New-York tribune., 1918-01-29

the "War Industries Board" And he said in
effect: "Foled again. | have changed the
name Of the General Munitions Board to
War Industries Board and | have given it
some new powers You will understand what
these powers if you will read this
announcement, which I hand you, fifteen or
sixteen times and if you will watch the opcr-
ations of the War Industries Board for three
or four months. ! have the honor, gentle
men. to wish you good morning, and it would
hardly be fair patriotic of you to do any
hueng and crying after till am we'll out
of sight,
For the third time for the third important
time, lay by the roadside and watched
Brer Baker eapng jauntily into the distance
in clothes of a cut never before worn by any
minister Of war on earth. We began to be
a bit doubtful about these War Department
tailors whose chief recommendation for their
wares appeared to be that they got out Il
new fashion every few months Nevertheless,
as seemed to be duty, said the best
that could be said for the Eva Industries
Board" and the columns of "Thc New Repub
ic' and of almost all other magazines and
newspapers will bear this statement out, and
we hoped against hope that the intricate and
aborious idea of "War Industries BOARD"
''co0rdinating" the purchasing departments
Of the War Department would turn out to
be an Improvement on the perfectly simple
and self proved idea Of separate munitions
ministry. And we did not resume our pur
suit of Mr.. Baker for quite Il !hle.
When we took 1t up again Il speak now OF
newspaper and magazine correspondents),
were joined soon by gentlemen from the SEN
ate; and these gentlemen were not merely
alarmed, they were most of them appalled, and
even panicstricken by what they discovered
with regard to our prospects in such primary
Nd Il, .,1,Io OH
and artillery; and all ran, and Mr.. Bake
ran: and just exactly as every other
similar occasion. Mr.. Baker broke out at once
into a lot Of new protective colorngs in the
way of Reorganization" and Reorganization. ;"
In rapid succession he developed a war coun-
Gil" within his department and functional
reorganization" and "dircctorship Of our-
chases.'
Another Start"
The question now is: Has Mr.. Baker earn ed
the right to another head-start? Surely the
answer must be emphatcalIy, No. When =
man three times in succession has invented
a strange and monstrously complicated sys-
tenn which three times in succession he has
virtually abandoned, he has no right to any
head start whatsoever on his fourth. This
time he should be compelled to open his arms
to receive at once the one system which in
democracy is known TO work we'll for the
production Of munitions, the system tested
and triumphant at Paris and at London. Mr..
Bakers new doings nothing but new eva
sions Of the central point of that system and
new efforts to to be "reorganizing" the
heart and brain of his department, when in
reality he is only "reorganzing' its arms
and legs.
Ever since the beginning of the war we
have been trying to get things done by put
ting people over other people whom they have
no power to compel. We did ii in the COM
mittces Of the Advisory Commission. We did
it in the General Munitions Board. We did
it in the War Industries Board. And we
reached failure every time. And now Mr.
Baker is doing it all over again in the di-