The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1917-02-04
FIVE-MINUTE TALKS
BY NATIONAL LEADERS

Governor Frederick d. Gardner. OF
Missouri. was asked by the Interna-
tional News Service to write short
article on some topic he considered
of especial nation wide importance at
the present moment He responded
with the following, which he entities
Necessity for the Business Man in
Politics.:
(By Frederick ID. Gardner. Governor
OF Missouri.)
There Is a growing necessity Tor
business men to enter the field OF poll
tics. This necessity exists both In
business and in politics. and arises
from the fact that there Is a lack OF
mutually between the two.
To q large degree the machinery Of
the government is necessarily manned
through the agency of politics. since
the functions Of government are being
extended in the regulation and super
vision of business enterprises. the re-
lation between business and govern
rnent is so close that cooperation and
confidence are essential to both.
Modern business methods are often
criticised by the government on one
hand, and the government Is the
more often criticised by business men
on the other hand. in spite of an ur-
gent necessity for business men to
have the proper sympathy and CO.
operation with government and the
government the support of the bust
ness men.
The best way for business men TO
exert influence In public affairs Is for
them to participate in politics and
render sincere and active service in
the public interest. but business men
have failed to make their knowledge
and experience felt In this direction.
ri ~
triotfc but because they are indiffer-
emit. They have not demanded that
participation In the councils OF the
government that they are entitled to
have, except when they have ap-
pealed to the government for aid or
complained of governmental restric-
tons.
business, its purpose should be 70
encourage and stimulate industry and
not to retard 1t with unwholesome
restrictions. In other words there
should be wholesome cooperation be-
tween government and business. Such
cooperation will depend upon the
force with which business men with
sincere and unselhsh- purpose make
themselves and their experiences felt
in shaping our political course.
BUSINESS men should give greater
heed to seeing that the men to whom
they delegate the great responsible
tiles of government are the right type
Of men. They should be ready to rem
der service instead of contenting
themselves with criticism. Whenever
the stalwart citizenship makes itself
felt politically. We will have more
economically sound laws and more eff
ficient government
That there should be a state OF
mutual understanding and confidence
between business and government is
OF superlative importance to both.
That common sense NJ mankind de
mands that there should be no I'M
reasonable handicaps imposed by gov
ornamental regulations on the one
hand, and no unfair advantage as
surned by business enterprises. which,
by the sheer magnitude of their In
fYuence, are able to dominate their
several fields OF industry.
Present conditions present an ex-
traord!nary opportunity for this coun-
try TO take an advanced position In
International commerce and finance.
This can only be accomplished by the
government. the manufacturer, the
farmer. the banker. the merchant and
all other business men pulling to-
eether This is the way to realize
national solidarity.
To attain this. business men must
participate in the field of politics and
deal with social forces They must
learn to subordinate the individual to
she good OF society, and thus to the
greater good OF the individual. They
must attain that attitude of mind
which will lead them to yield to
their best impulses and enable them
TO appreciate that the only way to
bring about practical application OF
business methods TO the management
If the machinery or government il
for business man to take an interest
In the affairs 81 the government.
The trouble with business men has
been that they have not recognized
any duty or responsibility in the field
Of politics There should be ma
tionai awakening to the necessity for
sound business judgment applied by
practical business men in the opera
ton of the government Govern
mental regulation is being extended
into almost every field OF business en-
terprise. II its agencies are properly
administered, they should stimulate
and stabilize business; but in order
that they may be properly admins
tered they must be under the super
vision of competent. experienced busi-
ness men. The machinery of govern
rneut Is becoming more complicated
with the extension Of these govern
mental agencies and requires greater
skill and efficiency for its proper
management
Furthermore. there Is necessity TO