New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-11-25
Consumption OF
Labor and Capital
A Clumsy Device
But Most Other Ways Of Cur
failing Consumption Are
Clumsy. Too
By Thomas Nixon Carver

TO get cspitaI ana men w %
into the war industries Is be-
cause they are so proAtably employed
in other industries. II there was no
profitable employment for either In the
unnecessary industries both labor and
capital would be glad and anxious to
70 into the necessary industries.
The only reason they can be so profit
.blv employed in the unnecessary in
dussries is because so many OF US are
willing to spend our incomes on unnec'
e,.ary things. II no one would spend any
money on unnecessary things. neither
c.ni.al nor labor would have any In
ducement or motive to continue IN
the unnecessary industries or In the
production of unnecessary things
CIumsiness to Counterfeit Folly
II we continue spending lavishiy IN
the purchase of unnecessary thihss'
then profits and wages will be so hisn
in the unnecessary industries tha'
largo funds Of capital and large num-
hrs 81 laborers will remain in THESE
industries and will not be willing 10
% into the war industries. In that
e..s. the only method Of getting labor
and capital for the war industries VIII
he soms form Of CONSUMPTION. nav
ING made one economic blunder. tha'
Of continuing our luxurious eonsump-
ton Of unnecessary things, 1t VIII De
necessary to counterfeit the results OF
that folly by an exceedingly clumsy
and vasteful device-namely, the con-
scription of capital and labor.
II we are unwilling voluntarily 10
cut down our expenditure for unnec-
e,sary things. the government must IN
terposs its authority end compel US 10
do so, whether we like it or not Inc
CONSUMPTION of capital and LABOR ior
the necessary industries would be one
wav hut a rather clumsy one. OF com
pelling US to cut down our consump.
ton. II capital and labor are iorceo
into those industries which are made
necessary by the war. there VIII be
tina. much less left to produce the things
which we can get along without. we
must then perforce consume less Oh
these things.
Another EIpedient
Ano.b.r rather clumsy way would be
for the government to issue vast sums
Of new money or purchasing power win
which to buy war supplies and to hire
man II we individuals are each and
everv one left with as much money
to spend as we had before the war. II
will take as many men to produce tor
us a. IL did before the war. But wheh
the government begins to expend It's
new purchasing power it will be bid
ding against US with its new money
ard we will be bidding against 1t with
our existing incomes. This Will SEND
prices skyward. The result OF these
inflated prices will be that we cannot
buy so many things as we did BEFORE
for the simple reason that our ex-
listing incomes will not purchase SO
much as they did before. BY this
method we, as individuals, shall be
forced to consume less than we did be-
fore the war. Another way OF putting
the same thing would be to say that
IN. government with it's new purchas-
ing power would outbid US with our
old purchasing power. 1t could pay
such q price for war supplies and men
that capital and labor would stop pro-
ducing Injuries for US and go to pro-
ducing necessaries for the govern
ment. We should then be unable to get
luxuries or unnecessary things.
On the whole, the best way Of COM
pelling us to cut down our consumption
of unnecessary Injuries would be to
tax US. Whenever | pay dollar in
taxes I have one dollar less to spend
on Injuries and In persuading capital
and labor to stay in the luxury pro-
ducing industries. At the same time
tho government has that same dollar
to expend in the purchase of war sup
plies and In persuading capital and
labor to 20 into the war industries. If
the government will tax to the bone,
so that none Of us has anything to
spend on frills and Injuries, capital
and labor will have no inducement
whatever to remain in the frill and
luxury producing industries. On the
other hand, the government will have
an abundance to spend on necessary
war supplies and IN persuading capital
and labor to 90 into the war indus
! tries.
Borrowing to Save
Another method, not quite so good, is
Cor the government TO borrow largely.
The money which spend for Liberty
bond | cannot spend for Injuries. The
government has II to spend on the
necessaries Of war. UP to this point
borrowing accomplishes much the same
result as taxing. However. after
have got my Liberty bond my credit Is
a little better than ii would have been
if I had paid in taxes same amount as