The sun., 1919-08-24
Urges Public to Take Hand in Fighting High Price
Former Hoover Aid Blames Apathy and Tolerance 81
People for Inefhciency in Government and
the Resulting Economic Evils

ure Of its possible success. which
takes US once more to the circle
thought.
III circle 10 TO be contracted or
expanded II must DO treated a. a
whole and simultaneously, and the
same is true Of prices. We cannot
remove a segment denominated food
or one denominated COAL or one de.
nominated iron,' or labor or capt.
tai and treat that individual segment
as an irolated and Individual unit
without In tho FIRST place failing to
accomplish the desired result, and in
the second place so disturbing the
continuity and stability of the entire
circle as to interfere seriously with
normal business activities. The circle
has been built Up as the logical result
Of years Of effort and experience and
has been stabilized into series sof
prices bearing some logical relation
one to another.
Conditions Not Normal.
"Inharmonious relationships duo to
temporary local conditions or to ex-
cess, or scant supply. are bound to
right themselves sooner or later by
the operation OF well known laws.
Normally these forces should be per-
mitted to readjust conditions without
any extraneous interference. Condi-
tions are not normal ut present, how
ever, and in order to restore them to
normal II may be necessary to apply
abnormal measures as temporary ex-
pedients."
"The conditions have been compli-
Gated since the end Of the warT'
yes; the controls that were exer-
cised as war measures have been
abandoned; after two years OF arti-
fetal influence, either OF stimulus or
restraint, industry has been left to its
own readjustment. am not discuss
ing the wisdom OF the decisions re-
sponsible for this, but In view or the
| urgent requests that some Govern
ment control % exercised during the
reconstruction period am offering the
licensing plan as a proper method Of
procedure II Government restraint
sgain is to be exercised. And I believe
in the form suggested; think It not
only desirable bnt highly necessary
and that 1t would result in much ma
uonal benefit
II do not claim for this plan that It
will be an absolute panacea: It Is
offered rather with the conviction that
IL Is far better than any plan followed
| during the war period and infinitely
| fetter than the present condition with
its constant tendency toward increas-
ing prices.
| Let us begin with the following
assumptions Of fundamental princi-
pies:
"A board OF investigation should be
'reated composed OF Representatives
Of the industries under discussion and
representatives appointed by the Presi-
dent Its functions should be to in
Ncstigate conditions and determine and
announce prices. AS its foundation II
should adopt these principles:
"A-Industrial prices may be typi-
hed by a circle that cannot be treated
IN independent segments, but that
| must be treated as a whole, as a ma
tional thing. IL satisfactory results
are to be secured
"B-There are certain staples, of
which tho number must be determined
after careful investigation, which
must be controlled as a unit and which
If so controlled will sympathetically
| affect the balance.
'C-After the original list OF staple
products is completed, additions
thereto may be made at any time
and any commodity so listed at once
would become subject to the general
| control.
To District Country.
Now let us assume that the board
has been organized and has met and
that the selected list of commodities
has been completed and prices de-
termtned. The next step would be to
district the country into zones, the
number to depend upon a determina-
ton Of the needs. but in general, as
illustrating the idea. let US suggest
as central and conrolling points: