The Logan Republican. [volume] (Logan, Utah) 1902-1924, 1914-12-08

/
| Europe's war finds its echo In
Americas industry. What contrast
could be greater; on the one shore
of the Atlantic all activity seeming
ly destructive in purpose; on the 9TH
er shore, every energy directed along
constructive lines; absolute waste of
life and property as opposed to pro.
duction of wealth and betterment of
life.
Even though 1t is at a distance that
We view the terrible disaster that
threatens the whole continent of Eu
rope, optimism seems a lost art. Yet
sooner or later this epoch of catastro-
phe must be followed by a period Of
repair, and the longer this period is
delayed the greater will be the needs
involved in the reconstruction and
replacement. Where war has torn
down at terrific speed, peace mus,
o"iiu up SioWy'
The interruption Of international
trade stopped our exports of cotton
and copper and our imports of dye
stufs and potash, whereby several
important industries were we'll nigh
paralyzed. Yet startling as has been
this disturbance of the whole balance
Of industry, certain fundamental facts
and laws remain for us to build upon
and indeed the lower course of foun.
dation stones for optimism has al.
ready been laid.
Evidence of business betterment Is
before us on every hand, and the
reasons for optimism are many. The
United States farmer has harvested
five billion dollar crop and there
is a high price market for all our
surplus food stuffs; already our grain
Is pouring across the Atlantic. The
millions Of men who are fighting are
not working, and yet these hordes of
soldiers must be clothed and equip
ped as we'll as fed. Foreign orders
have started factory operation which
at once tends to relieve the stagna.
ton in the steam coal trade, the steel
situation has turned from serious dc.
preston to rapid improvement and
the whole mineral industry may soon
expect to share in this general bust.
ness improvement.
Today the financial horizon Is so
nearly cloudless that the prophets of
bad weather have little upon which
to base their predictions. The new
federal banking system makes the
money reserves mobile as never be.
fore. and extension OF credit Is now
possible. without the veto power re-
naming In the hands OF small
group Of big men. Still another rea.
son for belief in business .betterment
Is the recognition, now becoming
widespread, of the general interde
pendence Of big business and the gen.
eral public. On the one side, the
people are realizing that they are
ana have been in reality, the silent
partner in big business, and now that
there has come the promise OF some
regulation that will in large part pre-.
vent monopolistic Capitalization, the
people are interested in getting their
share Of returns that can come only
WIN operation at profit. On the
other hand, the managers of the
large corporations, the trustees Of
the investing public. are beginning TO
see that certain financial security
goes with public confidence and that
the attitude to the public so tersely
expressed thirty years ago by a pio.
neer in railroad financing does not
pay dividends today.
or course optimism Is apt to 20
to extremes. Already We are hear.
Ing such expressions as trade
BOOM" or opportunity unparalleled
in history" and avalanche of pros. |
perity'' and even hardheaded bust
ness men are quoted as thus charac.
terizing the present situation. All
this KIND OF talk indicates that a
Dariod ~ ,vor,.i,,,,t... -,