3 OCTOBER 1941, Page 4

I feel, needless to say, the warmest sympathy with Mr.

Stanley Unwin's plea for more paper for books, the more so since every argument he puts forward in his.letter to The Times applies with equal force to the case of the weekly reviews. They, indeed, are down to a 221 percentage of their pre-war consumption, while book-publishers get 4o per cent., but tha is largely countered by the fact that the publishers have not merely to publish new books, but to re-publish some at least of the old ones which are now unobtainable because the existing stocks have been destrcyed by enemy action. What the Prime Minister is able to say about the spectacular reduction in our shipping losses has some bearing on this. Even when account is taken of the increased demand for ships for munitions from America and for transport from here to Russia a few extra cargoes of pulp should be practicable.

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