New-York tribune., 1918-11-03
By George E. Roberts

Assistant to the President, National
City Bank of Ne,v York;
nsre ss sspsss Hss 1r'ts s se 'ss Ps"ps
waste which they saw begin
ming. 1t was said that all the achieve
lnents of the past, all of the wealth
that had been accumulated would be
swept away; that the world would be
set back for one hundred years. And
even now it is often said that it will
take long time to recover from the
destruction Of wealth which has oc-
Cured. That sounds plausible, but
let's look at it. Wealth is of three
kinds: First, there is the wealth in
the natural resources. the soil, the
forests, the minerals, water power,
of improvements-hou factories,
equipment of every kind got develop
| ing the natural resources, for work
ing up the materials and for handling
and transporting them; and third,
there is what we call consumable
wealth, in the form Of goods on hand
that minister directly to our comfort
and pleasure. All other wealth is SIM
ply contributory to this wealth Of the
third class.
Now to what extent have these three
classes Of wealth been exhausted by
the war? What about natural re-
sources? Have we made any percep-
tble nroads on our stores OF natural
wealth? Certainly not. I should say
that there has been a development, an
opening up and uncovering of natural
wealth which has put more of 1t IN
sight and within reach than there was
in sight before the war
What about the second class, the
fixed improvements and the industrial
equipment? You would have to strike
a balance on that There has been
zone Of actual fighting. There has
been a great destruction of ships. But
before you jump at the conclusion
that the world is going to be set back
fifty or a hundred years you should
take account of the worlds facilities
for replacing these things.
The loss Of the Lusitanla was serl-
Gus one, for she was the highest prod
uct of the shipbuilder's art. But the
time and labor required to replace the
Lusitania are not very great compared
with the time and effort that were
covered in the development of ship
building from the savage's dugout up
to the Lusitania In short, the achieve
ments OF the past are not 50 much In
the physical properties we inherit as
in the stock of knowledge that comes
down to u.s. While the Lusitania was
fine modern ship many of the others
were not, and venture the opinion
that the average cost of ocean trans
portation will be less after the war
than it was before. And so a friend
tells me that a lot Of the old towns
destroyed in the war zone should have
been condemned for sanitary reasons.
You know that a great many towns
have been improved by fire.
How the War Has
Stimulated Industry
But now say that it would be neces-
sary to strike balance. There has
been a destruction Of valuable prop
erty in the war zone, and there has
equipment, and deterioration of many
kinds OF property On the other hand,
there has been lot of new construc-
ton for war purposes, and an eX-
pansion of industry for war purposes
which will be of permanent value.
Furthermore, under the pressure OF war
needs there has been much scientific
development, in industry, War is
great stimulus to people. 1t is an
emergency which lifts men out of
the track Of routine and habit and
compels them to think and plan anew.
We see a whole new dye industry Gre
ated in this country. and many other
industries have been given a marked
impetus. Agriculture is one of them
The farm tractor has had far more
rapid introduction than would have
been probable in times Of peace.
The third class Of wealth consists of
stocks Of consumable wealth on hand.
Perhaps stocks are lower than usual,
but the difference is not important.
Stocks on hand are of small conse-
quence compared with production ca
pacity. AS | said before it is not the
stock of goods but the flow of goods
that is important.
But what about these enormous
debts? ! do not consider the debts an
impossible burden. Suppose the United
States owes $4,000, ,000, 900 or $685.
000,00o,0O0. The bonds are widely dis
tributed. The taxes will be heavy, but
they will pass out of the pockets Of
the taxpayers into the Treasury, and
out Of the Treasury into the pockets
of the bondholders, who come pretty
near being the same people as the tax
payers. And even if they are not the
same people the capital is not lost
but is returned to the same commun-
ties. 1t will be there for use in indus
try, for investment, for the employ
ment of labor, and all these uses of
capital have equalizing, compensating
influences, so that all classes will be
practically reimbursed
Two Kinds
of Losses
But sou ehnGy will sau Ian,t .-o,,