Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1918-01-18
Editorial Comment

Boston Globe.)

Boston Globe.)
Picture the Germans charging across
No Mans Land at you with bayonets
fixed and blood in their eyes. and ina
CINE your feelings If you were behind
machine gun and were ordered not to
fire a shot for five days-to save am
munition,
With war as il is waged today, when
- men must work in order that one
man may fight, when the industrial
strength Of the entire Nation is needed
to produce munitions and ships ana
maintain our National existence, when
the battle is as much in the workshop
as in the field, American industry has
received a similar order from the Gov
ernment's Fuel Administrator.
We surrender to the Germans on
Jan. is, 10. 20. a. %, IS. Feb. 4, II, Is,
%, and March 4, II. 10 and %.
On those days We stop making uni
forms, shoes, blankets, ships, rifles,
machine guns, airplanes, shells, bay
onets, gas masks and hundreds of
other articles absolutely necessary for
carrying on the war against Germany.
Even if munition factory has thou
sands of tons Of coal on hand it must
shut down on those days.
II is impossible to calculate the loss
10 everyone in the whole country en-
tailed in the order. Coming just at a
time when Germany is in the midst of
an Internal crisis which may end the
war within perhaps few months or
prolong it indefinitely, the effect of the
b,t no inft
trial United States must shut down al
most completely even for short time
is lamentable for us. The loss of
wages will be about s140. 100000. The
loss to capital cannot be calculated.
The bss Of time can never be regained.
ASK anything of me except time,
exclaimed Napoleon.
In his statement Mr.. Garfield lays
much stress on the fact that the bur
den will be placed on all industries
with absolute impartiality. Such
an academic sense of justice shows
that the Fuel Administrator has made
no distinction between a candy factory
and cannon factory. He orders tie
power shut off everywhere without
distinction between those Industries
wi .c! are absolutely necessary and
should be run "a hours every day and
every day in the week and the indus
tries which are not essential to the
winning of the war
To have failed TO make this funda-
mental distinction. and to order the
country to cease its support Of the
American troops here and abroad, is
almost beyond comprehension The
reason advanced by one of his lieu
tenants is that. owing to the lack of
coal. it is impossible to transport those
munitions now at tidewater awaiting
shipment, and therefore it is useless to
keep pilinS UP the supply. Such logic
ignores the fact that since we must
save coal. and also must have NUM-
tions, the place to save coal is the fac
tory not making goods needed in the
conduct Of the war.
Early in the conflict Great Britain
saw that it could not meet the ire
mendous demand for munitions if it
did not curtail nonessential industries
It appointed a commission of expert
business men who studied the whole
industrial situation: and after deciding
what Industries were essential and
the production of those not necessary
for the conduct Of the war When
those employed in nonessential indus
tries We're thrown out Of work they
We're trained for employment in the es-
sentjal industries. It was only by this
courageous and efficient method that
Great Britain was able to convert her
vast industries from basis Of peace
to basis of effectiveness in war thar
is now even exceeding those of Ger
many. In fact there is "A slight silver
lining to the cloud III the news that
one big German munition plant at
least has been shut down owing 10
lack Of coal.
In contrast with the British method.
and in spite of our Fuel Administrator,
conditions have been permitted to be
come so bad that he feels it necessary
to deal n knockout blow at our whole
industrial life. Such n drastic solution
Of the problem. while 1t is obviously
the easiest method for the Administra-
TOR. is N reality confession Of terrible
failure The order is its own indict
ment. Few persons in tie country
realized that the distribution of fI,e1
had become so chaotic. SO paralyZed
that the latest orders were thought
necessary.
Allowing for the fact that Mr. Gar
field is in possession of reports from
all parts of the country as to the ac-
tual conditions. Il will nevertheless be
hard to convince the average man
that such action as has now been TAX
e,, was unavoidable. The curtailment
should have been limited to nonessen-
tial industries in order that all war
work could he maintained at full hast
No American expected even 4 tenn
porary surrender TO German
Uncle Dudley