The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-03-03
For the Good of
 the Community

CT JUST what do you want? High costs
 J and low wages, or low costs and
 high wages?" asks The Age-Herald in characterictically pithy and pointed advertisement And further,
 ''You can't reduce the cost of living by bowling about it. But you can reduce 1t by doing more and better work. As soon as you speed up production, prices will have to drop. They will have to drop because the market will have all the goods 1t wants.
 After you have shown what you can do it will be time to talk. Now is the time to work" axx..4,x,...
 Sound preaching is this. Fi4
 During the war the government urged every body to speed up, to work harder and produce more. The call of the government was needed by the vast majority of the people. Production in creased, and so did the worlds demand for what was produced.
 The war ended and the inevitable relaxation set in. Those who had exerted themselves to meet the demands of the : upon them loosened They let down. oOAAiS VI caASiAA g. OW Nct1 O4OOO III CllCu WOlhS Inefficiency crept in.
 Not only did production decrease, but in many instances that which was pro- duced fell below standard in quality.
 In contrast to this relaxation of ef- fort, this decrease in production, demand for the things produced kept up There was no decrease in this. War materials were no longer required, but the ordinary wants of man the world over, denied in larger part through the strenuous days of 19l4-I9lS, four long years of strife and turmoil and destruction, grew from day to day.
 There were millions of women and children and old men in Europe starving for the necessities of life; materials for the reconstruction of large devastated areas in France and Belgium and Serbia ald other countries were needed. Europe could not supply these America was called upon and responded as best she could.
 Meantime, there was need in this country of many of the things required in Europe.
 The world was bewildered. Is it worth the while? Is it worth the effort? was in the minds of the multitudes.
 Prices don't decline in this country Why should we work to help others while striving to meet our own ordinary require ments?
 A fertile field for the agitator opened He took advantage of it. He found willing ears everywhere. Indus tries suffered; farms were without labor to make and harvest crops; mercantile es- tablishments had to put up with inefficient help. Transportation was hampered be- cause of discontent and lack of eouin- ment, and maybe other causes partly due to the general let-down in man power and efficiency.
 There is no place for the stacker in business, oranyWhere else. It is time each of us understands his responsibility. con- tinues the advertisement, and it con- cludes,
 Get oil the job with cheer Produce and watch the prices fall. Make every minute count Make your dollar worth what it used to be worth. It's up to you.'
 It's up to you" Your job is just as import mt as that of any other man. Were it not an inn portant job it would be abolished No man is re- tained in employment; no man continues to work. whether 1t be manual or mental unless something IS to be gained by it. Useless iOhS have honn