Denver labor bulletin., 1918-08-31

upon one single point-special train
ing for special work. America, on the
contrary, has believed in general train
ing for everyone and her business
men in the past have been self-made
and unframed for their particular
work.
Very great progress has been made
in recent years in supplying higher
training for American business execu-
tives. The larger the business unit
grows and the more complicated and
far-reaching the business transactions
the more necessary it becomes to have
men trained for executive work, be-
cause today the thousands of employees
of great corporations become lost in a
narrowing maze of routine. The mod
ern office man seldom sees his en-
ployer or has opportunity to take a
larger view even of the business in
which he is employed. His opportunity
for the development of breadth of
view and powers of business admins
tration are limited indeed; he is the
veritable "man in the rut." Seeing
the special need for definite training
great business houses have put in ed
ucational work to develop their own
men and great universities in our
larger commercial centers have de-
veloped special schools of business
finance. These are devoting them
selves to study and research in fields
of efficiency and business administra-
tion and a great literature of business
has sprung up. Already the whole
business world has felt the influence
of this new move for efficiency and
even our foes comment upon Ameri-
cas- powers for organization.
The war and the necessity of arm
ing, training, transporting and feed
ing an army of millions of fighting
men has emphasized more than any
thing else could the need for trained
men and women in. government serv-
ice. The war department has looked
to colleges for officers, engineers and
experts for these new and gigantic
enterprises. In all previous wars the
mismanagement of business affairs,
such as the purchase and handling of
food and clothing, has been disgrace
full and this chapter in our national
story has been such as to cause Amer
leans to blush.
President Wilson's History of the
American People" called attention in
a special way to this weakness. Many
people had come to believe that il was
impossible for our democratic govern
ment to manage business affairs eff
NltuLlgs bul Allh PRESENT huHllHlhlTa-
tion has proved them mistaken, for
practically none of the mistakes in
the management of earlier wars can
be found in the present one. The
contrast is striking and most graft
flying. This result has been secured
by placing trained men in positions
of responsibility.
The government has determined
that our supply of trained men shall
not be exhausted and this is the rea-
son for the establishment by the war
department of the new students army
training corps. Thousands of young
men who have completed high school,
and have reached college age are to
be recruited for enlistment in an army
of college men to be retained in col
lege and trained until they are ready
to take up definite work. Some will
be trained for officers in line posi-
tions, some for engineering, medicine
and dentistry. Others will be trained
for business administration in the
quartermaster service and the pur-
chase and handling of supplies. This
is distinctly the business end of the
arrangements of the war. Office men
who are graduates of university de-
partments of business are especially
valuable in this field.