The Republican journal., 1918-11-28
COMPETITION.

"Why should any man fear competl-
tion-competticn with our own country
men or with anybody else on earth1"
Here are two questions in one sentence.
It is asserted by good authority that these
questions were asked by President Will
son, We do not think that is true, be-
cause it seems to us that Mr.. Wilson's
observation and experience must have
shown him why men fear competition,
even if his historical researches mad not
done so. Competition, according to Web
STEERS Dictionary is ''the act OF seeking,
or endeavoring to gain what another is
endeayorine to gain at the same time.
In commerce and economics 1T is the
effort Of one or more persons 10 secure
the Custom of others, and the possibility
of loss, results in fear which is syn
OWN of apprehension or alarm. Every
business day in the year great many
men are harrassed by competition. Every
day thousands of men are discharged
from office. factory or farm because OF
competition. The trade unions have,
MANY of them, limited the number OF
apprentices to their trade. Thus they
limit competition because 'they fear 1t
will finally bring about lower wage
scale" Just at present competition in the
field of general labor is not to be feared
but the time has been and will be again,
when labor will compete with labor till
a ''Coxy's army" marches in this coun-
trv of ours. competition leads to pro-
ores5 the weak fall by the wayslde while
the strong press forward TO pull down
somebody else, but we are not discussing
4hat. We are merely stating, what al
most everybody knows, that there are
abundant reasons why men should fear
competition with their own countrymen.
He whose business or his salary or his
daily wage is not endangered by competl-
ton is indeed fortunate.
There are reasons for believing that
President Wilson, himself, Just previous
to the late election feared the COMPETE
ton of Republicans for the National Sem
ate and House. There are plenty OF other
illustrations, and we now desire to say
few words about competition with Tor
aiopers. The American workman fears
The competition of the producers IN Eu-
rope and Asia because these people are
willing to work for much lower wages,
live according to lower standard, most
of them depend on charity in their old
age, leave little or no accumulation for
their children and little prospect of better
conditions in life than they, themselves,
have had The American workman in
sists OIL working eight hours day in
stead Of twelve He desires the enact
ment of child labor laws and that his
children shall be educated, and to wear
what he considers to be decent clothes.
He wants a decent house to live in. He
wants to own his home, have deposit
in the savings bank and a life insurance
policy. A very large percentage of our
working people have these and besides
there is feeling of independence which
these things give him. He knows that
he cannot have these things if he has to
compete with Chinese or Japanese labor
which costs from 40 to 60 cents day,
nor with English or French labor which
costs about half as much as he receives
This is his answer and our answer to the
question why he should fear competition
with any man on earth.