The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1920-12-18

Is dead" In the silence came the
announcement that a firm had
failed. Considering what the
stock market has recently done
to its friends, the wonder is that
failures are so few. The Federal
Reserve, which many financiers
fought bitterly, is now saving their
lives. and all the new money print
ed during the war dance helps to
hold things up.
The question everybody asks Is,
What is going to happen next"
What people want is something
encouraging In a landslide. Here's
a paragraph from a letter written
by M. Cresap, of Chicago:
1T looks to us from our point
Of vantage here that the country
is getting through the sharp fall
in commodity prices very success.
fully. We look for a very large
distribution In the early part Of
1921"
Mr.. Cresap is the youthful dy-
namo in a huge concern that en-
ploys thousands of operators and
does many millions Of business a
year. Merchants who know him
will be encouraged by his view.
Have you any sugar stocks?
Get yourself a little rabbits foot
for each share.
They say the wonder workers
of the East, and some cure you
while you wait" gentlemen in the
West, eventually come to believe
in their own miracles.
Sugar profiteers, having pushed
sugar up to 25 cents a pound. per-
suaded themselves that it would
stay there forever. and plunged
accordingly.
Some of them know Cor soon
will know the feeling OF the tipsy
gentleman that dived into the
swimming pool when the water
was all out.
To buy "2ny old sugar outfit in
the Caribbean at "any old price
is diving into the empty tank.
Prof. o. H. S., principal OF
big public school, suggests car
toon and editorial based on Aesop's
fable about the man and the
forest.
The man didn't want much from
the forest-just little piece OF
hardwood to make a handle for his
ak. That seemed reasonable-and
the forest let him have it.
What the man did to that
forest with the ak handle, plus
the ak head, was plentiful.
It's a lucky thing for this coun..
try that the American forests OF
men and millions did not give 10
John Bull and his European frlends
the League of Nations AK handle
that they wanted.
Senator Thomas of Colorado put
it mildly when he said that the
Steel Trust conspiracy to rum
labor unions was vicious.
The extraordinary thing is not
the underhand scheming OF the
trust, but rather the stupidity OF
that trust.
What owners of big industries
need. above all, is respect for
law. They have GOT their bill
lions. They have floated their
watered stocks. They have taken
advantage of war conditions to put
nrices up. They are chiefly IN
terested in BEING LET ALONE:
They will not be let alone if
they indulge in bold efforts to ruin
workmen's organizations, III COM
plete disregard of law and decency.
The puzzling feature of the
crime wave-what is REAL
wave-is the fact, reported stimuli
taneously by the police of Boston
and of San Francisco, that CRIME
has increased with prohibition.
Prohibition has had something
10 do with crimes requiring cool
ness and boldness. In old days
the criminal, always a weak crea-
ture mentally, showed his weak
ness in drunkenness. Then he lack
cd the GOODNESS and cold resolution
necessary in sensational crime.
Today there are thousands OF
distorted minds, no longer able to
find relief in the oblivion of alco-
hol. They are among the new
criminals.
However, the part played IN
crimes increase by prohibition is
much exaggerated. Money has
been very easy" wages high,
ANYBODY could make twice as much
AS he ever made. All the unbal-
anced Immediately concluded that
var wages would last forever, and
developed ways of spending twice
what they ever spent. From cot
ton to silk was the change in
shirts, and from working to pre-
tending to work was the mental
change.