The Chattanooga news. [volume] (Chattanooga, Tenn.) 1891-1939, 1919-07-24

/ tiHfNtHt ptOiiiotu tut UNIONS lndl
would sympathetically consider a
eight-hour day. With the armistic
the unions Immediately came forwar
and demanded an eight-hour day a
once. Lloyd George. Sir Albert Auck
! land, Stanley Geddes and Sir Herber
ton that are now difficult to carry on,
J During the war hours ranged from tel
TO twelve day. and sometimes thcr
were cases OF men working sixteel
hours day. An eight-hour day woul,
add 25.O00.OO0 pounds annually to tn
operating expenses. The present In
crease OF wages over the prewar tota
is 55.00O,O00 pounds. so that II an eight
hour day is granted on top OF the pres
ent wages. the operating costs for la
Dor alone will be 80 100000 pounds NOR,
than prior to the war.
English Public Divided.
Standardization. cooperation ant
the. operation OF all the roads as on,
system will save about $4,000. 900 pound
per annum. leaving $4,000. 900 pounds
to be met by increased rates. Railwa,
economists agree that this cannot bt
done. 1t means doubling the expense
Winston Churchill before election prom
Used naturalization. His unauthorized
promise was denied until after the cleo.
| ton. Now England Is to have a new
ministry OF ways and transportation
| but as yet no denite government policy
has been announced.
1.-THE English public is divided upor
| the subject of naturalization. The sub.
| ject. however. Is not SO complicated az
| IL Is In America. The difference be-
| tween the railroad situation in the
| United States and In England lies In
the fact that there Is no vindictiveness
| in England between the government
| been no such acts in England as the
| taking away of private cars, or the
| reducing of salaries of managers. The
| English public always stands for fair
play. rs 1t cricket?' is a question ever
| in the minds OF Englishmen. In Amer
lea the policy of legislators and OF the
interstate commerce commission has
often been vindictive. England will
probably be slow in making its nnal de-
cision in regard to the railroads. 1t is
the habit there to consider public
questions carefully; but in the end 1t
ers OF railroad securities will be treated
fairly.
Brains and Capital Needed.
Personally, / think the government
ought to get out of the railroad BUSH
ness. Political influences will always
hamper its policy of management.
doubt II railroads can ever be publicly
run successfully in a democracy, al
though perhaps they can in an autoc-
racy.
Il have been spending some time in
Belgium. You can discount somewhat
the Belgian hard luck stories. The
Belgian Is inclined to exploit his mis-
cry. 1t is true that certain towns were
wiped out, but all were not. Belgian
agriculture is better than II was before
the war. The Belgian children have
been well fed. Keep an eye on Bel
GUM. Her industries may revive first
in Europe and she has great ability in
the industrial field.
Here in France II dustry is handi-
capped in many ways. The Frenchman
is jealous and suspicious of his neigh
bors. He is an individualist and does
not like to cooperate. The genius OF
the French is for small business. They
do not want Americans or English to
come in to do business In France. That
policy is undoubtedly a mistake. They
ought to welcome the energy and
brains of outsiders who would help
them to get going. There has been
enough altruism and amateur charity
in regard to France.
.."What France ought to dot is let
capital and brains flow in and give
vitality to her whole industrial life.
She should do away with her restric-
lions. But, in fact, she has become
more Chauvin.stic than ever. DO not
be deceived, however, by the possibility
Of recovery in France. France has
been very sick, but there is nothing
wrong with her constitution. Foreign
ers can do business in France If. they
will only learn how to go about it.
Americans, particularly, do not know
how to deal with Frenchmen. Amer
leans are too direct and too blunt.
mo Frenchman wants to talk bust
ness in the first interview, and much
of the business of France is done by
indfranftnn nyNn fol- fi,raA n
find out where the lines lie and in di-
rect contact never take a Frenchman
to seriously. The field of industry in
France would be difficult for an out
slider, but in the field of finance there
is unlimited opportunity.
Brains and Capital Needed
You ask what America should be
doing in Europe. Europe is fairly cry
ing for brains and capital. There are
possibilities everywhere and there are
particularly possibilities in some of the
by-wnys OF Europe that capital does
not think OF. Portugal is one. Clear
sighted engineers with a business sense
would find many opportunities in Por-
tugal and In Spain. There are great
resources there and an excellent eli
mate.
zone Of the old regions of the world
Mesopotamia, will be made to flourish
like a green bay tree II little capital
and some brains would get hold of the
situation and revive the irrigation sys-
tenn OF ages ago. In the Balkans and
in the east there are coal and oil to
be developed. In Rumania there are
mineral and agricultural possibilities
The Germans made no mistake in Sc
lecting the near East as a place for
investment. They organized banks
there. and the banker did not take
chances. He knew what he was about
There is banking vacuum from the
Adriatic east
Urges Investigation.
IF America will study these oppor-
tunities and will link imagination with
an actual knowledge of existing condi-
tions. she can, with her ways of deal
Ing with things, make new world out
OF these backward countries. The
greatest export America could send to
those countries would be men with a
knowledge of construction, of finance
and Of management. These countries
have had bad government so long that
there is no impetus left in the native
people and they have made no progress
IN spite of having natural resources
that would have supported great devel-
opment.
1.-THE course for America to follow is.
first. to investigate. to prospect, then
to construct. retaining an interest in
the Junior securities and keeping the
operation In their own hands. There Is
an enormous field for profit to Ameri-
cans and for service to these people"
There seems to be much sound sug-
Gestion in this interview. as well as in
forming discussion OF the European
railroad situation,
Published and Copvriyhted nv tho
Macmillan Co.
AWYERS Tn EIIE pPIEEc