Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1919-08-09

which each nation shall make shift
for itself as it can, or peace but
tressed and supported by the will
and concert OF the nations that have
the purpose and power to do and to
enforce what is right. Politically,
economically and socially the world
is on the operating table. and it has
not been possible to administer any
anesthetic. 1t is conscious. 1t even
watches the capital operation upon
which it knows that its hope of
healthful life depends. 1t cannot
think its business out or make plans
or give intelligent and provident di-
rection to its affairs while in such a
case. Where there is no peace Of
mind there can be no energy in en-
deavor. There can be no confidence
in industry, no calculable basis for
credits, no confident buying or
systematic selling, no certain pros
pect of employment, no normal res
toration of business, no hopeful at
tempt at reconstruction or the prop
er reassembling of the dislocated
elements of enterprise until peace
has been established, and, so far as
may be guaranteed.
U. s. Least Affected by War.
Our national life has no doubt
been less radically disturbed and
dismembered than the national life
of other peoples whom the war more
directly affected, with all its terrible
ravaging and destructive force, but
it has been, nevertheless, profoundly
affected and disarranged, and our
industries, our credits, our produc
tive capacity, our economic pro-
cesses are inextricably interviewer
with those of other nations and peo-
ples-most intimately of all with
the nations and peoples upon whom
the chief burden and confusion of
the war fell and who are now most
dependent upon the cooperative &C
ton of the world.
We are just now shipping more
goods out of our ports to foreign
markets than we ever shipped be-
fore-not foodstuffs merely, but
stuffs and materials of every sort;
but this is no index of what our for
eign sales will continue to be or
of the effect the volume of our ex-
ports will have on supplies and
prices. 1t is impossible yet to pre-
dict how far or how long foreign
purchasers will be able to find the
money or the credit to pay for or
sustain such purchases on such
scale; how soon or to what extent
foreign manufacturers can resume
their former production, foreign
farmers get their accustomed crops
from their own fields; foreign mines
resume their former output, foreign
merchants set up again their old
of trade with the ends
of the earth. All these things must
remain uncertain until peace is es-
tablished and the nations of the
world have concerted the methods
by which normal life and industry
are to be restored. Ali that we shall
do, in the meantime, to restrain
prohteering and put the life of our
people upon a tolerable footing will
be makeshift and provisional. There
can be no settled conditions here or
elsewhere until the treaty of peace
is out of the way and the work of
liquidating the war has become the
chief concern of our government and
of the other governments of the
world. Until then business will in
evitably remain i. speculative and
sway now this way and again that,
with heavy losses or heavy gains,
as it may chance, and the consumer
must take care of both the gains and
the losses. There can be. no peace
prices SO long as our whole financial
and economic system is on a war
basis.
Europe Depends on U. S.
Europe will not, cannot recoup its
capital or put its restless, distracted
peoples to work until it knows ex-
actly where it stands in respect of