Facts & Figures

Soothing Oil. The Federal Government, which recently won title to California's oil-rich marginal sea lands, tempered victory with mercy. The Department of Justice said that it will permit oil companies now operating offshore to continue drilling, and it waived any governmental claim to certain municipally owned areas in San Francisco, San Diego and San Pedro Bays. This was to "reassure other coastal states whose problems are comparable to those in California."

Curtain Up. In Leningrad, the Russian fur trust held its first public postwar auction. The Russians, who frown on large foreign embassy staffs and restrict the number of U.S. newsmen to eight, consider fur traders birds of a different capitalistic feather. Among about 100 foreign fur brokers invited were 40 Americans. The guests bought $7,000,000 worth of sables, ermine and muskrat and bid up Siberian Bargusinsky sable to a postwar high of $550 a skin.

Double Trouble. Almost three times as many people (150) were killed in crashes of domestic scheduled airlines in the first six months this year, said CAB, as in the first half of 1946. More planes are flying this year, so the death rate per miles flown was not up as much. Yet at 5.8 per 100,000,000 passenger miles, the rate was still more than double last year's 2.3.

No Watery Grave. The French Line resumed luxury service on the North Atlantic with the 18,435-ton liner De Grasse, which entered New York harbor on her first postwar trip. Her two funnels replaced by a single squat funnel, the veteran De Grasse looked none the worse for her attempted scuttling by the Germans in St. Nazaire harbor.

Film Switch. Warner Bros. Pictures, Inc. entered the newsreel field by purchasing RKO-Pathe, Inc. for a reported $3,000,000 plus.

Second Guess. Good corn weather in July, said the Department of Agriculture, had caused it to increase its estimate of the corn crop to 2,770,930,000 bu., up 158 million bu. in two weeks, but still about 500 million bu. below last year's record harvest. But for those who hoped that a better corn crop meant lower meat prices the Department had words of caution: the corn was high in moisture content and low in feed value.

Down Draft. Because Britain had cut her purchases, tobacco prices at the opening of auctions in Georgia and Florida markets of this year's crop were slightly lower, for the poorer grades, than in 1946. However, all but a few grades were above their Government support levels.

Thanksgiving Every Day. Some 600 growers who met in Cleveland decided to spend $100,000 on a "research and education" campaign to wean Americans away from the idea that turkey can only be eaten roasted and on Thanksgiving. Latest idea: turkey steaks from oversize birds (up to 40 lbs.) that are hard to sell because they do not fit into kitchen ovens.

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