Connecticut western news., 1920-08-19

agenent has come to thousands who find that industry, character and 'u- telligence are Il golden security 10 Hhe i peoples banker, the government of the United States. Multiply our home i owners, and you will make the way of the seditious agitator more difficult.
 Railroads and Waterways.
 "Any discussion of the question of food supply leads very quickly to the closely related matter of transporta- | ton. There is no one thing which l brings us so internationally to critical ] conditions than the insuficiency of our ] transportation facilities. Both the railroads and the public are to blame. There has been no material addition 1 to the total mileage In the last ten years, and the increase In terminals i has been much less than required. At the beginning of the war the rolling stock was sadly reduced and made 1 quate. The public had not given in pay for service sufficient revenues on which credit could be allowed by the banks. Moral assistance was withheld 1 because of railroad policies that did not bring approval. Many of these corporations had made themselves l part of political activities, local, state and national. Then there were more or less sporadic instances. of stock wa tering operations and the exploitation of utility properties for personal gain.
 Abuses were not general, but they were sufficient to bring the entire rail- road systems of the country in dis repute. The good suffered with the evil. When the transportation lines i were taken over by the government, they were barely able to limp through the task of the day. Unity in opera 1 ton, the elimination of the long haul, and the merging of every mile of track and terminal and every car and en- zine into a co-ordinated plan of op- eration, enabled the government to transport troops and supplies, at the same time affording, under great stress, a satisfactory outlet for our industries. It should be remembered in this connection that except for the motor truck which supplemented transportation by rail, and except for the great pipe lines which conveyed oil for commercial purposes, we should not, in all probability have been able to throw our deciding strength into the balance and win the war. Any attempt to discredt the federal operation of railroads during ! the years of grave emergency Is un- fair. In the case of those who know the facts 1t is insincere. Too much cannot be said in praise of those who directed this work, nor of the men who physically operated the lines un- der the discouraging conditions of poor equipment But all of this is water over the wheel. The problem of the railroads Is still with us. The government and the public should render every cooperation in the ut- most good faith. to give thorough test to. private ownership. The railroads have had their lesson. Government regulation Is accepted now as not only safeguard to the public, but as a conserving process to the utility. Financial credit Is necessary to phy- sical rehabilitation and 1t should be sufficient for the periods of maximum demand. We should not lose sight. however, of the vast possibilities of supplementary service by water. The Great Lakes and St. Lawrence navi- gation project particularly, should claim the interest of the government. | Federal Reserve System.
 Fl Tt is almost unnecessary to speak 4 of the Federal Reserve system In con- noctiap xuTth tho xuippIpu oP tha ,xor as, next to the consecration of our manhood and wbmanhood itself, the ! greatest factor was the marshalling into one unit through the Federal Re- serve banks of the stupendous wealth of America. To those of vision who look out beyond our shores into that commercial domain where We are so justly entitled to enter in a time of peace, latent power of the Federal Re serve system can be seen promoting in every quarter of the globe an ever widening flow of American commerce. We will soon have a merchant marine fleet of II ,O0O, 900 tons aggregate, every ship flying the American flag and carrying in American bottoms the pro- ducts of mill and mine and factory and farm. This would seem to be a guar antee of continued prosperity. Our facilities for exchange and credit, how ever, in foreign parts; should be en- larged and under the federal reserve system, banks should be established in important trading centers.
 Reduction of Armament
 "I am convinced after considerable ,stndy of the subject that the expense of the government can, without loss of efficiency, be reduced to a maximum of four billion dollars, including sink ing fund and interest on the national debt When we enter the League of Nations, we should at the same time diminish our cost for armament. To continue expenditures In either the war or the navy departments on a vast