The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1921-08-27
Today
Peace-What Next?
Dog Began to Bite Pig.
0rasshoppers, Floods. Riots.
Capital Never Fights.
ARTHUR BRISBANE

t-Oy ARTHUR ohlS0ANE-
CopYixht 1921
The peace treaty with Germany
is arranged at last, and on a basis
to which America cannot object,
since we get as much out Of the
Versailles treaty as we choose to
take-none of ut compulsory.
Getting back to business is the
next thing, and the first business
ought to be finding work-by Gov
ernment initiative and backing
for six million idle men in this
country.
The United States managed in
staLtly to find ten thousand mil
lions for friends in Europe, and it
is finding now hundreds of mil
lions for distressed private own
ers OF railroads, also forgiving
-hem their debts for an indefinite
period.
A country that can do 50 much
FOR foreigners and for one class
at home could we'll afford to find
work for its idle millions, especial
ly as there is so much national
work that needs doing.
Your statesmen say they are
lending five hundred millions Of
your money to the railroads "to
stimulate business" The idea is
that the roads will begin to buy
steel rails and cars, the mills will
begin to hire men, and prosperity
will begin booming. 1t is to be the
old story: Fire began to burn
stick. stick begar to beat Cog, dog
began to bite pig, etc"
But how many Of the SOC, ,000, 900
dollars do you think will really
reach workingmen, after getting
into financiers' hands? One-tenth
of the total would be a generous
guess. They will spend ten public
dollars to put one dollar in the
pockets Of the idle. Rather costly
prosperity"
Grasshoppers in an army ten
miles wide have been eating Rus
sian crops, says Albert A. Johnson,
farming expert, now in Russia.
Floods, following extreme drought,
are destroying values in Switzer-
land. Hundreds Of villages in
China are wiped out by flood-as
though famine there were not
enough. Bloody riots in India,
where a peaceful "non-resister"
stirs up trouble. Russian "reds"
are shooting dozens Of their Of
ficers, including a few women, and
in America small armies of armed
miners are battling sheriffs' forces.
All that you read at a glance In
one newspaper. Once war and
trouble start, they seem to keep
going.
Western railroads say they can't
possibly cut freight rates on grsin;
it would mean almost 100000. 900
loss. They say grain elevator
wise farmers to get after men that
market grain.
That is what North Dakota tried
to do, thus getting itself boycotted
by the banks. II big insiders, rail
road men, grain men, ETC., should
begin telling unpleasant truths
about each other. improvement
might come.
But the intelligent owning men
rarely fight each other. They
leave that to various foolish classes
of working men. There is no
/. w. w. fighting any A. F. L. in
capitalism; it knows too much
about the value of unity.
The accident to the flying
ship ZR-2 causes wise ones to
say that airships of such great
length can never work safely.
That is what they said of the
steamer Great Eastern when she
was found a failure, but she
would seem small compared with
ships building today.
est old Count Zeppelin, if he were
still here. Who was it, by the
way, that arranged for English
builders to make their big expert
ment with American lives and
money? Also, who was it that
persuaded the Government to
spend hundreds of millions build
ing wooden ships costing 100000
each and now sold for $4,000 and
lucky to get it?
prepare for revenge" Count
Waldersee advises Germany 1t
demonstration intended to make
emperors popular once more. But
the Berlin crowd was not enthusi-
astic. The Germans have had all
the revenge" and all the Ho-
henzollerns they need for the
present. Their inclination is to
work while other nations fight
and maintain big armies and biz
navies. 1t is not a bad program.
Arthur Ransome. who has pre-
ferred giving facts as he found
them to imagining things about
Russia, reports that the Bol She
visit government is drifting back
to capitalism rapidly. Tchitcherin
revealed the drift to old times in
- x1,opf anoech