The Elbert County tribune., 1919-04-18
Conditions of Few Years Ago
Have Been Entirely Re-
versed by War.
DUTY NOW To PAY OUR WAY
Looking TO World Leadership In Ma
tional Ethics and international
Commerce Brings Us Face to
Face With Problem.
BY WILLIAM c REDFlELD,
Secretary of Commerce.

was DEBTOR nation. we mad nnanced
many Of our largest enterprises with
the aid Of European funds. The visible
balance of trade was in our favor but
was nearly or quite offset by such un-
seen items as payments for interest.
for services Transportation for the
expenditures OF Americans travelling
abroad. etc. We were as whole an
expending rather than an investing
country. The work OF developing the
full range of our resources was incom-
plete. We We're far from being indie
pendent In the economic sense. but
looked TO the world outside our limits
for many essentials, viz: for credits,
for materials and for many manufac-
tured products which we did not our
selves produce.
There were then three great COM
petitors In the international market
Great Britain, Germany and the United
States-which ranked IN the order
stated. The first two were Intrenched
all around the globe with banking fa-
cillties and transportation systems
everywhere at their command Great
Britain possessed the largest merchant
fleet and the greatest aggregate of
liquid capital in the world. Germany
based her Industries on science and
her world commerce on research and
backed both by government aid. 1t
speaks volumes for the competing
power Of American Industry that
against competition of this nature she
was close competitor in common
field.
Conditions Reversed by War.
These conditions are today reversed;
the war has changed them all. Ger
many has for years been excluded
from the world markets and has lost
her good will in them. Her fleets
have vanished. At home she is disor-
ganlzed by defeat and civil strife.
Abroad her methods have been dis
credited because the trail Of evil is
over them all. The earlier years of
the world war altered the currents of
thought and action so that Great Brit
ain and her allies looked to us for
credits and other essentials. First
they recalled the Investments made
here and we repaid them a sum esti-
mated at from S4 900, 600 900 to $1,000
100000 Then while looking to us for
further loans they called upon our nat
ural resources and our industries for
vast volumes of raw and manufactured
materials. Thus the balance of trade
In our favor grew immensely and the
ordinary offsets against 1t were re-
moved. While others were fighting we
accumulated wealth We paid what
we owed abroad and became In turn a
creditor nation. When we saw that
the great contest was one in which we
were vitality concerned and entered
the war this process was accelerated.
We loaned vast sums TO the nations
with which we were associated so that
today not only has our foreign debt to
Europe disappeared. but debt from
Europe TO us of eight and a half bill
lions has taken Its place. We have
accumulated the greatest stock Of gold
in the history of the world. Now that
the strife seems over the world looks
to us for essential materials and
equipment with which to rebuild that
which war has destroyed and to re-
sumo the normal work of life. We
must not only feed and supply the
world, hut must furnish in large part
the credits from which we shall be
paid. Industries which we did not
have are created and operated. We
are far more economically independent
than ever before and have come to
realize the danger of being dependent
on foreign sources of supply for any
essential factors of commerce.
Vast Change is Wrought.
We may not, therefore, think in the
present and of the future as we
thought in and OF the past. IDEAS
which seemed remote have been CON
densed into the facts. Relations that
seemed dreams are now realities. Iso-
lation has been changed into world
leadership. We can no longer confine
thought and action TO the three-mIle
limit but have entered into the wide
realm Of world activity. This calls on
us for action and for finance on scale
enlarged to fit the time, the facts and
the duty. We cannot escape the re-
sponsibillty that comes with power. 1t
IS not talent we can bury In nap
kin; our power must be used. No one
urges that we use It for ill--we can
only use 1t for good.
First and foremost In the future
steps lies the duty TO pay our way. We
have fought the fight. we have kept
the faith. 1t remains to pay the bills.
We who have given credit to others
must now sustain our own. We who
look normally 10 world leadership In
national ethics and international com
merce must base both upon paying
promptly what we owe. The call. there
fore, to finance the government is as
inspiring. as yitally necessary. as basic
In its demand on Judgment and con
l..lIs fh1.sn