Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1921-01-23
WORLD EQUILIBRIUM
UNBALANCED" ROBERTS
President OF National City Bank
Delivers Address to Over
1900 Engineers.

NEW YORK. Jan. 22--That a
s an,ot unbalanced equilibrium In
~ me cause OF the! present Indus
triai depression. Was the statement
n,aac ny George Il. Roberts, vice
!,, dSE,as"' i ia ma, c:.y Bank. in an
members OF the Society OF Autoino-
i've Engineers at Their annual dim
s asr at ,i ne iiotei ;,s,or. Mr.. Rob.
system '' of in 9nr highly derslopea
effective so long as /, is WORKING
Smoothly. IN perfect balance. with
~ us parts adjusted one TO am
other. every branch OF industry
running to capacity ana III, branch s
c,SchanginS products with cach Other.
IL is Ike great machine which. IL
inE one part IL thrown out OF order.
brings the whole thing /" a stand
still. This is the situation in which
10 a great degree THIS country Is to-
night ana IN which the world is al
Mr. Roher,a pointed out tina, his
inlus,rial depression affects coffee i'm
GraIil. sugar in Cuba and Lava rio,
in India ard ailk in Japan. the
Mr. ROBERTS. are sitting upon their
pics OF products. eager to sell an,
70 buy. and unable 20 do either Nii-
Mons 81 pcopic arc gu, OF employ
nr -, LII uhaDie 10 buy the products
81 others bccauHe they cauno, sell
their own. Nor Is there "a pen.rai
state 81 over production. contfnra,,
Mt. honer's. There never H. gen
therc often ia Il state or unhni,nceI
production. Such Il state exist. no.
III Tor, before a return to.a gen
IT, s'n.G OIL prosperity eau take
place, said Mr.. Roberts we must
nave a state ~ equilibrium through
out industry. =
Mt Roberts pointed out that The
unsound core OF the pr.s.n, si,na
ton Is Europe. The war broke down
highly organized. Slowly day.lnn.d
complicated system Of industry and
esch ,a,n and it has not been re-
lie explained that az all business
ts In the last analysis simply nm az.
chahgc OF products. So there cInno,
sn,, . iuIt. Tree circulation of goods
sired consumption or goods. untij
industry Is again in balance
Speaking Of labor conditions and
IN, IN. necessity for the reduction OF
achieved. Mr.. Roberts asser,.d. All
the employers ana all the way. earn.
ers III an Industry together do M,
nave u In their power to Xix the
because this amount OF wages Vii
depend. in the last analysis. tIpon The
amount OF goods that can he sold
am AMI 'mr r,, amount Of goods that can be
III. public TO buy them "
In discussing the banking .jtu,
tinn. Mr.. Roberts pointed out Tho
great danger in the free cyiensinn
OF credit. nd said tina, easy creJit
conditions would simply drive rho
risinr price movement stt.l hirbar
People think said. Mir. Roberts
that credit can take the ulace ri
rapithl 10 greater extent than /;
can credit is purely purchasinr
Dover. You can buy things vi; i,
credit, but you cannot make things
WIN credit You have got 10 have
IN aor and machinery TO rrake tbinps
,redli - an Intangible thing. n is
nasca on faith and confidence can.
ia ~ nlways something tangible !"
Speaking OF Il banks function, Mr
Roherts said: "a bank is MOI ,
creator OF wealth. in tho sense fhni
factory or 4 farm is II is merely
reservoir Of the liquid wealth q,
the community. It's officers are
reahr trustees. 1t receives o,,iy
what Is put into II, and under =
sound banking policy somebody mus
put into the bank every dollar tha,
PAID OUT. Now that Is tho
reason. declared Mr.. Roberts "whv
about year a@6 the banks or rhs
country. alarmed by the cnormo,is
iniation Of credits and under rho
a !t ana counael or the Federal