The Topeka state journal., 1916-05-01

but at the same time an equally |
courteous but resolute inslstence upon
our own rights. Insolence and disre- |
gard of the Arights and feelings of 9TH
ers may embroil us in war; but weak
ness, and conveying the impression
that we fear others, are even more
certain to do so in the long run
Strength courage and the courteous
doing of justice tend to avert war;
weakness, and above all weakness
combined with bluster tend in the long
run to make it inevitable. We stand
for the peace which comes as a matter
of right to the just man armed and
not for the peace which is purchased
by the coward at the cost of abject
submission to wrong. The peace of
cowardice ultimately leads to war as
the end of a record of shame.
Industrial Preparation.
Industrial service is essential. There
can be no full preparation for military
service unless there is industrial
preparation. Few of our people have
even the slightest idea of the enormous
amount of supplies of every kind
necessary to carry on modern war; its
quantities of food clothing. rifles, can
non, Shells cartridges medical sup
plies, automobiles, railway cars, high
explosives. If the supply of raw ma
terial gives out, if skilled laborers fit
ted for manufacture are not to be
found, if the deliveries of goods are
not made with the promptness and
certainty only to be obtained through
perfectly organized industrial ma
chinery, the result is that the loss
1 would have to be made good by an in
ca1culable wastage of life among our
soldiers. Unless our industries are
highly efficient and moreover are
trained for this particular work in ad-
vance, the penalty will inevitably be
paid in the shape of dreadful loss of
life among our soldiers. Such a need
cannot be n by government owned
and managed plants, although there
should be some such to serve as checks
and regulators. The need is to train,
to educate many business firms by
means of giving them small orders in
time of peace for the various things
which the government would need in
enormous quantities in time of war
There should be a survey of the pro-
ducing resources of the country and
the development and practical work
ing-out in time of peace of plans for
minimum annual educational orders to
be placed by the army and the navy
with thousands of firms widely dis
tributed geographically, and the en-
rolment in time of peace of the skilled
labor which it is necessary to keep on
| the job in time of war.
We shall need organized business in
time of war just as in time of peace.
Our duty is to encourage it, but also
to see that it's activities are
for the benefit of the whole
country. The government should
provide against excessive profit maxi
ing in time of war; and it can only do
this as a sequence to reasonable en-
ragement of the many private
plants which in the event of war could
be trusted to do public business. These
plants, through some such system as
the annual educational orders above
referred to, could be made ready for
efficient munitions work in time of
war. The government encoura cement
could be also used to secure as one
of its features those things for labor
which it is most necessary to secure;
proper working and living conditions
and provision for insurance compen-
sation against sickness, accident and
old age. Not one step has been taken
by congress to help secure these indus
trial conditions Not one step has been
/ take to secure the naturalization of
| industry in time of war. The rail-
road business in particular, in so far
| interstate commerce and everything
directly or indirectly connected with it
| is concerned, should be made ma
| tional matter, with a national incor-
poration law, and the whole power of
regulation (Which should itself be part
| of a process of encoura cement, lodged
in the federal commission, the pur-
pose being to encourage the business
| in every legitimate way, while also
seeing that it is managed in the in
| terest of the public, no less than of the
1 investors, managers and wage-work-
ers. We can have no national econo-
| mic program until we make ourselves
really nation. National needs can
nos be met by conflicting locality ac-
tions. This is the age of cooperation.
| Surely if We really are a business peo-
pie this means that there should be
cooperation and not hostility between
the government and the mighty agen-
cies through which alone modern busi-
ness, especially international business,
can be managed Let the govern
this regulation be cn incident of hearty
cooperation with them, to secure
their well-being and also the well-be-
| ing of those who work for them and of
those for whom they work. Capital
must be orga anized on a large scale just
as labor must be organized on a large
scale; but. both forms of organization
must justify themselves by showing
that they are not only beneficial to
themselves but to the people as
whole.
Boosting Not Alone
No form of government will survive
unless it can justify its existence
Boasting about democracy won't make
democracy succeed. We are the
great test democratic republic and we
are false not only to our own country
but to democracy everywhere if we
do not seriously endeavor to show, by
our actions and success, that with us
the many men can make a nation as
efficient as elsewhere nations have
been made efficient by a few men. We
must make America efficient within
its own borders, efficient to repel at
tack from beyond its own borders, and
yet a friend and not menace to other
peoples We must make ourselves
serviceable to democracy, to the cause
of popular rights and popular duties
in national and also in international
matters. A happy-go-lucky belief that
We can become serviceable by COM
bining sentimental speeches with sell
fish actions will bring US to futility.
Servicea bleness comes only through
preparedness; and both the training
and the saI.Nice-t hrnllarh acnr,