The Washington herald., 1914-06-25
The President and Business.

1t would have been pretty callous President who
not impressed with the call upon him made re-
Gently by the representatives of Western commercial
bodies. We believe the incident was almost un-
precedented in the history of the White House Off
GERS of the National Implement and Vehicle Manu-
facturers' Association the Ohio Manufacturer As
sociaton, and the Illinois Manufacturers Associa-
ton, representing 33I67 factories with IoS4ooo en-
ployes and investment of S82oooooo stood before
the President beg him in the name of their anguish
ing business enterprises to limit his program of anti
trust legislation at this session of Congress. The
delegation stated that business was so slack with them
that the numbers of workmen unemployed reached
larger totals than known before in their memory
and that far they could see responsibility for
this state of affairs to be laid the door of the
antitrust crusade. They favored the creation of
properly regulated interstate trade commission, but
they declared that any legislation which was dis
crminatory would work untold HARM and they begged
the President that all other business legislation be de-
ferred until the business of the United States
could become acquainted with the proposed laws, of
which they entirely ignorant the present time
The President said that he sympathized with the
men who came to see him and with the condition of
their business but he felt after ALL that the depres
sion was largely Psychological" There was no ma
rerial condition substantial reason why the bus-
ness of the country should not be in the pros
porous and expanding state. The best thing to do
for business help the President get the
antitrust program through as quickly as possible.
Then permanent quiet and permanent prosperity would
come.
We arg sorry to say that we do not quite follow
the Presidents reasoning in the matter. Il may be
that the present business depression is due to psyche
logical causes but it is the less real for all that
Psychological not it exists Factories are closed
out of work, foreign trade balance is heap
ing up against the country, and people have become
sorey discontented with the workings of the lower
tariff duties and OF the antitrust program so far as
this has been promulgated The result is a great
surging of sentiment back to the Republican party
and than that an accumulation Of evidence that
the different factions of the Republican party as it
existed before 1912 displaying the historic ten
dencies of the members of the party compose their
differences and unite their forces in the face of the
common enemy. The political observer is blind who
does not see that the Progressves and the regular
Republicans coming together, and that most of
them will vote for the candidates in the Con-
gressional elections in the fall.
The fact about the matter is and We are very
sorry to have say So that the President is wrong
in his theory that the trouble with business is merely
Psychological" He is right if feeling of business
fear and conservatism may be described as a mere
matter OF psychology but does he not recognize that
there is such thing just basis for business fear
and conservatism? Does he not realize that for
years back, the business of this country have
been whacked and pounded and pulled in different
directions by the wild OF political party
after the other, and by unendng ventures in the di
rection OF Socialism made by politicians in order
catch the favor of the mob? Does he not know what
the people of the country now want more than any
thing else is rest and that the treatment for
all psychological conditions OF nervous and business
depression is quiet and a cessation of the previous
annoyances from which the patient has been suffering
The New York World, one of the Presidents most
friendly critics. made apt reference the other day
when it cited Bismarck's plea that few reforms
should be left to posterity and that no man or no
political party could do everything at once.
Why is it that our Democratic friends will persist
in rushing upon destruction?