendi­
tures for the printing of patents and thereby made available funds to retain
many needed and experienced examiners who otherwise would have been
separated. While increasing the backlog, this action served to reduce the
time previously taken for an applicant to receive his first response from the
Patent Office concerning the patentability of his invention. By the end of
the year, the maximum waiting time for an action on a new application
was 13 months.
The Patent Office during fiscal 1955 received 5,523 applications for
design patents—very nearly the same number as were filed in the preceding
year—and disposed of 4,355 applications, which included 2,539 allowances
and 1,816 abandonments. On June 30, 1955, there were pending 7,018
design applications, of which 2,747 were awaiting action by the examiners.
With a staff of 14 examiner assistants most of the year (an additional ex­
aminer having been assigned during May 1955), the maximum waiting
time for actions on new and amended applications was slightly in excess of
7 months.
During fiscal 1955, the Classification Group created 314 subclasses in 25
existing classes. No new classes were established nor was any existing class
abolished in its entirety. The new subclasses involved the study and place­
ment of 5,150 original patents, of which 2,333 resulted from abolishing 76
subclasses in 19 existing classes and the remainder from transfer from other
subclasses. Miscellaneous transfers of patents from one classification to
another totaled 3,832. Reclassification activity was confined to resolving
the most troublesome problems where the maximum benefit could be real­
ized from a limited staff.

A N NUAL R EPO R T O F T H E SECRETA RY O F COM M ERCE

23

Mechanized Patent Searching

The Secretary of Commerce formed an Advisory Committee on Applica­
tion of Machines to Patent Office Operations to study the processes of
patent search with a view to reporting on the possible application of elec­
tronic or other machines to speed up the processing and disposal of
applications.
The advisory committee made the following recommendations directly
concerning the Patent Office: (1) The Patent Office should put machine
searching of compositions of matter on an operational basis; (2) the reclassi­
fication of patents should be accelerated; (3) a research and development
unit should be established in the Patent Office; and (4) the National Bureau
of Standards and the Patent Office should undertake a joint program to
develop machines and techniques specifically adapted to the Patent Office
operations.
The recommendations of the committee were immediately accepted in
the program objectives of the Patent Office and plans laid for their imple­
mentation. Budgetary limitations, however, permitted only limited action
under any of these plans.
A separate unit was set up in the Patent Office on February 1, 1955, for
the sole purpose of devising and making practical a system for machine
selecting of pertinent patents fulfilling novelty search requirements. This
unit made significant progress in developing the form of a coding system
broadly applicable to the chemical field and engaged in studies seeking to
extend the principles of mechanization to the nonchemical field. At the
end of the fiscal year no commercially available equipment had been found
which is engineered for the specific operations required by the coding system.

Trademark Operations

New and revised procedures in trademark operations during fiscal 1955
were designed to increase efficiency, effect economies, and render greater
service to American business. Examination was directed to substance,
with form playing very little part; actions were shortened and simplified;
and, except in extraordinary cases, no more than three actions were taken
in a given case. A program of accelerated handling of amended cases was
adopted during the year and will continue until amended applications are
handled on a current basis. These actions resulted in greater productivity
of the trademark examining operation, even though there was a decrease
in personnel.
There were 21,515 applications for registration of trademark received
during the year, this being the second largest volume of such applications
ever filed in 1 year in the Patent Office. The reduced staff disposed of
more applications than in the preceding year. At the end of the year
there were 11,752 applications awaiting action by examiners and 7,232
awaiting response by applicants—a total of 18,984 as compared to 19,786 a

24

A N NUAL REPO R T OF T H E SECRETARY O F COM M ERCE

year ago. All cases were being acted upon by the Patent Office within
55/i> months.
In the processing of affidavits of continued use required by section 8 of
the Trademark Act, a concentrated effort was made to act on unacceptable
affidavits in time to allow the registrant to submit an acceptable one within
the statutory time limit. At the end of the year these affidavits were being
acted upon within 45 days after receipt.
The number of affidavits of continued use declined from the peak volume
of 31,048 received last year to 17,773 received during fiscal 1955. As such
affidavits are required within a specified time to keep a trademark registra­
tion in effect, this sharp decline is explained by the fact that the number
of applications for trademark publication under section 12 (c) of the
Trademark Act of 1946 greatly diminished following the peak volume re­
ceived in 1948. Disposals were 21,557 in fiscal 1955, compared with 26,717
the preceding year, and exceeded receipts by 3,784, thus reducing the
backlog of affidavits.
Among other accomplishments, all trademark material published in the
Official Gazette was arranged in a manner so that it could be obtained
separately on subscription at a substantial reduction in cost; requests for
certified copies of trademark registrations were furnished faster to the
public and at less cost to the Patent Office; the method of recording assign­
ments was simplified, trademark assignments being recorded separately.
The rules of practice in trademark cases were changed to provide a realistic
and simplified procedure for the ex parte handling of applications, and to
provide an orderly method for obtaining and marshaling facts from which
the rights of parties may be determined in inter partes casest

Availability and Use of Funds

The operating cost of the Patent Office for fiscal year 1955 was $11,629,318, of which $9,212,496 or 79 percent went for salaries, $1,991,663
or 17 percent for printing, and $425,159 or 4 percent for all other purposes.
The total amount available for expenditure was $11,645,000—an appro­
priation of $11.5 million (one-half million less than the sum appropriated
the preceding year), and $145,000 transferred from the Maritime Admin­
istration pursuant to Public Law 123 to provide, in part, for the increase
in salary rates which were approved June 28, 1955, retroactive to March 13,
1955.
During the year the Patent Office received $5,893,846.88 in fees from all
sources. Refunds amounted to $33,013.52, and $11,226.07 previously re­
ceived for credit to the deposit trust fund was applied by customers in
payment for items and services furnished. As a result, the net income of
the Patent Office for the year amounted to $5,872,059.43, equivalent to
50.5 percent of the operating cost.

ANNUAL REPO R T OF T H E SECRETARY OF COM M ERCE

25

Proposed Changes in Patent Office Fees

The bill proposing changes in certain patent and trademark fees, referred
to in the annual report for the fiscal year 1954, was reintroduced in the
House of Representatives on March 16, 1955, as H. R. 4983. Hearings
held by the Subcommittee in Charge of Patents and Trademarks of the
Committee on the Judiciary, on June 3 and 17, 1955, included testimony
of the Commissioner of Patents on the nature of the proposals and justifi­
cation for their enactment. A substitute bill, H. R. 7416, differing in some
details from the prior bill, was favorably reported on July 18, 1955, too
late for consideration in the 1st session of the 84th Congress. It is
anticipated that the bill will be taken up during the 2d session.

Exhibit Program

A series of public exhibits illustrating technological advances made by
inventors and industry under the American patent system was inaugurated
during the year in the main lobby of the Commerce Building in Washington.
Private companies supply the displays, which bring to the attention of the
public the many benefits of our patent system and its incentives to inventors.
Three exhibits were held representing electronics, chemistry and syn­
thetics, and business machines, and future exhibits will be similarly
diversified.

NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS
The National Bureau of Standards was established by the Congress to
provide essential scientific services to Government, business, industry, and
science. As custodian of the national standards of physical measurement,
the Bureau is the ultimate source in this country for the thousands of stand­
ards used in mass production of interchangeable parts, in the development
of new products and devices, in the commercial exchange of goods, and in
the precise measurement of scientific quantities.
Through calibration services, the Bureau insures the accuracy of count­
less industrial and scientific instruments and working standards by compar­
ing them with the national standards. It also conducts the research in
physical measurement that is necessary to meet the ever-increasing demands
of science and industry for new or improved measurement standards.
The Bureau studies, evaluates, and precisely measures the properties of
substances and materials, providing a sound basis for their industrial and
scientific utilization. It applies the resulting data and techniques in devis­
ing methods of testing materials, in developing specifications for Govern­
ment purchase, in developing building and safety codes, and in testing
materials purchased by the Government.
The background in precise measurement provided by the basic work in
standards and properties of materials enables the Bureau to serve the Gov­

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ANN U A L R EPO R T OF T H E SECRETA RY O F COM M ERCE

ernment and the Nation in a variety of other ways. For example, it renders
advisory services to Federal agencies on technical problems, invents and
develops devices to meet special needs of the Government, and conducts
research investigations in such fields as aerodynamics and nuclear physics.
The overall program is thus quite broad in scope, embracing a large number
of projects in physics, mathematics, chemistry, metallurgy, and various
branches of engineering.
As in previous reporting periods, the Bureau’s activities during fiscal 1955
were of two major budgetary classes: first, the basic program concerned
with fundamental standards, measurement, and properties of matter;
second, various projects undertaken for other Government agencies. The
basic program is supported by direct Congressional appropriation while
the other work is done on funds transferred to the Bureau by the sponsoring
agencies.
During 1955 the total funds obligated for both areas of activity, including
construction and facilities, were $19,986,431. Of this total, about 33 per­
cent, or $6,575,331, was appropriated for the basic program while the
remaining 67 percent ($13,411,100) represented programs conducted for
other Government agencies.
In accordance with the recommendations of the Ad Hoc Evaluation Com­
mittee which reviewed the Bureau’s program in 1953, efforts were made to
achieve a better balance in NBS activities by placing greater emphasis on
the basic program. While some progress was made in this direction,
budgetary limitations prevented the major shift in emphasis that must be
made if the Bureau is to meet its responsibilities to American science and
industry.
In February 1955 the Bureau held its first major “Open House” in 17
years. Leading members of Government and industry were invited to view
the Bureau’s facilities and to see the varied scientific program and equip­
ment. This was done in order to make more generally known the services
which the Bureau offers to science, Government, and industry. The success
of the 1955 Open House led to plans for making this type of presentation
on a regular basis.

Research and Development

S t a n d a r d s a n d M e a s u r e m e n t .—Progress was made in a number of
areas concerned with fundamental standards and methods of precise
measurement. A high-resolution system was designed and put in operation
for calibrating vibration pickups used in development of guided missiles
and high-speed aircraft. Several improvements in equipment and measure­
ment techniques led to increased accuracy of electrical measurements.
Among these were improved guarding and shielding for resistance and
capacitance standards and development of a bridge circuit for measuring
core loss in steel alloys. Advances in the extreme high-frequency range

ANNUAL REPO R T OF T H E SECRETARY OF COM M ERCE

27

included a self-balancing bolometer bridge which broughi increased speed
and accuracy to microwave power measurements. A technique was devised
for studying the performance of the highly sensitive microbalances used in
such fields as atomic energy, where minute samples must be weighed with
high accuracy.
Two devices were developed that precisely measure radiation in terms
of the heating effect it produces. One of these, a radiation-balance micro­
calorimeter, will aid materially in meeting the increased demand for cali­
bration of radioactive sources. The other, an X-ray calorimeter, will serve
as a basic standard for measurement of the high-energy X-rays now being
used in medical treatment and industrial radiography.
During the year the Bureau redetermined the velocity of light in two
independent measurements by quite different methods. The two values
are in close agreement and thus provide confirmation for the higher values
of electromagnetic wave velocity that have been consistently obtained by
microwave measurements since World War II. In one method, the velocity
of light was determined from measurement of the molecular constants of
carbon monoxide by infrared spectroscopy. The other determination made
use of phase-shift measurements on very high frequency radio waves to
obtain their velocity of propagation. Before World War II the value
299,776±4 kilometers per second was generally accepted as an average
of the findings of the various laboratories. However, since the war higher
values have been obtained by most investigators (average value, 299,793 ± 1
km/sec). The results obtained by the Bureau give 299,792 ± 6 km/sec by
the molecular constants method and 299,795.1 ±3.1 km/sec by the radio
interferometer.
P r o p e r t i e s o f M a t e r i a l s .-—In studies of the basic properties of mate­
rials, increased emphasis was placed on those inorganic materials that are
stable at very high temperatures. Data on such materials are required
for further advances in atomic powerplants, high-speed missiles, and jet
aircraft, but information on their high-temperature behavior has been
lacking. In one project, cermets—heat-resistant ceramic-metal combina­
tions—were studied in connection with their use in jet engines and rockets.
The need for nuclear reactor design data prompted an investigation of the
high-temperature reactions of uranium dioxide with other heat-resistant
compounds. High-temperature concretes were studied to obtain materials
for jet aircraft aprons that can withstand exposure to high, variable tem­
peratures. As part of a cooperative interlaboratory study of the extractive
metallurgy of titanium, the Bureau prepared selected titanium compounds
of high purity. Included were titanium tetrachloride of 99.999 percent
purity and 99.998 percent titanium tetrabromide. Other work in the hightemperature field concerned ceramic coatings for protection of high-tem­
perature alloys or for use as high-temperature insulation, diffusion of gases

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A N NUAL REPO R T OF T H E SECRETA RY O F COM M ERCE

in glasses, phase equilibria of refractory materials, and thermal decomposi­
tion mechanisms of inorganic materials.
D a t a P r o c e s s i n g .—Large-scale processing of numerical data has become
a major management undertaking in Federal agencies. Not only are data
processing problems encountered on a massive scale in Government, but
frequently they are of such special nature as to require unique design and
research services. To provide an advisory center for Government agencies
on electronic-computing and data-processing techniques, a data-processing
systems laboratory was established as a separate division of the Bureau.
Combining NBS programs in analog and digital computers, the new divi­
sion carries on research, development, and systems design and analysis in
these fields. It is thus in a position to advise on the use of high-speed
computing techniques in many new areas of potential application—such
as massive paperwork operations, automatic control systems, and simula­
tion of physical systems.
The Bureau’s high-speed electronic digital computer, SEAC, continued in
round-the-clock operation except for a 6-week period required to move it
to a new permanent location on the Bureau grounds. Problems were solved
in Government procurement and industrial mobilization as well as in aero­
dynamics, atomic energy, meteorology, thermometry, optics, nuclear physics,
thermodynamics, sound, and navigation.
Research on individual computer components led to the development
of a new type of amplifier that promises to play an important part in the
future design of high-speed computers. Known as the diode amplifier,
this compact, rugged device uses germanium or silicon crystals instead of
vacuum tubes. Because of its economy and speed of operation, it appears
to offer a means for increasing the practical operating speed of present-day
electronic digital computers.
In computer components work sponsored by the Naval Research Labora­
tory, a gas-diode memory circuit was developed for use in a data correlator
and classifier. This circuit should find application wherever computed
data must be presented for rapid visual analysis. In another project spon­
sored by the Air Force, packaged circuitry was designed which combines
increased logical capabilities with greatly decreased power consumption.
These computer packages should make feasible the building of larger and
more powerful computing machines without the need for excessively large
power supplies and air-conditioning equipment.
At the close of the year plans had been completed for a very powerful
computer which will be from 50 to 100 times as fast as SEAC. Although
present-day electronic computers calculate at extremely high speeds, there
are still many important problems for which they are too slow. Higher
speed machines are needed to solve problems in weather prediction, atomic
energy, civil defense, guided missiles, business operations, and many other
fields.

A N NUAL R EPO R T O F T H E SECRETA RY OF COM M ERCE

29

S t a n d a r d E l e c t r o n i c C i r c u i t s .—A study undertaken for the Navy
Bureau of Aeronautics showed the feasibility of standardizing many of the
electronic circuits used in Navy aeronautical equipment. Known as the
NBS-BuAer preferred circuits program, this continuing investigation seeks
to determine those well-known circuit configurations that are common to
a wide variety of electronic devices but which now differ unnecessarily in
detail. A number of preferred circuits have been selected and prepared for
joint NBS-Navy publication as a manual for design engineers.
Although use of the circuits is entirely optional, their application should
save critical engineering man-hours, reduce production lead time, and ac­
celerate production. Preferred circuits should also provide the military
services with means for simplifying maintenance training, for designing
simple “throwaway” units, for achieving improved operational reliability,
and for establishing design standard levels.

Technical Services

C a l i b r a t i o n a n d T e s t i n g . —The calibration and testing services of the
Bureau stem directly from its custody of the national standards of measure­
ments. During fiscal 1955 approximately 174,000 items were calibrated
or tested. In addition, about 32,500 standard samples of chemicals, metals,
and alloys were issued to industrial and research laboratories.
The calibration services, rendered to both Government and the public,
involved thousands of instruments and devices sent to the Bureau by in­
dustry, private and university laboratories, and other Government agencies.
Many of these were master instruments used by industry to calibrate such
production tools as shop gage blocks.
Typical of the calibration activity were the following: 694 standard cells,
839 radium sources, 491 sources of radioactive cobalt, 750 items of radio­
logical equipment, 757 hydrometers, 994 water current meters, 33,110
clinical thermometers, and 2,400 dilution pipettes. Testing for the Govern­
ment included the sample-testing of 3,000,000 lamps and 15,000,000 barrels
of cement.
To meet the increasing demand for standard samples of radioactivity a
radiochemistry laboratory was established. The new laboratory will prepare
and distribute approximately 57 different radioactive nuclides and ores to
hospitals, research laboratories, and industrial plants.
C o o p e r a t i v e a n d C o n s u l t i n g A c t i v i t i e s .— The Bureau continued to
receive numerous requests for technical information and advice from other
Federal agencies, State and local governments, universities, and industrial
plants and laboratories. Typical services to Government agencies included
advice to the Post Office Department on automatic electronic equipment
for processing mail ; assistance to the Virginia State Highway Department in
calibrating equipment for testing highway signs; advice to the Civil Aero­
nautics Administration regarding the fire hazards of methyl alcohol solutions;

30

A N NUAL REPO R T OF T H E SECR ETA RY OF COM M ERCE

study of the causes of plaster failure in an Alaskan hospital for the Depart­
ment of the Interior; consultative service on the elevators in the U. S.
Capitol; advice to the Federal Trade Commission in the preparation of an
amendment to the Flammable Fabrics Act; suggestions to the National
Zoological Park on flooring for animal cages; assistance to the National
Institutes of Health in acoustical design of interview rooms; and cooperation
with local authorities in California and with the Department of Health,
Education, and Welfare on the smog problem.
The Bureau also participated in the work of hundreds of technical com­
mittees, societies, associations, and commissions organized to bring new
advances of science into the technology of industry, to standardize materials
and products for greater economy and improved quality, and to establish
uniform scientific standards throughout the world. Besides serving on
numerous panels and committees of other Federal agencies, Bureau staff
members held committee memberships in more than 140 national and inter­
national groups such as the American Society for Testing Materials, Amer­
ican Standards Association, American Society of Mechanical Engineers,
American Chemical Society, and the International Committee on Weights
and Measures. An important area of international cooperation concerned
the international geophysical year of 1957-58, during which scientists of
40 nations will make simultaneous worldwide observations of physical
phenomena related to the earth. Bureau staff members were active in both
national and international planning for the international geophysical year
and also rendered consultative services in connection with the design of
observational equipment.

Office of the Under Secretary for Transportation
The Under Secretary of Commerce for Transportation serves as principal
adviser to the Secretary of Commerce on transportation matters and is
responsible by delegation from the Secretary for coordination of trans­
portation policy within the executive branch. He is also responsible for
policy direction of the Department’s transportation agencies and Weather
Bureau and coordination of their activities. These agencies are the Civil
Aeronautics Administration, Defense Air Transportation Administration,
Maritime Administration, Bureau of Public Roads, and Weather Bureau.
During the past fiscal year all of these agencies in the Department
were engaged in developing and administering expanded programs. The
Civil Aeronautics Administration worked on a broad Federal-aid airport
program to provide additional assistance in the construction and improve­

A N NUAL R EPO R T OF T H E SECRETARY O F COM M ERCE

31

ment of airport facilities needed to accommodate expanded aviation activi­
ties. The Federal-aid highway program was increased over 50 percent—
from $575 million a year for fiscal years 1954 and 1955 to $875 million a
year for fiscal years 1956 and 1957. The Maritime Administration admin­
istered the accelerated ship construction program. The Weather Bureau
installed new equipment for the detection of severe storms and inaugurated
new research programs.
The Under Secretary of Commerce for Transportation assisted in formu­
lating the report of the President’s Cabinet Committee on Transport Policy
and Organization, of which the Secretary of Commerce was chairman, and
in developing proposed legislation. As Chairman of the Air Coordinating
Committee he brought about coordination between the Federal Govern­
ment and industry on a number of aviation policy matters of joint interest.
He also assumed leadership in coordinating activities within the Depart­
ment and other Federal agencies to complete the study of navigational
clearances for highway and railroad bridges. As a result of this study,
which was focused on reducing transportation costs borne by the public, sub­
stantial savings were realized in the cost of constructing, operating, and
maintaining bridges without seriously interfering with waterway commerce.
A report on the need and feasibility of a census of transportation was
nearing completion. Other important activities included review of reports
prepared for the Department by the Transportation Council; cooperation
with the Office of Defense Mobilization and the Federal Civil Defense
Administration in transportation mobilization planning activities, including
departmental planning for continuity of operations of transportation
agencies in event of emergency; the provision of informational services
to Government, industry, and the general public; and the review of the
transportation recommendations of the Hoover Commission and the recom­
mendations of the Commission on Intergovernmental Relations, followed
by the formulation of plans for carrying out these recommendations in
cooperation with other Government agencies and industry.

CIVIL AERONAUTICS ADMINISTRATION
The Civil Aeronautics Administration is responsible for the movement of
air traffic along the airways and at busy airports, the certification of aircraft
and airmen, and the development of an adequate national airport system.
Good progress was made during the year in carrying out the three major
programs—airways, safety, and airports-—which all have as their primary
purpose safe flying.
The Federal airways mileage was increased and new facilities installed,
new types of aircraft were approved and an increased number of student,
private, and commercial pilots certificated, and the Federal-aid airport pro­
gram was reactivated by a congressional appropriation of $22 million, all
in the interest of safer and faster flight for a greater number of passengers
and planes.

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ANNUAL REPO R T OF T H E SECRETA RY OF COM M ERCE

CAA obligations in fiscal 1955 totaled $133,181,571, compared with
$114,162,606 in the previous year.

Federal Airways

During the year ended June 30, 1955, the length of “Victor” airways—
those skylanes marked out by the electronic beams of very high frequency
omnidirectional radio ranges (VOR or omniranges)—was increased by
12,000 miles to 74,000 statute miles of primary airway, and alternate or
bypass “Victor” airways were increased by 2,800 miles to 25,000 statute
miles.
The number of VOR’s was increased by 27, bringing the total to 410.
Distance measuring equipments (DME) increased by 64 to a total of 231.
In addition, 10 instrument landing systems (ILS) were commissioned,
bringing the total number in operation to 157, and 5 airport surveillance
radars (ASR) were commissioned, making a total of 32. A long-range
surveillance radar commissioned at New York covers a radius of about 100
miles.
The increased use of direct radio communications between pilots and
controller personnel in air route traffic control centers, and of radar as a
traffic control tool, further expedited the handling of arriving and depart­
ing aircraft. Two additional military-civil radar approach control centers
were commissioned, making a total of 3 in a program of 18.
Economies were effected by combining 12 more airport traffic control
towers with their associated communication stations, making a total of 73
combined stations.
Changed requirements permitted economies through discontinuance of
14 light beacons, 6 intermediate fields, 5 low-frequency radio ranges, 11
nondirectional radio beacons, 42 fan markers, and 2,800 miles of lowfrequency airways.
Equipment for traffic control and navigational aids in six countries was
purchased for the Foreign Operations Administration (now the Interna­
tional Cooperation Administration). Of a $3,402,000 total program,
$1,800,000 was obligated by the year’s end.
The Board for the Security Control of Air Traffic in Air Defense was
created by joint CAA-Air Force directive to carry out directives from the
National Security Council and the President. CAA and military action
has resulted in greatly improving the identification capability of the Air
Defense Command operations.
A joint CAA-Air Force agreement was reached whereby Air Force traffic
controllers will be qualified and certificated in the same manner as CAA
controllers, thus facilitating operation of the common system of air naviga­
tion in conformance with the President’s civil air policy.
CAA air route traffic control centers and RAPCONS (radar approach
control installations) reported handling a total of 18,543,476 fix postings.

ANNUAL REPO R T OF T H E SECRETARY OF COM M ERCE

33

(A fix posting is the flight information reported for 1 flight at 1 radio fix.)
This represents an increase of 19 percent, or 2.9 million, over fiscal 1954.
CAA airport traffic control towers reported 18,800,577 aircraft opera­
tions, an increase of more than a million and a half aircraft movements
over fiscal 1954.
The entire airways picture for the next 10 years has been under study
by CAA to provide for the expected doubling of air traffic by 1965. The
study has established basic requirements on which to build a successful
program. With the coming of turbine-powered aircraft flying at high
altitudes on direct off-airway routes, navigation and traffic control aids
that provide coverage of the entire airspace between 18,000 and 75,000
feet are necessary. To meet the needs of pilots who fly by visual flight
rules, it will be necessary to extend navigation coverage down to 700 feet
along the airways. Double the present number of modern navigational
aid installations will be necessary for high-altitude coverage of all airspace
and low-altitude coverage of airway routes. A stepped-up radar program
will be required to give the traffic controller an instantaneous picture of
the traffic in his sector and an accurate method of identifying and dealing
with the individual aircraft which make up the picture.

Aviation Safety

Continued expansion of the scheduled air carrier industry included the
introduction of the Vickers Viscount, of British manufacture, the first
turboprop-powered aircraft to be used in United States scheduled service,
and the delivery of new, larger, and faster aircraft such as the Douglas
DC—7 and Lockheed Super Constellation. In fiscal 1955, civil aircraft
manufacturers shipped 4,232 aircraft, weighing 10,195,000 airframe pounds
and valued at $267,972,000.
.
Certification and operational problems increased in complexity with the
use of the new aircraft and the development of turboprop- and turbojetpowered transports. A number of foreign aircraft projects reached stages
of development ranging from preliminary discussions to actual technical
evaluation of prototype models.
With the continued steady growth in aviation activities, measures were
required to place increased responsibility for safety on the aviation industry
and operators. A committee was appointed in January 1955 to develop
concrete proposals as to which functions could be transferred, delegated,
or eliminated and which should be retained. The report was completed
shortly after the close of the fiscal year and sent to aviation industry groups
and trade associations for consideration.
Increased surveillance of irregular air carrier operations and especially
of military contract flights, initiated in fiscal 1954, contributed to the best
2-year safety record of this group of carriers.

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A N NUAL REPO R T O F T H E SECRETARY OF COM M ERCE

CAA actively carried on its policy of disseminating safety information
to the industry. Approximately 300 reports published during the year
covered over 1.400 mechanical difficulties which the air carrier operators
considered to be hazardous. These reports were disseminated to air carriers,
manufacturers, and others for establishment of corrective measures.
There were increases in fiscal 1955 in the number of student, private,
and commercial pilot certificates issued. However, airline transport pilot
certificate issuances declined from the previous year. Student certificate
issuances increased 11 percent, private increased 11 percent, commercial
increased 14 percent, and airline transport decreased 20 percent.

Airports

The Federal-aid airport program was reactivated by an appropriation
of $22 million for fiscal 1955 after a 1-year discontinuance of new grants.
Allocations totaling $22,245,281 were made to 192 airports. Requests for
Federal aid to airports greatly exceeded the available appropriation, and
in selecting projects aid was necessarily limited to airports having the
highest priority.
The total Federal-aid airport program appropriations for the fiscal yean
1947—55 were $236,221,154. As of June 30, 1955, the total program
covered 2,665 projects representing $212,627,619 in Federal funds. Of
these, 2,654 projects amounting to $211,582,294 were under grant
agreement.
The program announced for the 1956 fiscal year involved a total of 205
grants amounting to an allocation of $20 million. An additional authori­
zation of $42.5 million for fiscal 1956 was included in an amendment to
the Federal Airport Act approved by the President on August 3. The new
law further authorizes a level of $63 million for Federal grants for each of
the next 3 fiscal years that will enable sponsors to present long-range
airport plans and permit earlier programing of each year’s authorization.
The Washington National Airport, operated by CAA, established a record
for the seventh consecutive year with a scheduled airline passenger volume
of 3,404,302, an increase of 18.6 percent over the previous year. The total
of 212,694 aircraft movements, an increase of 6.5 percent over fiscal 1954,
set a record for the fourth consecutive year. During 1 period of 16 con­
secutive hours under instrument flight conditions, an average of 50 move­
ments an hour was handled by the airport tower. The operational capacity
under these conditions, even with radar, was expected to average 40
movements.
A 550-foot “finger” constructed at the airport added 5 additional gate
positions.

Planning, Research, and Development

Many important studies were published by the Office of Planning, Re­
search, and Development, including The Airplane at Work for Business

A N NUAL R EPO R T OF T H E SECRETA RY O F COM M ERCE

35

and Industry, CAA Statistical Handbook of Civil Aviation, and Federal
Airways Air Traffic Activity.
Progress was made in the Aviation Incentive Movement, which is designed
to interest the youth of America in aviation careers. Close coordination
continued with the military services on proposed legislation to authorize
the flight training of members of the Reserve Officers Training Corps.
Gains were made in simplifying regulations and procedures which
impeded international air travel. The program received Presidential
endorsement and support which stimulated all departments of the Govern­
ment to greater efforts in promoting international travel.
The dynamic air traffic control simulator at the Technical Development
and Evaluation Center in Indianapolis was used to develop an improved
air traffic control system for the Chicago area when the second civil airport
is placed in operation. The system, using radar techniques, will permit a
large increase in air traffic flow in that area.
The Cincinnati Air Route Traffic Control Center was moved to Indian­
apolis to complete the installation phase of the Airways Operations Evalu­
ation Center. This side-by-side arrangement of an operating and an
experimental center will permit the evaluation and implementation of new
air traffic control procedures and equipment on a more expeditious basis.
The development center’s analyzer for determining the effectiveness of
an aircraft fire extinguishing system in flight was applied to the B-36 air­
plane with satisfactory results. Facilities were erected at the center for
the conduct of full-scale fire tests on helicopters and for the investigation
of explosion hazards associated with jet engine installations.

International Operations

Having accepted responsibility within the Air Coordinating Committee
for leadership and coordination in the technical field, CAA continued to
furnish major support to the International Civil Aviation Organization in
its technical activities, both in day-to-day work and by participation in
United States delegations to ICAO meetings.
Foreign markets for United States manufactured flight and ground
equipment were broadened through CAA participation in the Foreign
Operations Administration Technical Assistance Program and directly
through CAA personnel abroad. Twenty FOA-CAA Missions and Groups
with a total personnel complement of 56 specialists were in operation or
being planned in 19 countries during the year.
Worldwide application of a common system of air navigation aids was
furthered by the maintenance in Europe of a DC-3 aircraft and an elec­
tronic laboratory available to other governments for checking ground and
airborne electronic components of the system.
Assistance in planning and establishing civil aviation administrations,
regulations, and airline operations was given to many foreign countries
and airlines.

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ANNUAL REPO R T O F T H E SECRETA RY OF COM M ERCE

Important Court Decision.

Perhaps the year’s most important legal decision affecting aviation was
in the Cedarhurst case, where the validity of Government regulations was
upheld on the basis that Congress preempted the air space necessary for
the flight of aircraft. Here, an ordinance of the village of Cedarhurst,
New York, restricting low-altitude approaches to New York International
Airport, was voided as being in conflict with the paramount Federal
authority to regulate minimum flight altitudes.

Information

The Office of Aviation Information inaugurated a series of “Profiles”
of representative CAA employees and the interesting and useful work they
are doing. These were widely printed and have served several purposes—
public education, employee morale, and recruitment.
CAA’s priced publications, issued only to meet needs not served by
private publishers, brought the Treasury $194,977, an increase of 16 percent
over fiscal 1954.
The exhibit “History of Flight,” displayed in Washington, attracted
12,000 visitors from all over the United States and foreign countries.

Training

The CAA Aeronautical Center in Oklahoma City graduated 1,185
aviation technicians during the year, an increase of 23 percent over 1954.
Of these, 709 were CAA employees, 380 were from the United States Air
Force, 14 from the United States aviation industry, and 3 from other
Federal agencies, and 79 were industry, civil, and military technicians of
friendly foreign countries. This training is designed to increase technical
knowledge and impart uniform operational techniques and procedures.

General Services

A cooperative study by the Office of General Services and the Office of
Federal Airways on electronic tubes for the airport surveillance radar
systems resulted in a program that will save $100,000 a year.

DEFENSE AIR TRANSPORTATION ADMINISTRATION
The Defense Air Transportation Administration is responsible for plan­
ning and directing the mobilization of United States civil aviation resources
for effective utilization in the event of war.
One of DATA’s major accomplishments has been the allocation of air­
lift between the Civil Reserve Air Fleet (CRAF) for direct support of the
military in time of war and the War Air Service Pattern (WASP) in
continued commercial operation to carry war-essential traffic under an air
priorities system. This allocation is kept revised by periodic adjustment

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37

for changes in the Nation’s war plans, essential industry needs, and changes
in the inventory of aircraft.
The latest GRAF allocation of 317 four-engine aircraft includes approxi­
mately one-third of the total airlift of the civil airlines, to be operated under
contract by the civil airlines in direct support of the Military Air Transport
Service on 48-hour notice, using civil aircraft, personnel, and maintenance
facilities. The aircraft in the CRAF are valued at more than $425 mil­
lion. The joint efforts of DATA, USAF, and the airlines have resulted
in detailed operational plans and essential stockpiles, embodied in a military
emergency war plan.
The WASP is the portion of the total airlift of the civil air carriers which
will be required for the war economy. Plans have been made to carry only
essential air traffic, based upon an air priorities system with policies jointly
determined by DATA and the Department of Defense.
DATA further developed its plans for the civil defense use of scheduled
and nonscheduled airline aircraft and noncarrier transport-type aircraft.
Such requirements for airline and military transport aircraft will be met
though the air priorities system; private and corporation transport-type
aircraft will be utilized through the national emergency defense airlift plan.
DATA is the delegate agency making recommendations to ODM on
accelerated tax amortization necessity certificates for commercial transport
aircraft. On DATA’s recommendation, the interim goal for 600 transport
aircraft, which was filled in November 1954, has recently been increased to
900 aircraft which must be on firm order by December 31, 1955.

MARITIME ADMINISTRATION
The Maritime Administration is responsible for fostering the develop­
ment and maintenance of an American merchant marine sufficient to meet
the needs of the national defense and of the domestic and foreign commerce
of the United States. Its functions include the construction, repair, and
operation of merchant ships, maintenance of national defense reserve fleets
of Government-owned ships, administration of operating and construction
differential subsidy programs and other Government aids to shipping,
maintenance of reserve shipyards for ship construction in national emergen­
cies, training of merchant marine officers, and administration of a grant-inaid program for State maritime academies.
In carrying out its responsibilities, the Administration is guided by the
declaration of policy set forth in title I of the Merchant Marine Act of
1936, as amended.
Several important steps were taken during fiscal 1955 in line with the
above objectives. Of particular significance were an accelerated ship con­
struction, conversion, and repair program and the development of new ship
designs and propulsion systems for new construction and adaptation to
existing ships.

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ANN U A L R EPO R T OF T H E SECRETA RY OF COM M ERCE

In providing assistance to the maritime industry, the Maritime Adminis­
tration continued its adherence to the basic principles of promoting a pri­
vately owned and operated American merchant marine and of keeping the
extent of Government participation to the minimum required for the
country’s economic and national defense needs.

Construction and Operating Aid

Negotiations were completed for the construction of two passenger-cargo
vessels for Moore-McCormack Lines, Inc. This is the first step in the
replacement of the “Good Neighbor Fleet,” as required under the pro­
visions of the operator’s subsidy contract. The Federal Maritime Board
granted construction-differential aid for the reconstruction of four
Mariner-class ships purchased by the American President Lines, Ltd. In
addition, there were pending at the close of the fiscal year applications from
4 operators for construction-differential aid in the construction of 6 new
passenger-cargo vessels and the conversion of 3 Mariner-class ships.
Contracts were entered into with 3 companies for the trade-in of 14
obsolete tankers as credit allowance to be applied against the construction
of 6 new tankers. Still under consideration was another application in­
volving trade-in of old tankers and construction of 2 new tankers.
No new operators were awarded operating-differential subsidy contracts,
and excellent progress continued to be made in clearing up the backlog
of operating-differential subsidy rates applicable to the postwar period.
There was approved a modification of procedure for establishing these rates
which will enable the Government to meet its subsidy obligations to the
shipping industry on a virtually current basis in the future. A total of
$324,508,774 in net advance subsidy payments had been made for subsi­
dized operations through calendar year 1954.
Public Law 781, 83d Congress, gave impetus to private financing of new
ship construction by making more attractive to the shipping industry the
mortgage insurance aid provisions of the Merchant Marine Act of 1936,
as amended. A number of applications were filed under this law, and
four were approved in principle.
Of particular significance in the field of oceangoing traffic was the enact­
ment of Public Law 664, 83d Congress, which provided for at least 50
percent participation of United States privately owned ships in the move­
ment of Government-financed cargoes to the extent that such ships are
available at fair and reasonable rates. Surveillance was maintained over
the provisions of this law.

Operation of Ships

During the fiscal year, the number of privately owned ships of 1,000 gross
tons or over in the United States merchant fleet declined from 1,224 to
1,101. In terms of deadweight tonnage, these ships represented 11 percent

A N NUAL R EPO R T O F T H E SECRETARY OF COM M ERCE

39

of the tonnage in the world’s merchant fleets as compared to 12.5 percent
at the end of the previous year.
The operation of merchant ships by general agents for Government ac­
count declined to a low of 11 ships by February 1955. At that time, 26
additional ships were placed in operation to meet the requirements of the
Military Sea Transportation Service. At the end of the fiscal year, 72 Mari­
time Administration-owned ships were in the custody of other Government
agencies and 26 were under bareboat charter to private operators.
As of June 30, 1955, there were 2,068 ships in the national defense reserve
fleets, having a replacement value of approximately $8 billion. The ship
preservation program progressed steadily, with 94 percent of basic lay-up
and protection work completed. Protection of the underwater surfaces of
hulls had also been completed for 1,542 of the ships.
At the request of the Department of Agriculture, 90 additional reserve
fleet ships were made available for the storage of surplus grain, bringing to
a total of 407 the number of ships authorized to be used for this program.
At the end of the year, 355 of these ships had been loaded with approxi­
mately 81 million bushels of grain.

Shipbuilding and Repair

In the course of the year, 13 ships were under construction and 5 ships
were being reconverted in various shipyards under Maritime Administration
contracts. Ships under construction included the last 4 of a total of 35
Mariner-class ships, 3 of which were delivered during the year; 2 re­
frigerated stores ships and 3 tankers for the Department of the Navy; and
4 tankers contracted for under the program for trading in obsolete tonnage
for allowance of credit against new construction.
By the end of the year, conversion work had commenced on 4 of the 9
Mariner-class ships sold to private operators and on another Mariner for
the Department of the Navy. In addition, a contract was awarded for
the construction of one roll-on/roll-off cargo ship for the Department of
the Navy.
Another program well under way was the Liberty ship conversion pro­
gram, involving the installation, on an experimental basis, of hull modifica­
tions and new propulsion units on 4 ships for the purpose of improving
their speed and cargo-handling features. Contracts were awarded for the
conversion of 2 ships—1 to steam turbine and another to geared diesel
engine power—and also for the manufacture of an open cycle gas turbine
propulsion unit and a free piston generator-gas turbine propulsion unit.
In anticipation of the use of nuclear power in merchant ships, contracts
were entered into with a private design agent and a leading university with
research experience in this field for a study of the technical and economic
feasibility of the application of nuclear power to merchant ships.

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A N NUAL REPO R T O F T H E SECRETA RY O F COM M ERCE

In view of the impending block obsolescence of America’s privately owned
and operated merchant fleet, preliminary new ship designs were developed
as a basis for establishing the characteristics desirable in our future merchant
marine. This program included 7 designs of ships: 4 types of cargo vessels,
a bulk carrier, a tanker, and a trailer ship.
Allied with the ship construction programs has been the emergency
ship repair program, authorized by Public Law 608, 83d Congress, the
purpose of which is to place reserve fleet ships in a state of greater readiness
in the event of national emergency and maintain activity in the country’s
ship repair yards. During the year, 90 Navy auxiliary-type ships were with­
drawn from the reserve fleets and 64 of these were completed, at a total
cost of $4,096,476.

Ship Sales and Transfers

The SS President Cleveland and SS President Wilson were sold to the
American President Lines, Ltd., for the sums of $6,346,262.50 and $6,318,087.50, respectively, under the authority of Public Law 553, 83d Congress.
Four Mariner-type vessels were also sold to the same company at a total
sales price of $17,686,687.36.
A sales contract was entered into with Pacific Far East Lines for the
purchase of 3 Mariner-type vessels. The preliminary sales price on 1 of
these vessels was $5,750,000 and on the 2 others $5,700,000 each.
Applications were approved pursuant to sections 9 and/or 37 of the
Shipping Act, 1916, as amended, for the transfer to foreign ownership
and/or registry of 144 United States flag ships of 1,000 gross tons or over.
Of these, 11 were approved for transfer in consideration of the construction
of new tonnage, or rebuilding of existing tonnage, in the United States.
During the early part of fiscal 1955, the Maritime Administration’s policy
was amended to permit, under certain conditions, the transfer of a limited
number of Liberty-type dry cargo vessels to Panamanian, Liberian, or
Honduran registry, with ownership remaining in United States citizens.
This policy was rescinded on December 17, 1954, by which time a total of
69 ships had been approved for transfer.

Maritime Training

During the fiscal year, 127 men were graduated from the U. S. Merchant
Marine Academy, Kings Point, N. Y., and 253 from the State maritime
academies maintained by the States of California, Maine, Massachusetts,
and New York. These graduates received United States merchant marine
officers’ licenses as third mates or third assistant engineers of oceangoing
ships, bachelor of science degrees, and commissions as ensigns in the U. S.
Naval Reserve and the U. S. Maritime Service.

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41

Property and Supply

The maintenance and security program was continued at four Govern­
ment-owned reserve shipyards. Permits and leases were granted or con­
tinued to other agencies or private organizations for the use of substantial
portions of the land, structures, and equipment at these shipyards and at
two terminals.
Prior to the fiscal year a sizable portion of the reserve training station at
Sheepshead Bay, N. Y., had been declared to the General Services Adminis­
tration as excess to the needs of the Maritime Administration. During fiscal
1955 a revocable permit was granted to the Department of the Air Force
for the use of the balance of the station.

Financial Activities

A revised accounting system for the Maritime Administration was ap­
proved by the Comptroller General of the United States.
There was recovered from underwriters, under the recapture provisions
of World War II Wartime Hull and Protection and Indemnity Agreements,
a total of $1,550,000, bringing the total of such recoveries to $60,275,000.
The number of claims arising primarily from the wartime activities of
the former Maritime Commission and War Shipping Administration was
further reduced to 874, with a claimed value of approximately $17 million.
In addition, there were 890 claims with the Department of Justice for
litigation in the amount of $328 million.

Legislation

Most legislative proposals made during the year were based on recom­
mendations contained in the Review of Maritime Subsidy Policy, submitted
to the Congress. Included was draft legislation for research and experiment
in cargo-handling practices and facilities on shore and ship, test operations
of reconstructed Liberties and other vessels, and a number of other proposals
to strengthen the privately owned merchant fleet and shipbuilding industry.
Other proposals included recommendations for extension of the Marine
War Risk Insurance Act and for the sale of certain vessels to Philippine
citizens. These were later enacted into law.
The bill to establish the Merchant Marine Academy on a permanent
basis passed the House and was pending on the Senate Calendar at the end
of the fiscal year.

Other Activities

In the regulatory field, close watch was kept over the sudden and unex­
pected rise in conference freight rates which began in the fall of 1954, in
order to assure that the increases did not place an unwarranted burden
on the conduct of trade.

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ANN U A L REPO R T OF T H E SECRETA RY O F COM M ERCE

The Maritime Administration continued to cooperate with the Depart­
ment of State in negotiations with foreign governments on discriminatory
practices against United States shipping, and in providing training for
foreign trainees in the maritime field. Close liaison was maintained also
with United States representatives serving with the Organization for Euro­
pean Economic Cooperation, to ensure adequate presentation of United
States shipping policy before the Maritime Transport Committee of that
organization.
Under the terms of the Mutual Security Act of 1954, steps were taken
to procure up to a maximum of eight C l—MAVI vessels for transfer to
Korea and to establish a training program for the Korean crews.

BUREAU OF PUBLIC ROADS

For many years the Bureau of Public Roads has been the principal road­
building agency of the Federal Government. Reflecting the prime signifi­
cance of highway transport, the Bureau’s functions embrace a wide range
of engineering, administrative, and research activities in this field. It
supervises the expenditure of funds authorized to aid the States in highway
improvement and supervises highway construction in national forests, parks,
and parkways. Upon request it furnishes highway engineering assistance
to other Federal agencies.
A long-held objective of the Bureau is to assist the States in planning
and developing a system of highways adequate for the Nation’s needs.
The general character of this cooperation with the States is fixed by law,
but decades of experience with highway problems from coast to coast has
enabled the Bureau to focus its research and engineering efforts on the most
essential aspects of highway improvement and traffic control.
During fiscal 1955 the Bureau cooperated with the States in planning
and carrying out a record volume of highway improvement. In addition,
the Bureau participated in the most comprehensive study of highway needs
ever undertaken.
Motor vehicle registrations, urban and rural traffic volumes, and highway
congestion all reached new peaks. The number of motor vehicles was
expected to total more than 61 million by the end of 1955—a gain of 2.75
million in 12 months. Mileage traveled on streets and roads increased
3.7 percent in the fiscal year.
Highway improvement went forward at a rate which made the year
outstanding in physical accomplishment. The huge volume of work, how­
ever, was overshadowed in the public mind by the much greater mileage
of improvements still needed to reduce congestion, delays, and accidents.
The President in July 1954 focused attention on the urgent need for
major highway improvement throughout the Nation and proposed that it
be accelerated. He appointed an advisory committee to consider various

ANNUAL R EPO R T O F T H E SECRETARY O F COM M ERCE

43

approaches to the problem and work in cooperation with a special com­
mittee of the Governors Conference. The Bureau assisted these groups by
supplying background data and technical advice.
As directed by the Federal-aid Highway Act of 1954, the Bureau, with
the cooperation of the States, prepared a report on highway needs which
•estimated the cost of construction required to modernize the Nation’s roads
and streets in a period of 10 years at $101 billion, of which $23 billion was
for the national system of interstate highways, $30 billion for the remainder
•of the Federal-aid primary system, and $15 billion for the Federal-aid
secondary system.
The information and recommendations developed in these studies en­
abled Congress to begin careful consideration of legislation looking toward
a greatly enlarged program of highway improvement.
Under the provisions of the Federal-aid Highway Act of 1954, the
Bureau launched a new plan for administration of the Federal-aid secondary
or farm-to-market road program which greatly simplifies procedures by
relieving the Federal Government of much of its engineering and admin­
istrative responsibility. The plan involves Bureau acceptance of certifica­
tion by the State that projects have been completed in accordance with
standards and procedures previously prepared by the State and approved
by the Bureau. By the end of the fiscal year, 31 States had adopted the
new plan.

Federal-Aid Program

To accelerate the highway improvement program, the Federal-aid au­
thorization of $875 million for fiscal 1956 was apportioned to the States on
July 1, 1954, 6 months ahead of the time limit set by Congress.
Completions of all classes of Federal-aid projects during the fiscal year
accounted for the improvement of 22,155 miles of roads—an increase of
1,166 miles over the previous year. Included were 6,050 miles of highways
and 1,202 bridges on the Federal-aid primary system outside of cities;
842 miles of highways and 465 bridges on urban portions of the Federal-aid
primary system; 14,692 miles of roads and 1,764 bridges on secondary roads;
and 571 miles of highways in national parks, forests, parkways and floodrelief projects. Railway-highway grade crossings were eliminated at 216
locations, and 317 crossings were protected by installation of improved
safety devices.
Federal-aid highway improvements in urban areas have increased grad­
ually over a 10-year period, reaching almost $500 million during the fiscal
year. In selecting urban projects for Federal aid, every effort was made to
eliminate traffic bottlenecks by construction that provided greater traffic
capacity. Expressways were under construction in more than 100 cities.
Construction of circumferential routes near the outskirts of metropolitan
areas has been started at Boston, Louisville, Baltimore, and other cities.

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ANNUAL R EPO R T OF T H E SECRETA RY OF COM M ERCE

This will permit a free exchange of traffic between radial routes without
passing through the more congested areas.
Many of these cities are located on the national system of interstate
highways, a network which links business and industrial centers from coast
to coast. This vital system, essential to production, distribution, and
defense, was authorized by Congress in 1944, with a 40,000-mile limit.
The system is a part of the larger Federal-aid primary system. Some
37,700 miles of routes were selected by the States and approved in 1947.
At the end of the fiscal year, selection of the remaining 2,300 miles was
underway. These additions will all be in and around urban areas.
Built to high standards, with provision where needed for divided high­
ways, improvements on the interstate system have been financed largely
with regular Federal-aid primary or urban funds matched by State funds.
However, progress has been far below the rate required to provide these
urgently needed facilities. This fact was clearly recognized both in the
report on highway needs and in legislative proposals put before the Con­
gress. Clearly recognized, too, was the imperative need for full access
control on all arterial highways.

Reports to Congress

Four separate reports were submitted to Congress during the year. The
report on highway needs has already been mentioned.
A report on the feasibility of toll roads concluded that 6,900 miles of
highways feasible as toll roads lie almost entirely on the interstate system.
Continuance of the law prohibiting collection of tolls on roads built with
Federal aid was recommended, but it was proposed that toll roads built to
satisfactory standards be included in the interstate system if a satisfactory
alternate free Federal-aid route exists.
A study of public utility relocation incident to highway improvement
was also delivered to the Congress.
At least 36 separate enactments have modified the laws governing Federalaid programs since the original Road Act of 1916. The Bureau made a
thorough analysis of all these enactments and included in a report to
Congress a draft of a proposed new “one package” law.

Research Activities

The Bureau advanced its studies of highway finance, highway transport,
and the array of physical problems that are associated with highway con­
struction. As in previous years, the research program was shaped by the
actual needs of modern highway practice.
The Bureau continued to cooperate in the extensive road test of bitumi­
nous pavements conducted by the Western Association of State Highway
Officials. It looked forward to participation in a road test of even larger
scope being undertaken by the American Association of State Highway
Officials and other cooperators.

A N NUAL REPO R T O F T H E SECRETARY OF COM M ERCE

45

For several years the Bureau has worked for recognition of the need for
coordinated consideration of publicly financed highway development pro­
grams and navigational improvements. The general public ultimately
bears all transportation costs, and greatly increased overall efficiency and
economy can be effected by weighing together highway and navigation
traffic needs in planning bridge clearances on inland and intracoastal
waterways.

WEATHER BUREAU
In addition to forecasting daily weather changes affecting all parts of
the United States and adjacent waters, the United States Weather Bureau
is charged with the responsibility of observing, recording, and reporting
the conditions of weather and climate and the stages of rivers and floods
that affect the safety of life and property or are vital to the basic economy
of the United States.
Each passing year brings further public endorsement of the importance
and value of modern forecasting services for the protection and economic
advancement of the American people. Each year also brings additional
demands for more detailed services in special fields of activity or in par­
ticular areas of the country. Much of the new work of the Weather Bureau
during fiscal 1955 was devoted to meeting the most urgent of these service
demands within available resources. At the same time, much progress was
also made in improving its hurricane, tornado, and severe storm warning
services.
The variations of weather and water become important to the Nation,
as well as to the individual citizen, when they bring unnecessary loss of
human lives, widespread damage to property, destruction of crops, loss of
ships and aircraft, and countless other unexpected burdens to the daily plans
and activities of millions of people.

Hurricane Warning Services

The record occurrence during the autumn of 1954 of three tropical
storms affecting the Atlantic Coast States focused public attention on the
Weather Bureau’s hurricane warning services and the action taken to de­
velop more complete warning services for all coastal areas. Some of the
improvements include:

Establishment of emergency warning centers at major Weather Bureau stationsalong the coast.
Installation of special teletypewriter and telephone connections for rapid contact
between forecasters and all coastal offices.
More frequent hurricane reconnaissance flights by Department of Defense aircraft.
Completion of arrangements for flying weathermen from inland stations to stormthreatened areas for emergency duties.
Installation of a high-powered radar station at Cape Hatteras, N. C., which can
detect and track hurricanes as far as 250 miles away.

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A N NUAL R EPO R T O F T H E SECRETA RY OF COM M ERCE

Installation of new weather chart facsimile equipment which provides additional
weather charts to major Weather Bureau stations along the coast.
Expanded high-water warning service for the entire Atlantic coast, including
nearby bays, inlets, and rivers.
Initiation of a cooperative hurricane information program to insure better public
understanding of hurricanes and the warning services.

The future program for additional hurricane service improvements in­
cludes stepped-up research activities to find out more about the behavior
of hurricanes, enlarged professional staffs at forecast centers, more observa­
tions from ocean areas, still further improved communication facilities,
and additional radar storm-tracking stations in coastal areas.

Tornado Warning Services

The accuracy of tornado forecasts increased considerably over preceding
years. Improved tornado forecast services were made possible by new
radar stations and an expanded volunteer observation network. The public
has credited the Weather Bureau with considerable saving of lives and much
reduced public apprehension during the past tornado season.
The Weather Bureau’s expanded tornado warning educational program
proved effective, and enjoyed the cooperation of many organizations in
disseminating information about available forecast services and the safety
precautions to be taken during critical tornado periods.
The future program for improve^ tornado forecast services includes the
installation of additional radar stations, further extension of observation
networks, installation of rapid teletypewriter collection systems for special
reports of severe storms, and concentrated research and development in
observation equipment and in forecasting techniques.

Local Severe Storm Warning Services

In addition to hurricanes and tornadoes, there are other types of severe
weather occurrences throughout the United States that require special
attention by the Weather Bureau. These include thunderstorms, gales,
blizzards, flood-producing rains, ice storms, sudden cold waves, and abrupt
changes in weather conditions of local significance.
The forecasting unit for severe local storms was moved from Washington,
D. C., to Kansas City, Mo., to place the forecasters closer to the area most
frequented by these storms.
The Weather Bureau enlarged its volunteer severe weather report dis­
tribution system throughout the country as another step toward providing
all concerned with adequate advance notice of severe weather changes and
thereby contributed to maximum storm protection to citizens in every county
in the United States.

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State Forecast Offices

An important step toward improved daily forecasts of tomorrow’s weather
was the Weather Bureau’s program for the establishment of State forecast
offices to replace or supplement district forecast centers which now forecast
for large regions covering several States. With a reduced area of responsi­
bility, the forecaster will be able to give more attention to locally important
details than would be possible in the brief analysis time allotted to a fore­
caster responsible for four or five States.
Forecast offices were established in North Carolina, New Mexico, New
York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Iowa, and Oklahoma. Plans were being
developed to extend this forecast program into all other States as fast as
the availability of funds and qualified personnel will permit.

Hydrologic Services

Emphasis continued to be placed on the extension of modernized river
forecast methods and procedures to new drainage areas.
An important new development was the issuance of flood warnings on the
basis of heavy rainstorms tracked by radar observations. Experimentation
continued on the use of radarscope photographs for estimates of drainage
basin rainfall that could be used for flood-forecasting purposes.
On-the-site evaporation studies were continued and new techniques were
advanced for estimation of evaporation for meteorological data.
Rainfall intensity frequency studies were completed for 200 Weather
Bureau stations. The public roads project for extension of flood frequency
records by applying rainfall-runoff forecast relations to the longer rainfall
records was continued and expanded.
Special meteorological studies were conducted for the Corps of Engineers
to provide guidance for the design of levee heights along the Mississippi
River.

Climatological Services

Procedures on the processing and publication of climatological data were
streamlined and made almost completely mechanized.
Special attention was paid to making climatological information more
useful and more widely available to agricultural interests. The Weekly
Weather and Crop Bulletin was expanded to double its former size and
carried timely articles on applied meteorology and farm-weather relation­
ships. Steady progress was made in the publication of past climatic data
and State climatic summaries. Plans were laid for a series of climatic guides
for the major cities of the United States.
A small bioclimatology section was set up in the Climatological Services
Division to study the relations of climate to crops. Cooperative programs
with State agricultural experiment stations and universities were underway
in 14 States.

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ANN U A L REPO R T O F T H E SECRETA RY OF COM M ERCE

Plans were also made to give increased emphasis to climatological services
in all States as rapidly as funds and properly trained personnel become
available. In the field service, three of the five currently planned area
climatologist positions were filled.
The Weather Bureau’s Climatological Services Division is cooperating
actively with the Division of Earth Sciences of the National Academy of
Sciences in the preparation of climate information for its forthcoming atlas
of national resources.
A special study of hurricane trends over the past 75 years was started,
and several research projects on climatic data analysis were begun.
Plans were made for further development of high-speed data-selection
procedures using punched cards, microfilms, and electronic computers.

Numerical Weather Prediction

The Weather Bureau, jointly with the Air Force and Navy, established a
Numerical Weather Prediction Unit to develop methods for forecasting
future weather patterns with the aid of rapid electronic computers. The
high-speed electronic data processing machines used are capable of solving
at incredible speed numerous complex mathematical computations which
previously would have been impossible with human workers because of the
millions of man-hours of calculations required. Testing of new-type fore­
casting procedures began with the delivery of the computer in March 1955.
Results of daily operational forecasts which began shortly thereafter indicate
a significant technical advancement.

National Weather Analysis Center

The Weather Bureau assumed full responsibility for the National Weather
Analysis Center in the spring of 1955 with the move of the center from
central headquarters at 24th and M Streets in Washington, D. C., to new
enlarged quarters at Suitland, Md.
The National Weather Analysis Center, formerly jointly staffed with the
Air Force and Navy, prepares the 58 analyzed surface and upper-air weather
charts that are sent daily by facsimile to more than a hundred stations in all
parts of the country.

Meteorological Instrumentation

Radar installations have proved of tremendous value in daily weather
forecasting, particularly of hurricanes, tornadoes, and flood-producing rains;
and are rapidly accumulating observed data of great significance in studies
directed at an improved understanding of storm makeup and behavior.
The installation of radar storm equipment to detect, analyze, and track
precipitation areas up to 200 miles away proceeded as fast as funds, equip­
ment, and available trained personnel permitted.
Plans include the placement of modern, especially designed storm radar
equipment at suitable intervals along the entire Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic

ANN U A L REPO R T O F T H E SECRETARY OF COM M ERCE

49

coasts, and at other points in the United States where there is a high
incidence of tornadoes and other severe storms.
Other significant progress in the rapidly developing field of meteorological
instrumentation include :
( 1) Development of a sequential automatic system for broadcasting upto-date weather information from low-frequency airway range stations.
(2) Development of retransmitting wind equipment which can auto­
matically report data over long-line telephone circuits.
(3) Further developments in automatic teletypewriter weather reporting
station equipment to improve its reliability and its capacity to report
additional observation data.

Meteorological Research and Development

The Physical Research Division continued its fundamental studies of the
physical properties of clouds and the processes by which they are converted
to rain. A basic understanding of this vital weather process is necessary
to advance the science of meteorology. Investigations of the electrification
transferred to cloud droplets by atmospheric ionization show that electricity
plays an important part in the coagulation of clouds.
The mechanical properties of falling cloud size particles and the rate of
their association to form large raindrops have been studied. Quantitative
measurements under carefully controlled conditions showed that current
estimates are greatly in error and need fundamental revision.
Other research and development projects undertaken cover a wide field
of basic and applied meteorological topics, including such samples as fireweather research in a California forest; thunderstorms and jet stream
research in Idaho and Montana; tornado research in Oklahoma; hurricane
research in Florida; weather modification research in the State of Washing­
ton; and agricultural meteorology research in Kentucky tobacco fields.

Cooperation With Other Agencies

C o o pera tio n W it h A to m ic E n erg y C o m m is s io n .—The Weather Bu­
reau continued its broad cooperative program with the Atomic Energy
Commission. Research was conducted on the effects of atomic explosions
on the general weather of the country, but no significant correlation was
determined. The program of collecting radioactive fallout at some 125
Weather Bureau locations throughout the United States continued and was
expanded during atomic tests. Special fallout forecasts were prepared
during these tests.
Research operational offices were operated at various AEC stations.
Technical meteorological assistance was furnished in the general develop­
ment of nuclear-powered aircraft and nuclear powerplants. The Weather
Bureau continued to advise the Atomic Energy Commission on the general
dispersal of radioactive effluents from reactors and other nuclear operations.

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A N NUAL REPO R T O F T H E SECRETARY O F COM M ERCE

C o o pera tio n W it h FCDA.—The Weather Bureau worked closely with
the Federal Civil Defense Administration on plans for utilizing meteorolog­
ical data for predicting areas of fallout in the event of an attack. Arrange­
ments were made to provide Weather Bureau liaison and consultant service
to FCDA national and regional offices and to State civil defense directors.
The Weather Bureau undertook a program of routine daily preparation
and dissemination of fallout data at selected upper-air wind observation
stations throughout the country. Plans were also agreed upon with FCDA
for research on improved methods of forecasting fallout areas, and for
statistical studies of fallout probabilities in the neighboorhood of presumed
target areas, based on past high-altitude wind records. The role of the
Weather Bureau in supporting civil defense at the national, State, and local
levels was formalized in a delegation of authority to the Commerce Depart­
ment by the FCDA which was approved by the President.
I n te r n a t io n a l G e o p h y s ic a l Y ear P rog ra m .— The Weather Bureau
actively participated in the development of the meteorological program for
the international geophysical year, 1957-58, which involves establishment
of meteorological stations in the Antarctic, including one at the South Pole.
The Bureau sent two staff members on the icebreaker Atka which visited
the Antarctic during the year in planning for the program of the international
geophysical year.

Office of the Assistant Secretary
for Domestic Affairs
The Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Domestic Affairs is the
Secretary’s principal assistant in fostering, promoting, and developing the
domestic industry and commerce of the United States. Under the Secre­
tary, his function is to assure that the domestic program and activities
of the Department result in the fullest contribution to a sound economy.
The Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Domestic Affairs serves the
business community in gaining proper representation of business views,
opinions, and problems in governmental affairs.
Thus, the stability and growth of the Nation is promoted through the
maintenance of a proper economic environment in which free competitive
enterprise may start, grow and prosper.
That program emphasized the policymaking and guidance of the
Business and Defense Services Administration, Office of Field Services,
Office of Technical Services and its Area Development Division, Office of
Business Economics, and Bureau of the Census.

ANNUAL R EPO R T O F T H E SECRETA RY OF COM M ERCE

51

Censuses of business, manufactures, mineral industries, and agriculture
were taken. This was the first complete census of business in 6 years.
Data compiled in that census is critically needed by American business
for marketing, management and development. Since the last census of
business the Nation’s population has grown by more than 20 million people,
and business has shown its greatest growth in history. Greatly improved
methods and procedures developed by the Department of Commerce during
the past year will expedite publication of the results to meet the urgent
demands of business.
The scope of area development activity relating to labor surplus areas
was widened to increase the effectiveness of Federal assistance in that field.
Under the policy direction of the Assistant Secretary, vital contributions
were made to the solution of problems of critical resources and materials.
This activity, vital to maintaining a prosperous economy and high standard
of living, deals with problems of certain shortages such as copper, nickel,
steel, and other critical materials and resources.
His planning contributed to diminishing Government competition with
private enterprise. The policies of his office have resulted in acquainting
the American businessman, on an ever-increasing scale, with the services of
the Department of Commerce.

BUSINESS AND DEFENSE SERVICES ADMINISTRATION

The year ended June 30, 1955, marked the second year of operations of
the Business and Defense Services Administration, which was established
on October 1, 1953. As the successor to the National Production Authority,
the new BDSA continued to carry the major load of the Department’s
responsibilities under the Defense Production Act of 1950, as amended.
In addition it continued to carry forward a large share of the Department’s
statutory responsibilities for fostering and promoting a sound and expandingnational economy.
Substantial progress was made on the programs previously developed
to carry out these responsibilities. These programs centered in actions
in support of current defense production and long-range industrial mobili­
zation planning under the general guidance of the Office of Defense Mobili­
zation, and in service to industry and business. Details regarding BDSA’s
defense activities will be found in the 1955 annual report of the Joint
Committee on Defense Production. These activities and those relating
to business services are briefly summarized below.

Defense and Mobilization Preparedness Activities
S pec ia l A s s is t a n c e

fo r

M ilita ry

and

A to m ic E n erg y P rog ra m s .—

Pursuant to delegations of authority under the Defense Production Act, as
amended, BDSA continued the channeling of essential scarce materials

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ANN U A L R EPO R T OF T H E SECRETA RY OF COM M ERCE

in support of the current military and atomic energy programs. A total
of 1,776 special assistance cases were processed during the second quarter
of 1955 as against slightly over 1,500 cases processed during the second
quarter of 1954. This increase in priorities actions was attributed to
expansion of certain atomic energy programs. Areas of tight supply which
continued to require special assistance were electrical and electronics equip­
ment, scientific instruments, machine tools, general components, and highalloy metals.
O pe r a t io n s o f t h e D e f e n s e M aterials S y s t e m .—The year ended
June 30, 1955, provided the first major test of the effectiveness of the
Defense Materials System (DMS). Continuing defense demands, added
to unprecedented levels of domestic civilian economic activity, resulted in
heavy pressure on the basic metallic industries. In some cases, these demand
sources were supplemented by high foreign demand for both metal and
scrap as well as by demands of the United States stockpile program.
Special actions to make available to domestic civilian industry scheduled
additions to the nickel, copper, and aluminum stockpiles reflected the heavy
pressure on the supply of these metals during the year.
One of the important considerations that led to the establishment of
the Defense Materials System in 1953 was the necessity for assuring the
completion of Department of Defense and Atomic Energy Commission
production and construction programs on schedule. This principle applied
with equal force to both a cold war and a hot war situation. Despite the
short supply of a number of materials, defense contractors without excep­
tion were given preferential treatment by suppliers. The exercise of title
I authority of the Defense Production Act, through the promulgation of
DMS regulations, contributed substantially toward the goal of maintaining
defense production at scheduled levels.
Although DMS proved effective, efforts were made to improve its opera­
tions. A handbook The Defense Materials System in Our American
Industry, for use by the Department of Defense and AEC contractors,
was published and distributed widely to the trade press and to trade asso­
ciations. This publication contributed to the greater use of ratings and
program identifications by purchasers of production and construction
materials for defense programs.
In the event of attack, BDSA is prepared to carry out the Defense
Materials System in order to marshal quickly the remaining industrial
resources for retaliatory purposes. As an industrial mobilization readiness
measure, BDSA initiated a program to develop a series of standby orders
and regulations. These orders and regulations will provide the framework
for immediate implementation of the DMS production and construction
control system in the event of a future emergency, and will provide the
basis for maximum utilization of our total national resources for retali­
ation against an aggressor in the event of attack.

ANNUAL REPO R T OF T H E SECRETA RY OF COM M ERCE

53

Progress was made also on the programs described in the Department’s
report for fiscal 1954 with respect to mobilization requirements, mobiliza­
tion base deficiency studies, industrial defense, accelerated tax amortization,
and stockpiling.

Business Service Activtities

In addition to its defense and long-range mobilization preparedness
activities, BDSA engaged in a continuing program to assist civilian enter­
prise. Its work in this area assisted industry in attaining and holding its
present all-time peak position of productivity.
C o m m u n ic a t io n s W it h I n d u st r y .—In cooperation with the Small
Business Administration, BDSA established a new publications program
designed to provide a regular flow of statistical and economic trend informa­
tion between Government and the business community. This program
included a business service bulletin series, information reference lists, sum­
mary information on products and practices, trade operating ratios and
capital requirements work sheets, and a series of industry reports on major
industries.
The systematic flow of information and guidance from business was
accomplished through such groups as the National Distribution Council,
trade and professional associations, and industry advisory committees.
Wide distribution of this information is made through the 33 field offices
of the Department, over 5,000 local chambers of commerce throughout the
United States, the 44 field offices of the Small Business Administration, and
the trade press.
E c o n o m ic I m pa ct S t u d ie s — S u r p l u s P r o per t y D is p o s a l .—In co­
operation with the General Services Administration and the Department
of Defense, BDSA provided a market testing and consultative service in
connection with the domestic disposal of Federal surplus property.
Through a cooperative working agreement, the Department of Defense fur­
nished BDSA with daily reports of items determined to be in excess of the
needs of the Armed Forces. These reports were appraised on a cumulative
basis, and whenever the quantities or frequency of an item’s appearance
justified, or whenever the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Supply and
Logistics requested, such action, BDSA conducted market studies to de­
termine the current effect of sales of surplus on dealer inventories, market
stability, employment at factories, and other aspects of industry. These
studies have been useful to the Department of Defense in planning disposal.
Improved disposal methods have been suggested frequently, such as stretch­
out of sales, continued storage, or shifting to other market locations.
A s s is t a n c e to S m a ll B u s in e s s .— Through its 25 industry divisions
BDSA provided useful data and individual assistance to smaller concerns.
This assistance covered such matters as securing materials and equipment;
presenting applications for tax amortization for production expansion;

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ANNUAL REPO R T OF T H E SECRETARY O F COM M ERCE

developing and using new processes and substitute materials; and develop­
ing and selling new products to take up the slack in expanded capacity.
The publications program previously mentioned was useful in aiding small
business. The cooperative work of the field offices of the Department and
the field offices of the Small Business Administration proved helpful to
small business enterprises throughout the country.
F isc a l a nd T ax P o lic y R e v ie w .—The Department of Commerce,
through BDSA, maintained a continuing review of Government policies
and practices in the areas of finance and taxation. The general tax struc­
ture and the overall tax legislation program were carefully studied and
discussed with qualified businessmen with a view to stimulating industrial
growth.

Industry-Government Cooperation

Pursuant to the provisions of the Defense Production Act, BDSA made
wide and effective use of various types of industry meetings in connection
with defense and mobilization programs during the year. Approximately
100 such meetings of all types were held. These included industry advisory
committees, industry conferences, special conferences, and industry task
groups. All meetings were concerned in whole or in part with BDSA’s
operations under the Defense Production Act and the National Security Act.
The industry executive (WOC) program, as authorized under the Defense
Production Act, continued as in previous years to be of great assistance in
carrying out the current defense program. As of the end of the fiscal year,
about 155 executives from private industry were serving BDSA without
compensation. Of these, about 29 were serving on a full-time basis while
the remainder were on call for part-time service as needed.
OFFICE OF FIELD SERVICES
Increased reliance by the business public on the services of the field
offices of the Department characterized the activities of the offices through­
out the year. Located in 33 important commercial and industrial centers
throughout the United States, the offices serve as local points of contact
between the Department and manufacturers, retailers, wholesalers,
exporters, importers, and other service and industrial groups.
Utilizing the publications, reports, studies, and facilities of the Bureau
of Foreign Commerce, Business and Defense Services Administration, Office
of Business Economics, and the Bureau of the Census, the offices provide
a wide range of services in the promotion of foreign and domestic trade,
industrial development, and economic research.
Special attention was devoted to assisting small and medium-size busi­
nesses in the field of marketing and distribution by providing factual data on
which they could make sound decisions on trade channels and territories,
sales prospects, and market changes due to population shifts, industrial

ANNUAL R EPO R T OF T H E SECRETARY OF COM M ERCE

55

production, and income distribution. Increased use was made of the
reports of the Office of Technical Services on a number of production
problems and the development of new products. In like manner there
was great interest in Federal procurement and the purchase of Government
surpluses, as indicated by the new high point in subscriptions reached by
the daily Synopsis of U. S. Government Proposed Procurement, Sales and
Contract Awards published by the Office of Field Services.
The high level of export and import trade stimulated constant use of
the facilities of the field offices, especially by the smaller firms, due to the
ever-changing conditions in the foreign markets for American products
and the sources of supply of raw materials and manufactured goods
imported from abroad.
Personnel from a number of the field offices participated in the trade
fair program as members of trade information missions, which were manned
by Government and business representatives in a joint undertaking to
provide factual information on the United States as a market and as a
source of supply of goods required by foreign countries.
Another joint enterprise between Government and business which con­
tinued to provide favorable results was the cooperative office program
in which more than 800 chambers of commerce and similar organizations
utilize published material and the services of the field offices in providing
assistance on business matters in their local communities. This program
enabled the Department to reach a greatly increased segment of American
business with its services.
OFFICE OF TECHNICAL SERVICES
This office collects scientific and technical information for dissemination
to business enterprises; helps industries develop and agree upon com­
mercial standards as to quality, testing, and ratings; serves as the point
of contact with trade associations and other nonprofit trade groups for the
purpose of encouraging their cooperation and obtaining recommendations
with respect to the domestic commerce programs and activities of the
Department; and brings to the attention of American inventors the technical
problems of Government agencies.
In the 1955 fiscal year it also worked with State, regional, and local
planning and development groups in studying the economic problems and
potentialities of an area, developing programs for making greater use of
local resources, and expanding the industry and commerce of the area
by making the data, skills, and experience of the Department available
to such organizations.
T e c h n ic a l I n fo r m a t io n .—Unclassified and declassified technical in­
formation produced through Government-financed research is collected
by this office and disseminated to industry. • Many businesses, small,
medium, and large, have used this information in the development of new

56

ANN U A L REPO R T OF T H E SECRETA RY OF COM M ERCE

products and processes and in making technological improvements. Th
volume of this tax-supported research continued to exceed $2 billion
year, more than half of the Nation’s total research. During the yeai
7,588 new Government research reports were added to the more tha:
250,000 in the OTS collection available to industry. Twenty-eigh
thousand requests were received for information about these reports, an
$191,000 worth of reports were sold at an average price of $1.50 to $2.0
per report (cost of printing and handling). Subscriptions to the OT!
publication U. S. Government Research Reports, which describes 300 o
more new reports of research each month, increased from 1,800 to 3,50(
reflecting increased industry use of Government research data. OTS alsi
publishes Technical Reports Newsletter which each month abstracts 1.
to 20 new reports of research of particular use to small and mediun
businesses. OTS’s staff of technologists answered 2,500 inquires fron
industry for specific information to be used toward the solution of tech
nological problems, and the Office continued to provide, under contract
technical information to the Foreign Operations Administration (now th
International Cooperation Administration) for its program of assistance t<
Free World nations.
A rea D e v e l o p m e n t .— The Economic Report of the President for 1951
and the Report of the Joint Economic Committee of Congress recom
mended strengthening the area development program. As the progran
was enlarged, the Area Development Division assisted 240 communities ii
42 States in initiating and carrying out industrial and area development pro
grams involving technical guidance in securing new industry, and in expand
ing existing industry through new product development and product im
provement. Special efforts were made to assist labor surplus areas b)
informing expanding industries of the location advantages of these areas ant
coordinating Federal agency assistance to area groups requesting Federa
help. A number of important technical aids were published to implemen
the area development program. Particular attention was given to the smallbusiness man. His contribution to community industrial development pro­
grams was evidenced by the important place given to new product develop­
ment techniques. An example of this type of assistance is the products anc
processes exhibit held in Michigan—a pilot operation conducted with Git)
of Detroit and State of Michigan development organizations as a means oi
stimulating product diversification. A survey of 269 of the 2,500 firms at­
tending indicated that 61 of those surveyed were utilizing ideas obtained
at the exhibit.
C o m m o d ity S ta nd ards .—Assistance and cooperation with industry was
continued in the establishment and promulgation of simplified practice
recommendations and commercial standards. Nine simplified practice
recommendations were cempleted, and progress was made on 13 requests
from industry for the establishment or revision of recommendations. Of

ANNUAL REPO R T OF T H E SECRETA RY OF COM M ERCE

57

special importance to a large and growing industry was the development of
a recommendation establishing standard sizes of retail containers for 19
items of frozen fruits and vegetables. Another major accomplishment was
the release to industry of a new system of sizing women’s apparel, on which
a committee of the industry had been working with this office for 5 years.
Twelve leading trade associations cooperated in distributing copies of this
proposed commercial standard and recommending its adoption.
T rade A sso c ia t io n s .—Advisory service to the Office of the Secretary on
policy matters pertaining to businessmen’s associations was provided by this
office, which is the Government center of information in this field. All
field offices of the Department were furnished material supplementing the
700-page directory National Associations of the United States. A new edi­
tion of this publication, last issued in 1950, was under preparation. A study
was also made of the 800 or so regional associations, and another was in
progress on the 3,300 statewide organizations.
N a tio n a l I n v e n t o r s C o u n c il .—The council, Government agency for
the evaluation of inventive proposals of a military nature, received and
processed over 5,800 submissions made by the public during the year. In
addition, industry, science, and the public were notified of the Armed
Services’ technical needs by the circulation of a list of problems compiled
with the aid of the military establishment. This list contained 307 items,
176 of them new problems.

OFFICE OF BUSINESS ECONOMICS
With the Nation’s economy setting new records in calendar year 1955,
and certain to exceed the previous peak of total output established in 1953,
the basic data originating in the Office of Business Economics have been
utilized more widely than ever before. On the domestic side of the econ­
omy, OBE’s business information centers around measures of the national
income and product, including personal income and consumer expenditures.
As to foreign economic transactions, it focuses on the United States balance
of international payments, including a complete record of Government
expenditures abroad.
The primary vehicle for dissemination of this timely economic intelli­
gence is the monthly magazine Survey of Current Business, now in its 35th
volume. The United States Chamber of Commerce has recommended the
inclusion of this periodical in even a minimum private business library.
Each month it provides to the businessman 40 pages of statistical indicators
covering all lines of business, and newly arrived figures are furnished in a
weekly supplement to keep the subscriber up to date.
Every 3 months the magazine contains the latest figures on the gross
national product, generally regarded as the best measure of the value of the
output of the economy. This provides a comprehensive statistical picture

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ANNUAL R EPO R T O F T H E SECRETARY OF COM M ERCE

of the economic process in terms of the production of total output and its
distribution among the major markets whose dynamics determine the
functioning of the economy.
At longer intervals, sizable publications are prepared by the Office of
Business Economics as major supplements to the Survey of Current Business.
In fiscal 1955 a 249-page National Income volume, the authoritative and
detailed record of movements in all sectors of the economy since 1929, was
put on sale by the Superintendent of Documents.
OBE also sent to press the manuscript for a 349-page Business Statistics
supplement providing an annual historical record back to 1929 for more
than 2,600 individual statistical series and presenting monthly data for the
most recent 4 years. In addition to 190 pages of statistical tables, the
Business Statistics volume contains a 130-page section of comprehensive
descriptions and explanations of all data appearing monthly in the Survey
of Current Business. Definitions of the statistical units employed, indica­
tions of the adequacy of samples, methods of collection of data, and names
and addresses of the various data sources are furnished.
A complete record of the United States balance of international pay­
ments back to 1919 was published as background material for the current
data, which are issued quarterly by OBE. Of major importance in the
conduct of the Government’s foreign economic policies, this set of accounts
serves a variety of purposes. For example, it shows whether foreign coun­
tries had an excess of dollar receipts over expenditures and were able to
add to their gold and dollar holdings, or whether they had to supplement
their receipts by drawing upon their reserves.

Special Data for Business

To keep close check on the changing structure of business entails the
close scrutiny and measurement of monthly and quarterly developments
in economic areas of critical importance. OBE therefore also worked
intensively to gather and analyze specialized data provided by business
and to distribute the results rapidly through releases for business use in
keeping abreast of a fluid situation.
Business inventories were reported monthly for all manufacturers, whole­
salers, and retailers. New and unfilled orders of manufacturers were
similarly reported, paving the way for private company estimates of the
trend of future business. Every 3 months, in conjunction with the Securi­
ties and Exchange Commission, OBE released estimates based on business­
men’s reports of their intended outlays for new plant and equipment in the
6 months ahead. Similar information, covering the full year ahead, is
reported annually.
The size and distribution of the business population, including the
number of business entries and departures, was regularly recorded. The
financial requirements of business, and the availability of capital to meet

ANNUAL REPO R T OF T H E SECRETA RY OF COM M ERCE

59

these needs, were assessed to throw additional light on the rate of private
enterprise growth.
Titles of articles selected from the Survey of Current Business issues
during fiscal 1955 suggest the range and intensiveness of OBE activities:
Growth Characteristics of the Economy
Foreign Investments and Income
State Distribution of Business Concerns
Financial Experience of Manufacturing Corporations
Saving in the National Economy
Public and Private Debt
Income Distribution in the United States
The Housing Market
Patterns of Recent Employment Changes.

Beyond its extensive publications program, designed to put information
into the hands of users as quickly and widely as possible, OBE provided
a range of services to a variety of Government organizations. Preeminent
among these were the President’s Advisory Board on Economic Growth
and Stability and the Council of Economic Advisers. Others included the
congressional Joint Committee on the Economic Report, the International
Bank, the International Monetary Fund, and the five committees organized
by the Federal Reserve Board to inquire into the utility of specialized
economic statistics.

BUREAU OF THE CENSUS
The Bureau of the Census continued its role as a major data collecting
and compiling agency for the Government, carrying out the further objec­
tive of providing statistical and technical services to business, industry,
research groups, and the general public.
Further improvements in time schedules for the release of data and in
reliability and comprehensiveness of the statistics were accomplished during
the year. These results were achieved by extending the use of high-speed
electronic equipment, applying quality-control techniques and scientific
sampling methods, and adopting various types of improved procedures.
The recommendations made by a group of management specialists who
made a systematic survey of Bureau organization and operations resulted
in a number of changes, including the establishment of a production plan­
ning and standards office, which carries out a work measurement program.

The 1954 Censuses

Conducting the 1954 censuses of business, manufactures, mineral indus­
tries, and agriculture was a major accomplishment of the year. The
results of these censuses will fill a great need for information necessary
for establishing sound business and Government policies, making com­

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ANNUAL R EPO R T OF T H E SECRETARY OF COM M ERCE

prehensive data on the Nation’s economy available for the first time after
a gap of from 5 to 16 years. Emphasis was placed on timely release of the
most widely used data, with the result that these data will be available
more promptly after the collecting operations than ever before. The
Bureau was well into the processing stage by the end of fiscal 1955, with
much of the basic information scheduled to be issued in the first half of
fiscal 1956 and the great bulk of the remainder in the second half.
The census of business, last taken for 1948, covers activities of about
2,750,000 retail, wholesale, and service establishments. Its results will
provide material essential to business planning and marketing operations.
Statistics will be published for continental United States, Alaska, and Hawaii.
Information will be presented for each of the 48 States, for each of the 170
standard metropolitan areas, for each of the more than 3,000 counties, and
for each of the more than 4,000 places of 2,500 or more population. To
the degree permitted under nondisclosure provisions of census law that
safeguard against revelation of operations of individual establishments, these
data will show, by kind of business, figures on number of establishments,
yearly sales or receipts, number of paid employees and total payrolls, and
number of active proprietors of unincorporated businesses. Trade reports
presenting consolidated statistics for each of 20 related kinds of business
groups and reports for each of the primary subjects covered in the census
also will be issued. The latter will include credit, inventories and com­
modity line sales of wholesalers, form of ownership, sales size, city size,
and other subjects.
The census of manufactures, last taken for 1947, covers activities of
nearly 300,000 manufacturing establishments. General statistics to be pub­
lished will include data on employment; man-hours; payrolls; value added
by manufacture; value of products shipped; cost of materials, fuel, and
electric energy; and new capital expenditures. Data will be provided by
industry group and for each of 450 individual industries. Areas covered
will include the United States, individual States, standard metropolitan
areas, State economic areas, counties, and cities of 10,000 or more population.
Special subjects covered will include industrial water use, indexes of physical
volume of production, horsepower, inventories, and establishment size.
Separate reports for Alaska and Hawaii will also be published.
The census of mineral industries, covering about 35,000 establishments en­
gaged in mining, petroleum production, and quarrying, is the first complete
canvass in these fields since 1939. The principal statistics to be presented
for the mineral industries in the United States—by industry and industry
group, and by geographic division and State—include number of operating
companies, establishments, mines, quarries, wells, and preparation plants;
value of products shipped ; value added in mineral production ; employment ;
man-hours of production workers; principal expenses and capital expendi­
tures, by kind; horsepower rating of power equipment; and water intake.

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61

The census of agriculture, preliminary reports of which began appearing
i February 1955, provides an up-to-date inventory of farms and farming
nd a basis for planning by all those interested in the agricultural market,
n addition to the data traditionally available from the agriculture census—
n land in farms according to use, specified farm expenditures, livestock
nd livestock products, poultry and poultry products, specified crops harested, and forest products—statistics will be available from the 1954 census
in land use practices, including conservation activities, and on use of
ertilizer and lime. The data on facilities and equipment on farms have
Jso been expanded to include additional important items. Data from the
.griculture census will be published for States, State economic areas, and
ounties.
55 e

Current Program

The current program of the Bureau was carried out with improvements
n timeliness and in techniques, and at the same time was expanded to
>rovide data in fields not previously covered except in periodic censuses.
The current program consists of the compilation of data on the size and
iharacteristics of the population; employment and unemployment; housing;
ndustrial production; retail and wholesale trade; cotton ginning, producion, and distribution; United States exports, imports, and shipping statistics;
ind State and local government finances and employment.
The employment and unemployment data and the data on retail trade
vere collected and compiled in accordance with the new and improved
sample design of 230 areas throughout the country as compared with 68 in
;he former design. Reliability of the data has been substantially improved
inder the new system, and it has been possible to tabulate the results in
more detail. The data on total employment and unemployment, through a
new joint release program, have been coordinated with Labor Department
data including employment statistics from establishment reports and unem­
ployment compensation figures. Studies were being made of plans for
additional expansion of the current population survey, to produce further
gains in reliability and comprehensiveness of the population, employment,
and unemployment statistics.
B u s in e s s S t a t is t ic s .—Monthly reports were issued on retail and whole­
sale trade and on inventories of and storage capacity for petroleum
products; quarterly reports on the reconditioning of steel barrels and drums;
and seasonal reports on canned food stocks. The Bureau continued to
release 10 days after the month covered an advance monthly report showing
estimates of retail dollar sales volume for major kind-of-business groups
and for all kinds of business combined.
C o tto n S t a t is t ic s .— Current data on cotton ginned continued to be
released at dates specified by law. In cooperation with the Agricultural
Marketing Service, the Bureau issued the consolidated cotton report pro­

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A N NUAL REPO R T OF T H E SECRETA RY O F COM M ERCE

viding data on ginnings, indicated yield per acre, and indicated total pro­
duction. The two annual bulletins on cotton production and distribution
were also issued.
F o reign T rade S t a t is t ic s .— The rising level of foreign trade was re­
flected in the Bureau’s official foreign trade statistics, including reports on
total trade; trade by commodity, by country, and by customs district;
trade in gold and silver; bunker coal and oil ladings; vessel entrances and
clearances; and water-borne foreign commerce. Over 150 additional
special reports on foreign trade were prepared at the request and expense
of interested persons or organizations.
G o v e r n m e n t s S t a t is t ic s .—In addition to the regular summaries of
State and city government finances, the results of eight special studies on
activities of governments were made available. These included a study
of historical statistics on State and local government finances, State and
local government revenue in 1953, local government finances in city areas
in 1953, and a textual study of school districts in the United States in 1954.
Annual reports on State distribution of public employment and on city
employment in 1954 were also issued.
I n d u st r y S t a t is t ic s .— Reports of the 1953 annual survey of manu­
factures made available valuable data on the Nation’s industrial resources,
including for the first time statistics on water use in manufacturing. In­
formation as to the country’s industrial structure provided by the survey
was helpful also in conducting the 1954 census of manufactures.
The Facts for Industry series was expanded to a total of 74 monthly,
quarterly, or annual reports on the production and shipments of important
commodities. Further gains in timeliness for release of these series in­
creased their value as a current measure of the industrial activity of the
country.
P o pu l a t io n a nd H o u s in g S t a t is t ic s .— Data on population character­
istics published included school enrollment, household and family char­
acteristics, mobility of the population, and civilian population by age and
sex, urban and rural. In addition to the monthly report on employment
and unemployment, reports on labor force characteristics included work
experience of the population, part-time workers, employment of students,
and the detailed annual report on the labor force. Data on individual
income were issued. The Bureau prepared and published monthly esti­
mates of the total population, as well as up-to-date estimates by age, color,
and sex; estimates by regions, divisions, and States, and of the Territories
and possessions; estimates of the farm population; and projections to
1965 of the population by States. New information on housing and con­
struction was made available with the publication of a report on expendi­
tures for alterations and repairs on residential owner-occupied properties.

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63

Defense and Other Special Work

In addition to the performance of its regular programs and operations,
the Bureau of the Census continued to serve as the principal collecting
and compiling agency for the Business and Defense Services Administration.
Other special projects were performed for the Office of Defense Mobili­
zation, the Federal Civil Defense Administration, the Industry Evaluation
Board, the Operations Research Office, the Department of Defense, and
other agencies. These services included nine repetitive or single-time
special surveys and modifications of existing surveys, and numerous special
tabulations of data already on hand.
A large number of special tabulations of data from census records were
prepared at cost for other Government agencies, business organizations,
trade associations, and individuals.
Special censuses were conducted for 143 cities and towns at the request
and expense of the local communities concerned. The demand for work
of this type can be expected to rise in view of the need to measure the
great changes since 1950.

International Statistics Program

The Bureau of the Census continued its technical assistance to foreign
governments in the improvement of their census and statistical services
under the program of the Foreign Operations Administration (now the
International Cooperation Administration). Included in these activities
was the training of 29 foreign technicians, representing 14 countries, who
spent 3 or more months receiving instruction in United States census
methods. A total of 143 foreign visitors and guests, representing 42 coun­
tries, spent shorter periods studying and observing Bureau operations.
Under the technical assistance program of the Foreign Operations Ad­
ministration, 13 Census Bureau experts were assigned to foreign posts
during the year. They supplied census and statistical guidance to the Gov­
ernments of Pakistan, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Cuba, Honduras,
Paraguay, Peru, and Uruguay. The Bureau continued the exchange of
census and statistical publications and technical materials with statistical
offices in 65 countries.
Six members of the Bureau staff participated in the various sessions of
the International Statistical Institute Conferences in Rio de Janeiro.

Other Activities

S pecia l P u b l ic a t io n s .-—The first volume in the 1950 Census Monograph
Series was published. This series of detailed analytical studies was developed
jointly by the Social Science Research Council and the Bureau of the
Census, in cooperation with other Government agencies and private groups.
Several other monographs were in press at the close of the year, and the
remainder were scheduled for completion in the coming fiscal year.

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A N NUAL R EPO R T OF T H E SECRETA RY O F COM M ERCE

M e c h a n ic a l and T e c h n ic a l O p e r a t io n .—A second Univac tabulating
system was installed and placed in active service in January 1955 to providi
additional capacity and to speed up tabulation of the results of the 195^
censuses of business and manufactures.
P e r so n a l C e n s u s R ec o r d s .— Applications for personal informatioi
from census records to establish proof of age and citizenship totaled 139,514
an increase of about 20 percent over the level for the previous year. Th<
number of cases processed amounted to 136,448.

Office of the Assistant Secretary for
International Affairs

The Assistant Secretary of Commerce for International Affairs acts a
principal adviser to the Secretary for the development and implementatior
of international trade policies and in this connection participates in inter
agency committees either as the Secretary’s alternate or as the Departmen
of Commerce representative. He also provides policy direction and guid­
ance to the Bureau of Foreign Commerce and the Office of Internationa
Trade Fairs.
This Office supported the enactment of the Trade Agreement;
Extension Act and the International Finance Corporation Act; lec
Commerce participation in Japanese and Philippine trade and tarif
negotiations; guided and supported the dollar liberalization programs of th<
Organization for European Cooperation; tightened export control regula
tions, although a somewhat smaller number of strategic items were controllec
as a result of the revisions to the list announced in August 1954; applied
export controls to items determined to be in short supply; organized anc
developed the international trade fair program, including exhibits anc
the trade missions; actively and directly supported the foreign technical
assistance programs of the Foreign Operations Administration (now Inter­
national Cooperation Administration) ; took positive actions to assist private
foreign investors; improved the administration of foreign trade zones anc
encouraged the expanding use of zones to facilitate international trade
and inaugurated improved operating procedures for the Foreign Service
This Office also reached an agreement with the Department of State
for a joint approach to the Bureau of the Budget and to Congress for ap­
propriations for the expansion of foreign economic and commercial report­
ing services and for the assignment to important diplomatic and consular
posts of specialized officers to perform trade promotion and investment
promotion functions for the American business community; took steps to
assure more active participation on the part of the Department of Com­
merce in the appointment and assignment of Foreign Service officers per­

ANNUAL REPO R T OF T H E SECRETARY OF CO M M ERCE

65

forming economic and commercial functions; and developed and conducted
a training course in conjunction with the Foreign Service Institute to assure
more adequate preparation of Foreign Service officers for the performance
of work on behalf of the Department of Commerce.

BUREAU OF FOREIGN COMMERCE
Expanding its efforts to further the interests of American business in the
field of international trade, the Bureau of Foreign Commerce in fiscal 1955
made important concrete advances in a number of special projects while
intensifying its efforts on continuing programs.
The Bureau followed developments in trade liberalization throughout
the world and participated with the U. S. Foreign Service and international
organizations in efforts to encourage and accelerate the liberalization
process. As normal commercial competition increased, the Bureau met a
correspondingly greater demand for services from American businessmen.
BFC participated widely in the extensive preparations for the renegotia­
tion of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade and for the under­
taking of a general round of tariff negotiations, primarily with Japan,
looking to its admission to the General Agreement. Bureau personnel also
participated in the work of the United States delegations at the scene of
these negotiations.
Staff support was furnished by the Bureau to the Office of the Assistant
Secretary for International Affairs on a wide variety of policy questions of
immediate concern to businessmen and to the United States Government,
notably United States mineral policy, disposal of agricultural surpluses,
petroleum imports, and international agreements and other arrangements
affecting trade in commodities. Assistance was provided also on special
international, economic, and trade matters arising during the year, includ­
ing the participation of the Assistant Secretary in the Council for Foreign
Economic Policy, the National Advisory Council on International Monetary
and Financial Problems, and in various other formal and informal inter­
departmental committees at the sub-Cabinet level.
The Bureau continued to administer the British Token Import Plan and
the China Trade Act.

International Activities

Major contributions were made by the Bureau in the planning and
conducting of the international trade fair program. Eleven trade missions
sent by the Bureau to fairs in Europe, the Far East, and Canada staffed
trade information centers, answering more than 17,000 general inquiries
and conducting some 4,000 business consultations. Nine of the missions
made country tours, visiting more than 50 cities and speaking with nearly
4,000 businessmen. Similar activity is planned for Latin America and
Africa, and a total of 18 missions is expected to be sent abroad in 1956.

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ANN U A L REPO R T OF T H E SECRETARY O F COM M ERCE

During the year the Foreign Operations Administration (now the Inter
national Cooperation Administration) assumed certain of the function
in technical assistance overseas previously performed for it by the Bureai
of Foreign Commerce. At the close of the year 12 employees working in ‘
countries on FOA projects in the field of industry and transportation de
velopment continued on the Bureau’s rolls. More than 50 individuals iron
these countries were chosen for training in the United States in genera
economic and industrial development fields. In addition, 16 special group
of nationals undertook study programs in the fields of marketing and dis
tribution in this country. Arrangements for these study programs wer<
made by BFC in cooperation with public and private organizations
universities, and United States business firms.
Bureau personnel participated actively in the preparations for, and wen
representatives at, important international conferences. Of particula
note were their contributions to the United Nations Economic and Socia
Council, the Organization of American States, the Economic Commissior
for Latin America, and the Economic Commission for Asia and th(
Far East.
Other international conferences in which valuable staff assistance wa
provided included the Sixth Pan-American Highway Congress; the As
sembly of the International Civil Aviation Organization; meetings of the
Executive Committee and General Assembly of International Union o
Official Travel Organizations and the Permanent Executive Committee o
the Inter-American Travel Conferences; and various conferences ir
connection with problems of foreign restrictive insurance legislation.

Business Inquiry Services

Businessmen continued to place heavy demands on the Bureau for infor
mation about foreign dealers and representatives, sources of supply, anc
other types of commercial connections. Some 34,000 trade lists of foreign
firms, classified by commodity or industry, were supplied to business. The
Bureau prepared 583 new trade lists based on new material from the
Foreign Service, and more than 1,500 from material on hand, including
foreign directories. About 17,000 detailed descriptions of individual firms—
World Trade Directory Reports—were supplied. In providing assistance
to American exporters and importers in the adjustment of trade difficulties
with firms abroad, approximately 2,400 trade complaints were handled,
including 900 new cases.

Export Control Program

The export control program was concerned mainly with carrying out
the revised security export control policy announced in August 1954 which
permitted: (1) the removal of less strategic items from the lists of com­
modities controlled for security reasons to the Soviet bloc by the United

ANNUAL REPO R T O F T H E SECRETA RY OF COM M ERCE

67

States and other cooperating countries; and (2) the relaxation of certain
Jnited States export licensing requirements to friendly countries.
Actual United States exports to the bloc rose from approximately
[11,360,000 in fiscal 1954 to $5,630,000 in 1955—exclusive of shipments
nade under the President’s flood relief program for the Danube Basin.
However, such exports remained far below pre-Korean levels and toward
:he end of the year began to level off, chiefly because the bloc had pur;hased United States nonstrategic goods in only token amounts.
Other important changes were made in the export control program in
1955:
1. “Short supply” controls were reimposed on refined copper, copper
¡crap, aluminum scrap, and certain other commodities essential to the
rational economy.
2. More effective enforcement measures were inaugurated by the United
States and cooperating countries, including an agreement whereby em­
bargoed goods originating in a cooperating country will not be permitted
to traverse another in transit to the Soviet bloc, Communist China, Tibet,
or North Korea unless such shipments are covered by a special “transit
authorization certification” issued by the exporting country.
3. The Bureau developed and published a “Commodity Identification
Manual” designed to assist United States and foreign customs officials in
identifying strategic commodities.

Publications Services

In a vigorous effort to expand its services to business, the Bureau initiated
some new publications and made substantial improvements in the existing
ones with emphasis on providing maximum utility to businessmen. More
publication services were offered—and utilized—in fiscal 1955 than in
any other recent year.
Outstanding among the new publications is the World Trade Information
Service—a broader, more efficient reporting service than the Business In­
formation Service which it supersedes. WTIS reports are grouped, accord­
ing to field of interest, in five parts. Since the inauguration of this service
in November 1954, 213 reports had been issued as of the close of the fiscal
year and many more were in press.
How the Bureau of Foreign Commerce Works for You, a booklet describ­
ing services for businessmen, was in preparation.
Business Views on the U. S. Government’s Role, Part 2 of the study
Factors Limiting U. S. Private Investment Abroad, was issued.
Investment Opportunities Abroad, a new bimonthly bulletin, was initi­
ated to provide a special channel for disseminating the hundreds of oppor­
tunities for investment which the Bureau obtains through the International
Cooperation Administration and the United States Foreign Service.

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A N N U A L REPO R T OF T H E SECRETA RY OF COM M ERCE

Two new investment handbooks, covering Pakistan and the Union of
South Africa, were released. Two additional ones, covering the Philip­
pines and Mexico, were in process.
Publications long out of date were revised and issued in entirely new
formats, including Electric Current Abroad and Channels for Trading
Abroad. The completely revised, redesigned Guide to Foreign Business
Directories was in press at the year’s end.
Important improvements were made in continuing publications. News,
coverage of the Foreign Commerce Weekly was expanded, and departments
were given more descriptive titles and a regular order of appearance.

OFFICE OF INTERNATIONAL TRADE FAIRS
The Office of International Trade Fairs was established as a separate
operational organization under the direction of the Assistant Secretary for
International Affairs in January 1955. A small headquarters with admin­
istrative and planning units was set up in Washington, with a branch
procurement and shipping office in New York City and a Paris staff re­
sponsible for design and construction operations relating to the European
trade fairs.
Carrying out the program inaugurated by the President in September
1954, the Office, in close cooperation with American industry, brought
about the first large-scale United States participation in international trade
fairs. This participation was in three effective ways: Governmentindustry central exhibits, goods displayed by private companies, and trade
development teams.
Between 12 and 15 million people visited our central exhibits at 15 fairs
in Europe and the Far East and gained a new conception of how Americans
live, work, and play and of the private enterprise system’s tremendous
output of goods and services for peace and human well-being. Among
these exhibits were “Main Street U. S. A.” with stores, a church, and a
school, including a kindergarten with children and teacher; and “America
at Home,” a modern house in which a live American family went about
their daily activities of work and recreation. Other exhibits have been
“Farming Aids and Methods,” “Partners in Progress,” and “Peaceful Uses
of Atomic Energy.” Nearly 900 American firms contributed products
shown at the central exhibits.
Foreign businessmen and visitors have been enthusiastic and interested
in the participation of the United States in these trade fairs. Particular
appreciation is expressed by businessmen interested in two-way trade
and various trade problems who have had the opportunity to discuss these
subjects with the members of trade missions at the fairs and in their tours
in the countries where the fairs were held. Visitors have been greatly
impressed by the United States exhibits at the fairs and have crowded

ANNUAL R EPO R T O F T H E SECRETARY OF COM M ERCE

69'

to them in steady streams. At times the doors to the United States pavilions
have been closed to insure that all visitors would have equal chance to see
the exhibits. Editorial and newspaper comment in the foreign press of
the countries where fairs are held has been enthusiastic and detailed. This
first year of participation by the United States has revealed the great
interest of all peoples in the American way of life and the products of
American industry and has increased the attention of foreign businessmen
to the vast possibilities of two-way trade between their countries and the
United States.
The trade missions which have been sent to each country in which a
trade fair is held have been an outstanding success. These missions, or­
ganized and staffed by the Bureau of Foreign Commerce with the help of
private businessmen, serving without compensation, emphasize and imple­
ment the United States policy of promoting two-way trade.

Inland Waterways Corporation
As a result of the sale of the Inland Waterways Corporation’s operating
rights and facilities to the Federal Barge Lines on July 1, 1953, the Corpora­
tion’s activities during fiscal 1955 consisted primarily of settling suits and
claims for damages and of maintaining the required surveillance of the
purchaser’s operations in order to determine compliance with the contract
of sale.
As of June 30, 1955, the balance sheet of the Corporation reflected assets,
of approximately $12 million and total liabilities of approximately $737,000.
The Government’s net investment in the Corporation amounted to $11.5
million, representing a gross investment of $27.3 million, less an accumulated
deficit of $15.8 million which has been reduced by approximately $9 million
since the sale was consummated. Corporation income for fiscal 1955
amounted to $349,000, of which $321,000 represented interest accrued
on the mortgage held by the Corporation. Of total expenses amounting toonly $20,000, $12,000 represented administrative expenses over which the
Appropriation Committee of Congress exercised budgetary control.

o