The Washington herald., 1914-06-20
'BARROV'S ADVICE
/ 10 OBUSINESSM men
Urged to Vote Not IS Class
But as American
| Citizens.
BANKERS AND NEW ACT
Situation of Fellow-man Should Be
Studied Beyond CONNER
eial Interests.
BANKERS AND NEW ACT

! New London. June &c. ". Barron
was one of the principal speakers at
the New York State Bankers Associa-
tion. holding its annual convention
here. Mr.. Barron spoke as follows:
! am pleased that on this. your
twenty first annual meeting. you have
some one before you to forcibly point
out that having reached the age Of
twenty-one 1t is now your duty to vote
and to exercise all the privileges of
freedmen. and to tell you to give voice
and utterance to your sentiments.
OF course, Mr.. vanderlip knows that
bankers cannot talk. 1t is only because
Mr.. vanderlip was brought up as a
newspaper man that he Is able as q
banker to point out TO his fellow-bank-
ers so clearly and so forcefully their
duties in the field of politics.
He does not ask you to vote as an
organization. but to vote as business
ask you to vote not as business men, but
as citizens, l believe that what Mr..
| vanderlip has so clearly put before you
may be summed up as less business
and more citizenship. That is the need
of the whole world today. 1t is the
need of this nation; 1t ID the need Of
the hour.
Influences on Humanity.
The influences back of the civiliza-
tion of the present day to which Mr..
Vanderlip has alluded are the infiu-
ences of humanity. a humanity crying
for a voice that business does not ex-
press. One Of the great economic ind
| ings of the times is that capital has
outrun the man; that the mechanism
has got ahead of the men who handle
| II, 1t is declared that labor can never
in general go lower. but must go for
ward because capital has SO multiplied
itself as TO be more and more depend
ent upon labor for an adequate return
You think you have Of late years had a
| few railroad accidents in New England,
where are the Oldest and most intensely
developed transportation interests, put
the older civilization in England found
the same thing-a reign of railroad aeci-
dents. The English capitalists attributed
II 10 labor organizations and labor inem-
cheney. The French people at the same
time suffered unusually from similar rail
road disasters. But with that French
precision and nicely of attention to scfen-
tifc detail they made thorough investiga-
tion and they found what you would hnd
IL you investigated here; that the ma
chine had outclassed the man; that mod
ern machinery has been more developed
than had the men who handle the ma
chimes, and that the world must now
bring up the human side of the business
equation
II YOU should put a French scientific
commission upon your business political
and economic problems in this country.
they could do no otherwise than point
out for you the same conclusions that
they have reached in their own country.
American business machinery has become
so vast, SO expansive, 90 potential tnat
the voice of humanity has been raised In
Interrogation and in demand Tor VARIOUS
forms of regulation.
Now II YOU unite as business men and
vote as business men in antagonism to
the voice, Of humanity you and your busi-
ness will be the losers.
Study the situation.
4 You must step out from your business;
study the situation OF your feliow-man'
and you must vote together as reasoning
human beings
I have said that bankers cannot talk,
but they can kick. Bankers and business
men rarely approve except that which is
IN their business interest They, there
fore. lose their influence because they
ally in business with political progress or
are united to block the wheels Of prog
ress.
Mr.. vanderlIp is pleading with you 70.
broader citizenship, and broader
civilization II you will follow his argu-
ment to its logical conclusions you will
see that you have duties In supporting
the government and in supporting the
administration.
Now, supporting the government and
supporting the administration does not
mean approval Of all their acts In fact
the best support comes from tudicious
and helpful criticism. When you see M.
Bryan with a peace policy in Mexico you
should not turn up your nose at bimetal-
ism, or denounce the silver dollar. You
should commend the humanatarianism OF
the peace policy. II you disapprove OF
Mr.. Bryan's outside business engage
ments you should give your business
advice as to whether the Office should
carry a larger salary. You know per-
fectly well that nothing less than $2S.W0
a year should be the salary Of the gov
ernor OF the Federal Reserve Board. but
YOU don't give the government your as
sistance in proper adjustment Of salaries
You know perfectly well that you have
a perfect right to go down to Washington
and talk to every Senator and Repre-
sentative you know upon the subjects
with which you are familiar. whether
the sugar tariff or currency legislation.
and you should not be deferred from