The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1919-08-11
WORK AND THEN MORE WORK.
Only Way Out of Morass of High Prices
Strikes Hit Strikers Hardest.

! In one of his essays, Carlyle writes
that "our grand business undoubtedly is,
not to see what lies dimly at distance,
] but to do what lies clearly at hand
! Perhaps no dictum can be more profit.
ably applied to the present industrial
unrest Partly as a reaction from the
strain of the war, but more from a con-
seriousness of their economic power with
| in nation, vast masses of workingmen
seem more intent on obtaining a sort Of
social Utopia than on performing the
work that comes to their hand, and
which must be done. They have a pa
! per schedule of rights" and to fulfill
the program therein set forth, discount
other practical considerations of deep
, Importance to them and their aims
Admitting that in the present set of
circumstances there are many grievances
legitimately protested against by work
ingmen, it does not follow that constant
interruptions of industry will right
them. The minister of labor said, few
days ago, that $l00,000,000 had been lost
in Canada through strikes in the last
few months. That amount, distributed
in pay envelopes, would mean much to
workingmen. Strikes may, in some in
stances, be justified, for industry has not
got to the stage where all employers will
voluntarily do the fair thing But as a
general weapon, strikes and a decrease
in production really hit hardest the class
by whom they are used. The vicious
circle" of advancing wages and costs
must end wherein crash of bust
ness if nowhere else. II the rights of
capital are respected land IL has rights
it will have the option of going on strike
itself in case working conditions are not
suitable In Europe the upheaval of la
Dor, partly political, is threatening the
whole reconstruction program. Employ
ers who are honestly doing their best to
assist in production, even at no profit,
are bound in inaction through no fault
of their own.
The workingmen who have seen enor-
nous profits obtained during the war
reason that in an economic system per
hitting such rake. off they should be
able to get much easier working condi-
tions for themselves. But underlying
the opportunity for profiteering- which
cannot be defended--was the need of
great stimulus to industry to get things
done. The safety of the nation was at
stake, and a question of profits was
small thing compared with getting speed
in war organization. Now that oppor-
tunity is gone. Peace time conditions
allow cold measuring of values, the
organizing of competition. The resettle-
ment has many disturbing features, but
the worst one is the inability Of so many
people to grasp the fundamental changes
occurring in productive values.
The only way out of the morass OF
high prices is work. That cannot be too
strongly preached Labor may get
larger share of the value of what it pro-
duces, but in the end the cost either de
scends upon the consumers, who are work.
ers, or there is stagnation because high
productive costs lessen consumption. The
truth that work is the way out of diff.
Guilty applies to peoples, as well as to
individuals. Schemers, of course, may
toll and spin only to grab the value OF
the work of the honest man. but it
should be possible for workingmen in
general to insist on economic conditions
ensuring them fair treatment, and then
to proceed to help themselves by doing
more work.-Toronto Mail and Empire.