Arizona republican., 1919-01-11
The Rehabilitation Of the Unfit.

We will suppose that a year ago last April there had and at that time this nation had entered upon such feverish period of production as it did then-not the production of destruction and things to be destroyed but of things useful in period of peace We will suppose that that time we had begun a system of saving with the idea of raising several billions of dollars be loaned or to be invested in destructive engines but national fund which might be employed the reclamation of all the lands that could be reclaimed, in improving water ways and in building roads. What would be the condition of this country? What formerly be- lieved were luxuries life would be open all We would be in such condition Of universal pros perity and comfort as Edward Bellamy in Look ing Backward"
 But much of the energy thrown into those eighteen months represented by billions dollars wasted in the war; never to be returned. Leaving out the fact that made the world safe for democracy the other fact that autocracy has been crushed. all that energy might as well have been spent upon empty tread mill and those billions might as well have been thrown into the
 But We are getting something out of it that in the long run m the course of the ages will bring financial rccompense. We had been wasting a good deal of energy before; than probably wasted in the war. We had allowed injured men, gone blind or crippled, to go to the junk pile where they could not only no longer contribute to the national wealth but became pensioners upon that wealth. There was much more fearful wastage of energy than anybody but statsticans realized In the state of Massa- chusetts alone one workman was killed every six hours. How many permanently injured dc not know but the annual economic loss in that is estimated at $15OO0,OO0.
 The war took from the ranks of our workers by death than 5O,OOO in the short space of a few months ncapacitated further effort according
  thousands that is fitted them the old American junk pile of labor Thus the war forced upon us necessity of conservation and reclamation of labor. It taught that merely because a man is blinded crippled he need not cease to be productive Though he may longer be productive in the fields he ery occupied other fields opened him by tional rehabilitation e-educaton and unemployment, All which only continue his usefulness but afford him comfort-relef from his affiction. that he has been saved from living death that be has not been cast aside
 There were in this country with a foresight of the necessity of this conservation and measures were taken before crippled for their restora- ton to lives Of usefulness and there stimulation of the movement that had previously been put under way the rehabilitation industrial workers tins of accidents factory, mine on railroads We have had in consequence the Smith Bankhead bill the restoration of industrial workers. The rehabili tation of soldiers and sailors is national duty to be discharged by the federal board vocational training the medical service of the army the bureau of War Risk insurance and the department of labor. each hay ing special function perform for re-educa- ton one for restoring the wounded health and strength administer disability compensation and one to secure unemployment
 The number of soldiers and sailors to be cared for. great it may be- is small in comparison with bo cfU srcb air an toil laid upon productive energy time Of peace well as war