The Bridgeport evening farmer. [volume] (Bridgeport, Conn.) 1866-1917, 1916-02-09
TELLS NEEDS OF
INTERNATIONAL
COURT OF PEACE
Chamber of Commerce
Speaker Denies Manufac-
turers Oppose Plan.

|
Washington, Feb. 9.-Addresses on
| Commercial Relations Between the
| United States and Cnlna,'' by DR.. We'll
hngton Koo, the Chinese minister, ga
| Business View of Peace to Come" by
| Edward A. Ellen, of Boston, a mem
Der of the executive committee of the
International Congress of the chamber
of commerce, and Work of the In
IternationaI High Commission by Sen
! ator Fletcher of Florida, held the at
tention of delegates at today's session
of the annual convention Of the Cham
Der of Commerce of the United States.
In presenting partial survey of
conditions expected to confront the
United, States at the end of the war.
Mr. Ellen declared that the cham
ber's recent referendum approving the
proposal that this country take the
initiative in the establishment of in
ternational court to settle the disputes
of naions has effectively given the
| lie'' to the charge that 1.-THE chief in
terest of American business men in
the war is the chance it gives them
to coin the agony of Europe to in
creased dividends
'NThe vote Indicates said Mr.. Ellen.
''that American business men, If they
could feel that thereby they were do
ing their share in keeping the peace
of the world, would be willing to help
punish the violators of international
agreements by putting an embargo
upon all goods as well as munitions
of war Hereafter, the man who
charges American business men with
a wilIin gness to sacrifice principle in
q greed for blood money must reckon
with the vote on this referendum
NJ Ellen said it was the clear
duty of the United. States and the
states of South America, to take steps
to complete a Pan-Americap program
S<Nl7ro raT@F0T
tration with power behind it to en-
forcA its operation eff such a pro-
gram is in existence he said, 1T IS
probable that other neutral countries
may want to join in it for their sell
preservation. For the contrasting ex-
amples of unprepared Belgium invad-
ed while prepared Switzerland, with
war on all sides, is intact. will drive
them, to preparation and involve them
in the inevitable cycle of increased
ornaments, increasing taxation to pay
for the ornaments and the revofu-
tionarys protests that the taxation viii
in time produce, unless there IS adopt
ed some practical method for settling
disputes along lines of the proposals
the tire men of the United States
have now agreed upon.
He gave the following reasons Tor
the need of the agreement:
"(1O-E,xfsting at the time OF the
the war, it would inevitably carry
great weight, because the war; VIII
have proved America to be the big
gest and safest source of their sup
plies on which the success of modern
war depends. Thus the very material
interests and se1f-pr preservation of
Europe will be at stake in the answer
thew give to such a Pan-American
program.
"k2)-If it should happen thai the
material interests of Europe did not
lead to an adequate international
agreement, at the end of the war ana
the diplomats succeeded merely to
holding together the present alliances,
then it will be question of time
when the inevitable rivalry in ar1na :
ments more costly than ever before,
will pile such burdens of taxation up
on the already -debt-ridden people that
py the fact that there is limit TO en-
durance, radical and revolutionary
protest will rise from the masses.
This pressure will force the govern
ments of Europe to go into a world
congress in an attempt to find some
thing better than the existing alliances
as a safeguard of peace, and some
plan that will relieve the tension of
the extravagant rivalry in ornaments.
A definite Pan-American program
would be a centralizing force in the
action of any conference of worIS
powers.
"(3)-If this was settled as all 9TH
er wars have been settled, the nations
of Europe will face not only the enor-
nous war debts and expense of a
normal rebuilding of their industries
but in addition the continuously in
creasing burden of the rivalry in
ornaments This means that Europe's
need for naarizets will be the most
urgent in her history.
$50 imperative will be the need for
markets that the nations of Europe
will sell to us at a normal profit if
they can but if necessary, they will
lower their prices step by step until
they succeed in capturing market.
They will urge upon their people the
patriotic duty of accepting lower
wages and lower standards of living
in order that the nation may secure
profit at the prices it is able to get
with which to rebuild it's industries
and arm itself against the next war.
Thus the war will be followed by a
race for markets which will result in
the most destructive competition yet
known