Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1918-05-25
HEAVY WAR COST
WILL DEMAND OUR
CAREFUL SAVING
Country Must Buy Necessities
Only and Release Labor and
Materials for the Gov
ernmeEt
By JULIUS ROSENWALD.

Mr.. Rosenwald is president OF
Sears, Roebuck G. Co. and one OF
the country's most prominent mer-
=. chants. He is now serving as q
member of the advisory commits
sion Of the council of national de-
Tense.
The way for-an individual. for g
business, for nation to get along
is to work and save. Saving is a
great virtue of all countries that
have grown to commercial great
ness in the world If saving is nee
| essary in normal times, how much
more necessary is it in time like
the present, when the financial de-
mands on individuals, business and
the nation are far beyond anything
our country has ever experienced!
Saving by everyone is an impera-
tive for the winning of this war as
is the mQbiliZing of armies; more
than that, the mobilizing of armies
is entirely futile if this military
step is not accompanied by the rig
iorous, common-sense saving of the
nation, for without saving the mar
shaIed hosts cannot be equipped.
cannot be fed; cannot be carried
overseas and cannot be put into the
fight.
Luxuries Must Be Put Aside.
We can finance the enormous
cost of this war by spending only
for the things We need, not by
spending for the things we desire,
Just so long as we continue to
spend for things we do not need,
just that long do We prolong the
war and add to the tremendous sac
rifice of life and property. Not
until all of US realize the stern fact
that all spending, nc matter for
what, consumes labor and material,
| and that labor and material are
the essentials of victory, will we
/ be awake to the fundamentals OF
this grave situation. When we do
thoroughly grasp this truth and
then act as our conscience and as
our patriotism prompt US, we shall
no longer spend except for those
things necessary for our health and
| general well-being. And our health
and general weIl-being do not re-
quire many things which through
an easy life we have come to con-
slider as necessities. LuXuries must
| be put aside, actual necessities
must be continued 1t would be a
grave disaster if the home staying
population by foolish sacrifice were
not kept fit for it's all-important
task of supporting our armies in the
| field.
The nation is now mobilizing it's
industrial resources in order to
put behind our army great
productive machine. The output OF
this machine must be increased as
the army is increased, and we now
are beginning to realize how great
an army we must raise before there
can be an end to the struggle. Ev-
erythlng needed in this gigantic
productive machine is the product
of labor. This labor before the
war, as well as the labor now
part of our armies, was engaged in
the production of other things,
things that were needed for our eX-
istence, for our comfort and for
our development as a great people.
The industrial army that we had
before the war has been largely
depleted and will be more depleted
with every new call for troops, and
those who continue in the industrial
army must produce not only those
things necessary alike in peace and |
wartime, but everything required
for the war machine. And the
things vital for war must be pro- |
duced with all promptness possible. |
War Adjusting Labor Supply.
No matter how StrenuOusly we
speed up our production of mate
rails, it is plain that there is a |
limit beyond which we cannot go. |
A large part of our production, |
now estimated at from one-fourth !
to one-third of our total industrial !
productive capacity, must be given |
to the government for the prosecu- |
ton of the war. This means that |
only three-fourths or two-thirds Of |
our normal productive capacity can |
now be devoted to making things !
for domestic use. 1t is plain, there |
fore, that all of US must reduce our |
consumption of labor and materials, |
for everything we buy reduces the |
amount of labor and materials |
available for war purposes. We |
must confine our consumption to |
the things absolutely needed. The |
labor and materials that we in this
" ciN itACdoC p4elNCil 1L liz SCI
vice of the government.
AS our army grows in numbers
and as our machinery for produc-
ing war goods keeps pace with the
army's growth, the more we must
reduce our domestic consumption. |
The problem is self-eXplanatory;
labor becomes more scarce, the
need for war materials becomes I
more keen.
Money Alone Cannot Win War.
Some men in manufacturing and
trade have been fearful that this
vitality necessary reduction in the
home consumption of goods is go<
ing to hurt their business. They
have an idea that the government
can be financed only by the profits
of their business, but they overlook a,
the fundamental fact that the need
of the government is not mere ,
A war cannot be won with :
money alone. The vital victory
winning thing Is the product of ,
human labor. And every bit of hu-
man labor that goes into the pro-
duction OF non-essentials takes
away that much active force that
could be used for war purposes. :
The government must have steel,
copper, timber, chemicals. etc., etc,
for the building of ships and the