The Washington times., 1920-01-02
BOERSIANER'S
COM M ENT ON
BUSINESS
~ BoEasIARER.

Phenomenal" "Stupe ndous," Pre-
disious' are the words which a stAtis-
tician utters in computing the msth- .
ematical results OF 1919: they are Alse
the aejeetives which an ordinary in
iividaai. dizzy with indigestion OF
statistics. emits.
The ordinations are justinod.
Farm products are conseryatively ap-
praised at si4092, ,7f0. 900. or 81 ,500.-
100000 better than the yield OF l0la
Factory output In quantity and prime
value rivals that OF the farm. with .
proportionate Increase over 1918.
Exports were S7.942. 900 900: Imports.
s4.O2S.O00,o00. National bank re-
sources rose TO S2l 81 5 900 .000-an un-
preeedented sum-and deposits en-
haneed from S1402i .609 900 TO si5.-
e24. .s6o,0Oo. The gold store remained
practically undiminished, $4,000 ,000.-
900 leaving the paper token of the,
United Ststes bev""d comparison the
est fortified currency.
English Pound .seseeaaeS.
Correspondingiy, American money
| Is credibility lowered above that Of
| other sovereign states. for the Eng
lish pound. meanwhile. descended to
3,6o. The reviewer, might proceed
Indefinitely recounting economic su-
perlatives In favor of the United
| States. But bare figures arc like the
mere facts OF history-dry bones 70
the studious mind unless interpreted
| socially, politically, psychologicaliy.
Dates and numerals are still very
| well for the grammar school boy;
| their days and their victors are yet
| necessary to the beginner in history.
But the cannon. iife and drum part
| OF history is no longer taught In
progressive educational institutions.
Scholars are not required to ill their
| heads with dates; instead. they study
| the past interpretatively. that they
| may glimpse the future intelligently,
approximately.
So II must be with the economic
history of the year. A vital mean--
ing should be sought beneath tho
| unvital statistics.
Trying To Find Herself.
AS with other nations. America
| was trying to find herself in the post
war confusion. which was far MT re
| confounding than the upshot of tho
| wars tumult. Business fiourished as
never before and OF attainable money
the profusion was unparalleled.
But side by side with the feverish
prosperity was a social unrest.
| spreading discomfort among wage
| earners. more serious than in any
| OF the hard-time crises in the past
| For this. extreme natavists blame
| the labor plank in the league oc
| nations platform: speaking directly.
! blamed Clemenceau. The radicai;
! Lloyd George, the radical: Wilson,
| the radical: particularly the first and
| last named: for did not the French
| premier tell his countrymen, "the
| bourgeoisc as a ruler of society has
\ Ia tzt. - ..sxy
| govern" and did not Wilson en-
| phasize at Versailles the necessary
dominance of the worker?
Psychological Take Chaser.
| Psychologists may take issue WITH
| this development of exclusive re-
| sponsibility; may insist the labor
troubles were primarily the man!tcs-
/ tations of the liberation of wars re-
straint and, secondly, abnormal liy-
| ing costs.
Whatever the cause or causes. IL
| became evident that the big three at
| Versailles rued bitterly the fiat-footet
| stand they had taken. Washington
| in the closing weeks OF the year took
| the conventional course in suppress-
| ing strikers; the coal strike rVi-
| IDENTIFY had got on the nerves OF the
| Cabinet itself. Yet more was accom- -
| piished in. getting men back to work
| by the corporations themselves thsa
by the Administration; a corsp!Cu-
| Gus example Was the quite prompt
| return OF the steel and iron workers.
We should proceed carefully in .hn
| next six months. the preparatory
period, i'm the new deal that viii
shape the long future course, when
no part of Europe--not even Italy.
win be an idling place of dilettante-
| ism or of itinerant. motiveleSs
wealth; On the contrary. every part
threatens to be competitive