Norwich bulletin., 1916-01-27
DEVASTATED NATIONS WILL
TURN TO OUR MARKETS
After the European War-We Are Un-
prepared, Says Rev. C. n. Ricketts,.

The peculiar conditions created by
the devastation of Europe was the
theme of the shop talk given by Rev.
Charles H. Ricketts,, pastor of the
Greeneville Congregational church, at
the Richmond Radiator company's
plant at noon Wednesday, under Y. NJ.
c. A. auspices.
Rev. Mr.. Ricketts, said we are living
in extraordinary times Within the
memory of men now living nothing like
it has ever been experienced. 1t is not
eXtravagant to say that never before
in. history have so many soldiers been
facing one another in deadly conflict as
now. The situation in Europe after Is
months of upheaval has created eco
nornic conditions of far-reaching inn
particularly to the United States.
During this great length of time
most of the great commercial nations
have been non-producers. Instead Of
following their usual trades, the ma
jority of active men have been at war.
That means that the consumption of
property is greatly in excess of it's
production. Every day the war con-
tinues means decreasing surplus.
The cry for outside help is already
great, but what will it be if the con-
flict RACES a year longer? Europe hun
CRY, ragged, houseless and lacking the
material to restore normal conditions,
will tax the neutral world to the ut
most. That such will be the case one
year hence if peace is not declared is
the general opinion of political eco
nomists.
After the war, where will Europe
turn for the necessary means of re-
construction? Ours is the only recog-
nized world power among the neutral
nations, and ours must be the chief
tinent will turn. A mere sign of the
coming demand has touched our in
dustry with feverish excitement.
We are as unprepared to meet the
demands of foreign trade as we are to
repel a foreign army. We are not
even able to take care of our own in
ternal commerce. The great cities are
glutted with delayed freight, and yet
our railroads are exceeding their ca
pacity in trying to move 1t. We need
to guard against unfortunate haste.
Putting up enormous factories in three
days means slouchy work, as the city
of Worcester can testify. 1t means
that tenement houses, ugly, poorly
constructed and unsafe, will be thrust
upon the market. 1t means that real
estate will take on a fictitious value
that will disturb the value of other
properties.
We are paying idolatry to greed at
present. We stand in danger of losing
our consciences on it's altar. In these
shop talks l represent only my own
opinion, and that is why l can afford
to be a free lance. Personally / feel
that this country is all wrong is trying
to cover all Europe with the awful
munitions of death! Take this parallel:
Suppose some great firm should pro-
duce and export 100000 barrels Of
whiskey for foreign consumption. A
roar of holy horror would rise through
out the country, because whiskey is a
poison that brutalizes and kills. But
we are sending millions of rifles across
the Atlantic. What for? For muse
ums, for shooting clay pigeons, for fox
chasing by the nobility? We send
them for the specific purpose of killing
somebody and a rifle kills a little
quicked than whiskey. Nothing but
greed is back of both. Germany is
calling this country a race of hypo-
critics, but Germany's opinion on this
point is not worth three cents, for she
would take all our rifles if she could.
England fully believes that American
rifles are all right to shoot Germans
with, but are very dangerous for Ger
mans to handle, because they might
shoot Englishmen. This is war logic.
would like to see our own arsenals
fairly glutted with the best rifles sci
ence ever made simply as a deterrent
force. AS it is I would like to see our
great country stand forth in a consis-
tent, dignif1ed neutrality and then her
influence would be resistless when The
Hague tribunal comes out of the mid
night