Word: cpa
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Dates: during 1940-1949
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...Kansas City, Mo., Mrs. Eleanor Medsker, a middle-aged grandmother, penned an outraged letter to CPA: "How would you like to wear trousers so short that they come halfway to your neck? On account of you, I haven't been able to buy a dress long enough to come below my knees since the war started. I'm no bobbysoxer. ... I bought a suit that fits perfectly except that I can't sit down without hiking the skirt...
Several months ago the whole industry had heard "on reliable authority" that CPA order L-85, which was intended to conserve materials during the war, would be dropped on Nov. 12. This made sense, as the production of yard goods was rising so fast that the supply would soon be ample (production is now almost double prewar). Forthwith manufacturers began making dresses longer, with a greater sweep to the skirts and with pockets, matching hoods, extra-wide cuffs, sashes, and belts...
...last week, just as the new dresses were going on sale, CPA dropped a cruncher: most of L85 would stay in effect indefinitely. In fact, said CPA, there had never been any intention of dropping it. CPA also emphasized the penalty for sellers of extra-legal dresses: one year in prison or $10,000 fine, or both. What could retailers, stuck with the unsalable dresses, do? (One New York syndicate alone had $1,000,000 worth on hand...
...Retrenchment. No one expected the pinch to loosen for at least six months. Even the normally optimistic CPA said: "The shortage in steel will last for 18 months or two years...
...Inventories rose another $1.3 billion, now stood at more than $30 billion. But the ratio of inventories to sales was still below prewar levels. CPA said that better balanced inventories would speed production, lower costs...