New-York tribune., 1919-07-22
Our Way and Theirs
A British View of the American "D1ue :"
From The Ne1U Statesman

fortaHe classes and every 1apper had been
pressed into service And at the same time
the interest is constantly stimulated by all
sorts of stunts" along the roacway and in
the air.
The Real Machine
And, needless to say, behind all this public
display, this merciless solicitation, the real
machine of national money raising is at
work. During the campaign for the Fourth
Liberty Loan last autumn it was carried to
a completeness and precision hitherto un-
dreamed Of Nothing is left to chance The
Treasury Department in Washington appor-
tions to each state its quota of the loan
Upon this basis an exact survey of the coun-
try is made. Every county, city and town
knows how much it is to provide. The Loan
Committee has performed the preparatory
work thoroughly that on the day when
the intensive effort begins it should be in
a position to know the prospects for an early
completion of the amount All employers
are expected to play into the scheme. The
ambition of every business firm and of every
corporation is to be 100 per cent patriotic
that ls to have every employe an investor
The plan that by last year had become
almost universal was, as YOUR American
friend would explain, a logical extension
Of the community survey. Not only would
every house, store and Office be canvassed
and every association be worked to the
limit, but the loan committee would have
before it list containing the names of
all citizens of standing known or sup
posed to have means An estimate was
do 80 %1,Ai,, 1lol1
upon that estimate the committee (com-
posed of private citizens, acting in pure
ly voluntary capacity) would fix an as
sessment. AS a general rule the sound
ness, and particularly the patriotism, of
a man considered to be self-reg gistercd
by the readiness with which he accepted
this speculative and unauthorized levy
upon his capital.
Does 1t York?
Inquiry into the actual working of the
system provided the English visitor with
matter for continual interest," especially
when he sought to discover what steps
were taken to bring the unconvinced or
recalatrant citizen to reason. Does your
assessment work." he might ask, "in the
majority of cases." "Certainly' "But
you have some objectors?" "Why, yes,
few "How do you deal with them?" "Of
course if after repeated appeals they re-
fuse to come across, we bring pressure to
bear upon them, and if they continue to
resist, oh, WE'LL they are yellow and"--
The implication would be that the re-
sources of civilization had not been ex-
hausted, and the inquirer was left med-
tating the manifold differences be-
tween the English and American applica-
tions of the doctrine and practice Of
liberty.
From this comparison of methods and
atmosphere, here only touched upon in the
roughest fashion, a few interesting and by
no means unimportant differences might be
drawn. Two only need be specifically men
toned. First, it is still true that the pub
lie habits of English and Americans are
strkingly, in some cases astonishingly
different. The power of resistance to So
cial pressure, in the individual and in
the group. is apparently far greater in
England than in the United States 1t
seems impossible to believe that our peo-
pie could produce or would endure any
such elaborate inquisiton and compulsion
as that marvellously designed and COM
pleted for the sake of the American war
loans. Secondly that even if similar
scheme of mental suggestion and mechanical
tyranny were attempted in Britain, it
would not be productive. SO far our people
have been induced to lend with what the
Americans would call minimum Of ad-
vertsing