10 JANUARY 1947, Page 16

RED LIGHT FROM COAL

Sia,—The red light as it affects us nationally is in all conscience suffi- ciently depressing ; when seen internationally it may well be alarming. The less our coal, the greater the demand for oil. In the past the protection of our sea lanes has more than once nearly proved too great a task. If, in the future, they are to be extended by hundreds of miles of pipe-lines, the task may well exceed our powers. With the dis- appearance of our export trade in coal the need of oil in the former receiving countries must proportionately increase. A survey of the international position in respect of these two vital materials, if given wide publicity, might at least sharpen the spur to production.—Yours