VEN during the last war the question of coal supplies was of the utmost importance for Italy.
Italy's own coal output was negligible, both for industrial and domestic uses.
Since them, Italy has become very much more industrialized and coal is correspond ingly more important than it was 25 years ago.
Industries have been set up which rely upon coal for fuel and power or even as a raw materi The coal question is now the most essential econo mie problem that Italy hag to face, states "The Economist recent years Taly's output of ual ha Increased. Even so, domestic Supplies are still only a minor part of Talian coal consumption. In 1938 total. Ballan production amounted to about 25 million tons, only 12 per ent, of the quantity of coal required {n'tivat year. Moreover, the quality if Italian coal is inferior. Its use in the more important industries limited, and its chief employment domestic fuel or in industries of secondary importance,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.