The evening herald., 1917-10-24

And I endeavored as secretary OF the
| treasury, 20 give some relief. The
| only relief I could offer was to de-
po~it government funds to the extent
! that we had available funds. IN the
! banks of the south. asking them. In
turn. 10 lend these moneys upon ~
favorable terms as possible to all
| farmers they could reach, to enable
them 20 carry their cotton until nor
NAL conditions could be restored. Hut
the first effect OF the shipping con.
Ecstion was 10 induce every man who
owned cotton, and every bank which
was carrying cotton as collateral, and
every merchant who had loaned mon
ey 10 the farmer upon the security OF
his crop, 20 try TO sell cotton qsickiy.
because each wanted to get rid OF 10
before the slump came. In othrr
words. the Decentralization which
comes from the inability TO market
| the surplus In foreign countries arises
from the attempt 10 sell great Quanti-
ties OF a staple. be u cotton or grain.
or whatever else. IN the home market,
when there IL not enough demand
there to absorb u. and, OF course.
prices decline. They so down below
the cost OF production. In the case IN
point. cotton went as low as five cents
pound. and Il brought disaster upon
the south The losses during that
time amounted TO hundreds OF mil
lions of dollars to the people OF the
south. LOSSES they could ill afford to
hear.
Now. n we we've to de denied the
right 10 ship our produce to those
great nations. which consists largely
of the grain OF our farms. of the prod
ucss Of our iaines. and OF the surplus
manufactures Of our great plants in
this country. exactly the same con
dition would he repeated. the same
effect would be produced In every
line Of production In this country.
Take the fiscal year ended June 80,
1917. In that year We exported to-
Great Britain. TO France. to Belgium.
and to Italy three billion, four hun
dred million dollars OF American
proaucts. one billion. two hundred
million dollars Of that represented the
products OF American farms. their
grain, their live stock and other
things that they produced. And u
was because Of our ability TO move
these products across the ocean and
TO sell them In those other markets
Of the world that the general price
level OF these commodities In this
country WIS maintained and pros
periiy rame to the American farmer
TO an unusual degree The same
thing applies to our manufactures.
and that ~ why labor is also con-
cerned iE this great question. II our
manufacturers cannot sell their sur
plus product they ot course, must
reduce capacity. and limit production
TO what We consume here az home
aud that means that labor would he
unemployed. IL We should he unable
20 sell our surplus products TO the
-four great nations | have named, we
would have had decentralization OF
prices In this land, and disaster would
visit every farm and ever9 factory
and every business house in America.
II il perfectly clear that the kais-
er's purpose was. He had been led
10 believe by disloyal people in this
country that America would never
fight. that We were material people
that any transgression of our rights
would he met only hy protests that
he could go a. far az he pleased. And
SO he determined that he would put
America TO this supreme test. and hs
has gotten an answer he never ex-
pected. He expected a craven submits
sion, and he knew that II we gave
that. there would be q weakening OF
the economic situation In America.
and ciscord aud discomfort among It's
people which would serve the end he
had In view. He would accomplish
II we had submitted to that order
by one stroke Of his pen in his palace
In Berlin. more destruction upon
American farms. in American facto-
fies. and in American business houses
and &C American interests ali over this
land Than he could accomplish with
au the armies and naVies OF the Ger
man empire.
What was the other thing he had
In mind About the 18th aay OF
January. fourteen days before he or.
0ered America off the high seas he
sent through his foreign secretary a
dispatch TO Mexico. We did not get
this dispatch until some time the next
month but We got Il. and Il N au-
thentic. We caught the kaiser with
the goods and his foreign secretary
had to admit u. What did he say to
Mexico lie said IL Mexico would
make war upon the United States, the
German government would finance the
undertaking, and that Mexico ana
Germany would together dictate terms
OF peace 20 the United States. And
what was the reward that Mexico WAS
70 receive The kaiser promised 90
hand over the great states OF Texas.
Now Mexico and Arizona. That was
the halt the German kaiser held out
Ia Mexico. II sh" would make war
upon as. 80 long as there il q gal
liant American heart under Khaki
like 70 see any foreign desp0t tear
three stars from the American flaE
That was not all Of ~ There IL
Japan. our great neighbor OF the Pa
Cific our friend. nov making COM
mon cause with us in this great strug-
gle foT liberty and world democracy
Japan was ~ war with Germany. 50
the Kaiser could not approach her
directly. and--this is another evidence
@ fihat superior intelligence Of the
German diplomatic service he suF
l@sted that Mexico approach Japan
and suggest that Japan make COM
mon cause with Germany ana Mexico
an that " Japan had done that we
would have been attacked upon the
Pacific coast Ia thc meantime. what
would have happened to our great
partners iu this fight Tor universal
democracy H-fifeat britain. Belgium.
France. and Italy with their sup
piles cut or who can say how long
they could have held out And this
iustful military despot, the kaiser
whose eyes are upon the whole earth.
whose dreams transcend even those
of Alexander the Great ana Hannibal
aud Caesar would have come into
what he has been trying 10 get an
these wears. domination OF the world
except free America, And then what
would have heeu the ueNt stel,
The United States would have been
at war. ~ the kaiser hoped with