Evening journal., 1920-11-01
Chapter VII
BY MARSHALL OIDS
Copyright 1920. New York Tribune Ino.


and big profits TO produce more. bu
rather TO take advantage NJ 'higf
wages ana big profits TO work les.
and produce less.
Free traders and single takers. be.
leNefS IN lalssez faire or in socialism
or In any OF the hundred-and-one otbe,
schools OF political philosophy. maS
disagree about every other ecouOmlS
Jaw, but all OF them from Adam Smitl
10 the near-econOmist Of the soap bO1
ana the BOlsheviki, agree that Waalth
Whetner in gold or in potatoes. or IN
anything else, comes primarily from
the application OF labor 20 resources
ana that the price Of all wealth
whether in gold or in potatoes or In
allylhlng else, is In proportion to the
amount OF it produced.
Today, therefore. as in thc neriod
beginning in iS6J-through war and
reconstruction as al any other time
IN spite or any number OF new and
cOmpllcating circumstances this fact
Is true and Basic That we will have
more things, and things therefor. win
be cheaper. in direct proportion as
more labor is applied TO our re-
sources, or we will have less things.
and things will be high, in nroporLion
as we apply less labor to our re-
As a matter OF fact, this basic eco-
nomic principle has perhsps never
been more clearly proved Out in az.
iual practice than under tue excep-
l0nal conditions during fhe Civil War
war. Jul
Al the beginning OF the Civil War
plenty OF goods were being mado Ia
80 round and prices were moderate
SoS,as >, compared with 100 In 1914 and
lO5 IN 1910. But during the war areal
nnuiiilDefs OF men went into the army.
Oliiei great numbers had 10 make
poMugr ana shells and special war
supp es. All this labor stopped beinr
applied TO the production az normal %
commodities; less normal commodities
were were produced. and the prices went
on course, there was pronteerlns
ana speculation during the Civil War
Undoubtedly there WAS relatively
more profteering and speculation
curing The Civil War than there was
uufihs our war. because there were
no laws then against either. But prof-
iteefing and speculation as reasons
1T nIsn prices OF normal cOmmodi-
ties are always only the little children
Of tle real basic cause-lessened pro-
ductl0n OF ordinary commodities he
ing them. oNu0-
For. 10 is perfectly plain that anv
W0uld-be pro1teer would have
mighty slim chance to get lllegiti-
mately high prices when there is
plenty OF the article he sells beinn
produced and the buyer can get Ii
anywhere else as well as from him.
rtOnteerlng thrives only on shortage.
me prOhteer has always been merely
slhe llea on the back OF lessened pro-
Exactly the same ling is true Of
speculation. The speculator knows |
.iie Daslc economic law that when |
llenty OF goods are being produced |
me price Is bound to come dawn |
ie would not think of ATTEMPTING 10 1
lold or corner" goods for hiSher |
prices except where there is de-
'reasing production To helm him |
llong. When there Is an Increasing |
PRODUCTION, the wise specu,alo, al. |
Says goes short and so he,ps prices |
At the end OF the Civil War we had
! lot OF new factories and rev r5il- lf
'oads. Men had learned 10 work |
more eflc,ontly because they had ia |
turing the nations need. When the |
heh came back from the army and
rom making war supplies aud ap. I
'leq ther labor once nora ID th- |
producing of normal commodities the
0untry began at once 10 have more |
formal commodities and prisss Went
Town 39 points within TWO years.
lso with the incentive Of nim Wages /
nd big profits, they worked hariier
ma with The advantage Of the new
peci3l equ pment the war had given
hem they produced more efficiently
md This harder work and more EN- \
ient production left an extra margin
or pronts and wages, as it always (
loes, so that wages and profits did not
20 down with the prices.
Again, in the beginning OF the \
Norld war, a tremendous proportion
u men IN Europe and certain pro-
.orilon OF men In America stopped
4 normal commodities TO go into war h
work. so that there was less oY onr
ormal commodities produced. and \
rices Immediately began % 20 IN.
Nhen America went into ihe war
'VOO UO more men were taken away |,
y the army, and other millions by
ne production OF special war ma
'rial, from the production OF normal
commodities, and prices went IN pro-
ortionately more rapidly ualii they
cached 20l-Over twice what fhev
ad been before this labor had been
iken from producing normal com
The fundamental factor in the
N Ole situation Is absolutely simple h
nd obvious. IL is basel on an axiom 4
nat every class OF economists. even II
le Bolsheylkl, admit AMI on all the li