Norwich bulletin., 1919-10-04
Cause of And Remedy
 For High Cost Living
Statement Issued By Council
 of National Defense Rem
 edy: Work, Save, Cooper
 ate, Produce.

"iShHSIou, Ocl 3.-Ine 1OIlOWlnS statement issued after long and careful consideration by all of the members of the council of national de- fence, is made public as the first step Tn an educational campaign which the council IS undertaking in connection with the high cost of living: To the Public: The United States Council of National Defense con- posed of the secretaries of war. navy, interior, agriculture. commerce, ani labor. has made a careful investiga- tion of the high cost -of-living prob lem and finds:
 That the nations productive powers have not been fully utilized since the armistice.
 That too few goods. notably the nec- and that even some of these goods have been withheld from the market, and therefore from the people
 That the high cost of living is due in part to unavoida ble war-waste and increase of money and credit.
 That there has been and is consid- erable profiteering, intentional and ltn:;lttntional.
 Tile council believes thai the re1lc- dies f,r the sit, ation are:
 To produce more goods. and to pro- duce them in proportion to the needs Of the people.
 To stamp out profirecrtrg and stop unnecessas " hoarding.
 To enforce vigorously present laws and promptly to enact such further laws as are necessary tc prevent and punish profiteering a1l eedlcss boarding.
 To bring abol1 bauer cooperation and method in distributing and mar keting goods.
 To keep both producer ami consumer fully informed IS to what goods gre needed and as to what supIkies are available, that production may an- ticipate the country's demands.
 Goods and not money are the means of life. Better standards of living are impossible without producing more goods. Men cannot consume what has not been produced,
 ~the wars and our allies had des- perate need of the essentials of life We have had to share our resources with them. but this drain will grad ualIy lessen. In so far our short age of goods is due to this cause we can well afford to be patient.
 It is just as essential that we have patience with the economic situation here at home. The process of produc- tion requires time. If production is rapidly increased, vastly improved conditions will prevail in America when the results of present and fu- ture labor begin to appear.
 Team work is imperative. It is just as essential between retailer. whole saler. and pEoducer.s as it is between employer and employee. One group
 
 group. The nanufa cturer. the farmer, the distributor must each immediately assume his part of the burden and enter upon his task. The nation can not afford curtailment of goods vital to the people.
 On American business rests a grave responsibility for efficient cooperation in bringing about full and proportion a te production. On American Ia bor rests an equally grave responsibility to attain maximum unit production and maintain uninterrupted distribu- tion of goods if labor itself is not to suffer from further rises in the cost of living.
 The entire nation-rroducer. distri- butor and consumer aiilze-should re- turn to the unity that won the war. Group interest and undue personal gain must give way to the good of the whole nation if the situation is to be square1y met.
 Our common duty now. fully as much as i1A the war. is to work and to save. In the words of the president in his address to the country on August 25 1919, only By increasing produc- tion. and by rigid economy and saving on the part of the people, can we hope for large decreases in the burdensome cost of living which now weighs us down.
 Work, save cooperate. produce.