The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1919-08-14
Columbia University Presi-
dent Reviews Causes and
Proposed Remedies.
PRIVATE THRIFT
REAL CORRECTIVE


Shortened Hours of Labor Factor
in Increased Living Costs-Whole
Question Needs Attention.
SANTA BARBARA, Cal, Aug. Al
DIR. Nicholas Murray Butler, president
of Columbia university, in an inter
view on the subject of President Will /
son $ speech before congress on the
cost of living, outlined the causes and
proposed remedies for the increasing
prices during the last generation He
tabulated the cause and remedies as
follows.
''Infation of the currency, in a large
part due to public and private extrava-
gance and waste. No one people has
monopoly on imitation, but combining
ourselves to the United States, we have
experienced a steady imitation, Down
to 1881 our per capita circulation had
never gone above $50. In 1913 it was
$50.S1. If this cause alAue had oper-
ated to affect prices, food would have
grown much dearer, but to express it
in another way, money was growing
much cheaper. Any attempt suddenly
to correct initiation would bring new
evils in its train.
/ ''The real corrective is public econ
omy and private frugalitv and thrift.
We must stop borrowing in order to
meet current expenses, private or gov
ernmental and canfine borrowing where
the money is to be used in productive
industry which will more than repay
the cost. No fewer than eighteen states
in the union are expanding annually
more than their income from taxation.
The aggregate annual interest charge on
debts of the governments of the world
is estimated to have grown from two
billion to ten billion in five years.
These acts and the economic conse-
; quences which they entail, explain one
of the main features in the high cost
4 1tr lE4Rg-ss.ts tetsm 20 nsboou stalo
, The decrease of Industrial produc-
, tion due in. part to the war and in part
to shortened hours of labor. The eight
hour law Is to be strongly defended for
most occupations.
''In order, however to prevent gen
eral adoption of an eight hour day from
, permanently increasing prices through
diminished production. new means must
be found of building up production by
the use aft,improved machinery. more
scientific devices. better organization of
industry. and more economic distribu-
tion of its products.
Increased cost of food is due in
part to operation of natural economic
laws and in part to the shutting off
from the markets of western Europe of
the great food supplies formerly OBJ.
tanned from Russia, Roumania and Hun.
gary. Our government policy of price
fixing and rigid control has contributed
to this particular cause Whenever. gov,
ernments or other forms of human or
ganization attempt to control the nper-
alton of natural economic laws the re-
suits are sooner or later disastrous.
1.-THE heavy taxation introduced
in Great Britain and this country. par.
ticularly excess profits taxes We need
en- equitable revision of the income and
excess profits taxes, not with view 10
relieving wealth of its proper public
burden, but with Il view to distributing
these taxes SO as to encourage business
promote employment, increase produc-
living.
Profiteering by individuals or
corporations, particularly by retailers
This profiteering should be sternly pun
ished but all the profteering would not
have operated to affect the cost of liv.
ing very seriously had it not been fol
the other and purely economic causes
that have just been described.
| Nv no e IL,
costs is gone carefully into, it will ]
think. be found that capital is securing
very little, if any more return. than be.
fore the war, while greatly increased
amounts arc paid ont for labor and tax
aticn, unless | am greatly. mistaken
Therefore, n thorough inquiry into the
high cost of living would make il plair
that the problem is Il world wide one
That the first step toward it's solu
tion is government economy and private
thrift. leading to the discharge of out
standing obligations and to bring tn,
national expenditure within tho limit
of annual income. the increase Of econ
omic production by better shop organi
zation. by more laborssaving devices, BY
more effective and economical processes
OF. distribution. by opening IN to an eff
fcctfvr and scientific agriculture with
out delay the rich grain producing, prov
inces of Russia Rumania and Hungar,
and, finally, by checking proftecrin.
as an offense against the public wei
fare :" -
DR. Butler deplores the plan brough
forward by the great organization o
railway workers, which, if adopted. h
! 1 says would exaggerate all the evils w
! j are suffering from and tend to increas
the cost of living as well as effect
/ complete revolution in our Americas
] form of government.
"The whole question demands the i'm
mediate attention, said DIR. Butler. 80
constructive statesmen everywhere
have no fear but that in this case. a
was in the case of the grenback Graz
and free silver fallacy, patriotism an,
true American instinct will prevail