The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1918-08-13


neutral countries, thereby Using tom |
mage that should be kept available for |
our military operations and increasing |
our difficulties in adjusting our trade |
balances with neutral countries.
Hurts Uncle Sam In Many Ways.
To return to our story of the suit |
of clothes. During last year the United |
States had to import 421,000,00g |
pounds of wool representing value of
about $172,o00.000. About half of this
came from Argentina. Our suits of
clothes called for a substantial portion
of this wool and therefore to that ex-
tent robbed Uncle Sam Of the use of
his ships. Moreover, our factories be-
ing busy In producing the things re-
quired for the prosecution of the war
and our home consumption still pro-
ceeding at almost top speed, the guam
tity of goods available for shipment to
Argentina in payment for the wool Tor
for that matter to Chile for nitrates, to
Peru for copper, and so on), is insuff-
cient. AS a consequence the United
States had to pay for more goods in
South America than South America
has had to pay for goods bought in the
United States, thereby causing de-
| cline of dollar exchange in these neu
trail countries. This shrinkage in the
price of the dollar means that it has
lost corresponding part of its pur-
chasing power In neutral countries.
The scarcity Of goods available for
Aro
serious obstacle In our way in trying to
secure at reasonable prices or in ade-
| quate quantities some of the things
| that we absolutely require from for
| eign countries.
My suit of clothes has hurt Uncle
| Sam, therefore, in several ways: |
have consumed more wool than neces-
| sary and thereby forced the United
States to import a correspondingly
| large quantity Of this article; | have
consumed more cotton goods than nee
essary and to that extent have de-
prived Uncle Sam of the means with
which to pay for the minimum of wool
which we may have to import.
| Clothing But One of Many.
| have used the illustration of a new
suit OF clothes; it would be easy,
! though somewhat tedious, to show that
we have been dealing only with one
case in point. The country is short
| at this time of hides and skins and
has to import large quantities from
| neutral countries because we are ex-
travagant in our individual purchases
of shoes. Similarly, though we are.
the largest producers of copper, we are
forced to import copper from Peru be-
cause our civilian population has not
begun sufficiently to curtail its use.
In like manner we might ask ourselves
is it at all excusable that at this time
we still manufacture such articles as
silk stockings, when every thread of
silk must be imported, while we could
use our own cotton?
/ It is impossible and unnecessary to
enumerate the many articles that are
in similar position. Many billions
of dollars can easily be saved when
once we are capable of realizing the
cumulative effect of individual "sav-
ing" take the word saving" in its
larger meaning, as involving not only
money, but also goods and services.
II every Individual could be made to
see with his own eyes that neglect Of
saving of this sort means decreased
war efficiency, a propaganda of the
war, and a larger number of casual
ties; if every one who has a son or
dear relative on the fighting lines
across the water could be made to feel
that millions of small savings directly
affect his boy-there would be no
, doubt that we could secure the most
conscientious and enthusiastic COOP
, Grafton of all the people Thus far
we must say with regret-of los ,000,-
000 people, 100000,000 do not see the
connection between the suit of clothes
and the life of the bog.
: Germany's Enforced Economy.
Germany's military success is large.
ly predicated upon her ability to cen.
; ter the entire national effort upon the
business of war. 1t is safe to say that
she never would have been able to
: bear the burdens of the fight as well
as she has during these four long
] years had it not been for the enforced
savings in material, money and men
brought about through the British
blockade. If it had not been for the
stern necessities created by that block
ade the German people would not have
been willing to submit to famine ra.
|, lions as to food, clothes, shoes and
J other similar articles. Industries ca
q tering to the appetites and extrava
gances of the masses would have kept
: men and material from the government
! instead of making everything avail
: able for the war work of the govern
ment, and financially she would have
exhausted herself by buying things
abroad that she could go without OF
; for which she had to strain her in
/; genuity in finding or creating substi,
G tutes.
Q 1t is difficult to- bring about drastic