The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1918-04-24
SAVE MAN POWER
To STRIKE BLOW
ON BATTLE FROM
Harvard Ecopomist Urges the NecuUG
sity OF Speeding Up War Industry,
Release National Energy.

Harvard Economist Urges the NecewS|
sity OF Speeding Up War Industry.
Release National Energy.
BY r. n. CARVER
Professor OF Economics In Harvard
University.
| A war is not won necessarily by tho]
| side which has the most man pcwexsd
/ but by the side which succeeds III
| massiug the most man power at th0j
strategic points. This war is no excl
ception 1t is useless to boast OF our1
vast population and resources. oniyl
| that part Of our population counta3
is supporting the men who are thcr2]
by providing them either directly cr3
Indirectly with materials.
The rest Of us are not worth our
salt so far AS the winning OF the war
ia concerned, though We may havN1
our uses for other purposes. III Ne
can mass as large a proportion or our
men on the firing line as the Gernnan4|
are doing, and keep them as welk1
supplied with materials as the Ger
man soldiers are supplied. we can
whip them easily.
But if we waste q large proportionl
the production of things for the pri.|
vate consum ption of the people AZ
home, leaving the Germans with
more soldiers on the firing line thar
we have, and with better equiprnAnx|
than our soldiers have, we can not
whip the Germans except by mira
Gle. and miracles do not happen TO-
save people from the results of their
own stupidity.
America Has the Resources.
Let us not be overawed by the sos,
called German efficiency There II
nothing mysterious or awe-inspfrin
about II. Her worku1en are no NOR
skilful than ours her technicians Ar
no better trained, her inventors Af
not so ingenious az ours. She has EoGl
ten most of her inventions from othe
countries. Moreover. aside from tn
chemical industry. there is not singh
large industry In which we did not Gx
eel Germany in time Of peace. m
few minor industries she has led tn
| world but the same can be said a
ievery country. In the large industries
such as agriculture, iron ana steel
copper, the manufacture OF autorn6N
biles, etc, which ought to flsun(
largely in the winning OF a war, 70
have led the world in time of peace.
But up to the present time the Ger-S
men on the firing line and In keeping
them better supplied with materials
than we and our allies have succeeds
ed in doing There is only one reA-s
son for this. The Germans are not
doing anything else except make var.
They are not dissipating their ener y
gies. They are not wasting their
man power in the production of things
mot needed for the war.
d. Vnx Hys., Il vi
| If they win and we lose IL win 10
for the sole reason that they have
concentrated their national energy 0tf
the war and the war Industries. willie
we have dissipated our national en-
erry on unnecessary things for privAto
consumption.
If we win and they lose II win be-
for the sole reason that we have con-
centrated enough of our national ems
ergy on the war and war industries
to outnumber them on the firing itn1
and to keep those who are on the mr.
ing line amply supplied with every
thing they need. Every ounce of our
national energy we use for other pur-
poses is just so much withdrawn fronf
war purposes and, to that extent, jeOps
ardizes the outcome Of this war.
The way in which we use our ne~
tional energy depends mainly upon thu
" IN
we spend our money for our personal
ratification. we direct a certain
amount of national energy, or man
power, into less necessary industries-s
III on the other hand. we turn our
money over to the government by the
purchase of liberty bonds and war
savings stamps securities, the governs
ment will spend it for things neces~
sary TO the winning OF the war.
The effect of this way OF spending
money will be to direct national en-
ergy or man power toward the firfn1e
line, or toward the industries which
support the firing line by furnssnm1
| materials to the men who are theirs.
Finance War by Saving.
1t is very important that We bu@
our government securities out of on
savings instead of merely straintn
our credit This means that m
should cut down our personal spend
ing in order to purchase liberty bond
land war savings stamps securities.
we do that we shall not initiate priced
| We shall reduce our purchases
materials in proportion as the EUs
eminent increases its purchases "
shall release national energy frof
the old channels and enable the gos
eminent to direct 1t into the mel
channels which the war has mad
necessary. #
II. however. we merely strain eur
credit in order to buy war bonds, and
do not cut down our purchases of ma
terials at all. We shall merely innate
prices, We shall put money into the
hands Of the government and increases
its power to purchase. Then II We
personally continue purchasing Al
much as ever we shall increase the
total amount of purchasing without
any corresponding increase In the sup
ply of the materials that can be pure
tchased. That initiates prices.
We and the government are then
competing for materials--we demand
ing materials we can do without, ana
the government demanding materials
Liz must have We and the government
shall then he working at cross pur-s
poses and bidding against one another.
We shall he striving to keep the ma
tional energy in the old channe1a.
while the government will be striving
TO direct il into the new channels,
where 1T is needed because of the WI.
Bidding Against the Governmcuk
II is just as bad so far as the re-
suits are concerned, to oppose the
government by bidding against ii for