The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1896-09-26
COMMERCIAL DEPRESSI0NS AND
REVEALS.


prosperity is the effect of be-
wildering plurality of causes; but
among them not half dozen are
commensurate with any great, sud
den, or long continued increase of
material well-being."
This statement is partially borne
out at least, by the history of COM
mercial depressions and panics in
the United States. There have been
numerous eras of prosperity due to
three or four or perhaps half dozen
great causes, and these have been fol-
lowed inevitably, by periods of de-
preston and panic. Perhaps the
United States, as affording the great
est incentives during the last century
to commercial and industrial ventures
has been peculiarly liable to
panics and depressions of business;
but the general law of ebb and flow,
of prosperity and depression, prevails
generally in the history of nations as
we'll as in that of most individuals.
The over confidence and venturous
spirit beg often of great and continued
prosperity, whether of the nation or
the individual, leads, as rule, to de-
preston; and depression with its
lessons of the value of thrift and
economy places the experimenter
again on the road to wealth, and thus
goes on the everlasting changes and
fluctuations to which the business
world and human life itself are con-
stantly subjected. To the philoso-
phical mind this law of compensation,
as Emerson would call it, would
naturally lead to an ever watchful
prudence and vigilance sufficient to
prevent individual shipwreck at least,
even though the whole business and
social fabric be shaken by the waves
of disaster or carried to the very
height of the climbing wave of sue
cess.
But philosophers constitute but a
small portion of the human race, and
perhaps fortunately so, for otherwise
nations life would not advance at
times by leaps and bounds even
though followed by intervals of de-
preston or even of disaster. Yet to
all in time of commercial and finan-
cial depression a glance at the statis-
tics On the subject is reassuring as
indicating something of the law that
seems to hold good in what at first
seems absolutely not amenable to
law. Thus in the United States there
have been, including that of 1898,
which may be said to continue, eight
periods of commercial and financial
depression. That of 1919, which con-
tinued two years; that of 1925, year
and a half; of 1887, year and half;
of 1S43, one year; of 1858, six months;
of 1857, nine months; of 1873, nearly
year.
These periods, it will be seen, are
very small compared with the long
duration of the prosperous intervals
and that the effects of the panicky
times of '93 are still felt is due, not
to wholly exceptional facts in the
nations progress, but rather to the
unsettling notions in regard to
changes of industrial and financial
policy. Let the people of the United
States determine once for all on
policy that will ensure financial
stability and honor and much of the
present depression will vanish at
once. Of course as regards competi-
ton in the worlds markets America
will have to follow the example of
other nations and look out for her
own interests. Altruism is noble but
nobility does not require extinction
of national industries. Charity be-
gins at home and while man who
does not provide for his own house
hold is under human and divine ban,
a nation is not exempted from the
same penalty. The interests of an
entire nation are too great to be sac
rifced upon the affairs of political
idealism, especially when no wise or
good purpose can be subserved
by such sacrifice. The people of
the United States, in other words,
are not welded to silver or gold, to
free trade or protection, in themselves
as principles, but as to the effect these
differing policies may have upon the
general prosperity. A wise, stable
financial and commercial policy en-
tered upon at once by the govern
ment of the United States would
bring renewed prosperity in less than
six months. That the American peo-
pie are thinking now more seriously
upon these things than ever before
is the best indication that we are
nearing the end of the present lone