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132 Character of direct enployment.—The character of this direct employment, if it conforms to the typical highway pattern, will comprise various classes of workers as follows:

Character of indirect employment.—Indirect employment will be provided in the production, processing, and distribution of 11 general classes of equipment and 9 basic items of material, in addition to supplies for the operation and maintenance of equipment and innumerable minor items. The materials of highway construction are of widespread occurrence in nature. They emerge from farms, forests, mines, and quarries. The major quantities of materials actually incorporated in the finished highways are those of most common origin. Fine and coarse aggregates, sand, gravel, stone, slag, and soil are common to every State. In addition to the frequent local production of aggregates by highway contractors, there are nearly 2,500 regular commercial producers scattered throughout the country.

Portland cement is produced in 169 mills, principally in 12 scattered States but to a limited extent in others. In addition to the shipping mills, there are more than 35,000 retail cement outlets in the United States, and from 1935 to 1939 no State was unaffected by the shipments of cement. Approximately 6,600 establishments are engaged in the manufacture of concrete products variously incorporated into finished highways.

Petroleum products derive principally and initially from the 18 oil-producing States in 7 scattered regions. Highway use of petroleum and other bituminous products is extremely general, and consists of fuels and fuel oils, lubricants, and other products in addition to the bituminous materials incorporated in the roads as binders. Thus, the employment benefits resulting from the production and distribution of petroleum products for highway use are far reaching.

Similarly, in the production for highway use of large elements of iron and steel which are involved both in the manufacture of equipment and in the fabrication of highways, the employment values and the stimulus to industry are both general and widespread. The use of lumber, lumber products, and kiln products such as brick and tile are other examples of materials, the manufacture and transportation of which yield widely distributed benefits.

The production and distribution of equipment and machinery is likewise a major item in the provision of employment. The ownership expense, exclusively for highway construction equipment, is calculated to exceed $140,000,000 annually. Repair and replacement requirements are about the equal of depreciation in the long run, and the unprecedented use of construction equipment during the war emergency is indicative of the need for extensive replacement and maintenance when the green light comes on again. In all probability, some items of construction equipment are produced in all but a few of the States.