Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1921-02-14
TURNING THE SPOTLIGHT
ON INDUSTRIAL CONDITIONS
A Worthy Attempt Of the Chamber Of
Commerce to Help the Situation
by Examining the Facts

VNHE experiment which the industrial re-
L lations committee of the Chamber of
Commerce is to make this week may or may
not succeed. But it is worth making.
Conditions in the construction industry
are unsatisfactory. No work which could be
postponed has been done for three or tour
years. The cost has been so high as to make
it necessary to refrain from everything pos
sible.
As a result, there is an estimated ma
tional shortage of 100000 buildings for
housing the people, the railroads are using
old rolling stock run on rails that are fast
wearing out and the producers of rails and
rolling stock and the manufacturers of all
kinds of building material are running on
short time.
Further. the cost Of all materials as we'll
as the cost Of labor is so high that investors
are unwilling to lend money for new work,
for they fear that when normal conditions
return there will be such slump in values
that they cannot get their money back.
Now, as we understand it the industrial
relations committee of the chamber thinks
that the peak Of high prices has been passed
and that there has been such a decline that
if the conditions were fully understood the
work of construction in all its branches
could be resumed in the near future.
The circular OF invitation to its confer
cnCC beginning tomorrow in the Mayors
reception room in the City Hall announces
that 'condtions>must be made economically
sound and stable"
We do not suppose that the committee
thinks that anything it can do will have any
material affect on economic conditions.
The most that it can do is to exhibit the
conditions. 1t can discover whether there
is evidence of approaching stability. If it
does not know the laws which regulate sta
bility it can seek to learn what they are.
But it must be admitted that those laws
operate with little regard to conferences and
congresses
The exhibition of conditions is to begin
on Tuesday morning with u consideration of
the responsibility of public officials with re-
gard to industrial activity. This will be
considered particularly in connection with
public works. BY engaging in such enter
prises the city and the state can relieve
unemployment and create u demand for raw
materials used in construction.
There has always been feeling that the
government should do what it can to relieve
industrial depression when private corpora
tions find it impossible to do anything. The
fact that the cost of public works may be
high does not prevent men from urging that
such works be undertaken.
OF the two evils, it is regarded as better
that a public building or a highway should
be built and paid for out of the tax levy
than that money should be appropriated di-
rcCty out OF the treasury for the relief of
the idle. Public works can start the wheels
moving and the money paid for them will
go into the channels Of trade. creating n
demand for the product Of Il score Of different
industries.
The city or the state can get all the money
It needs if it will pay the price. 1t is not
compelled to consider whether the price is
high or low, because it does not have to be
assured of an income from its investment,
under penalty Of bankruptcy.
The private employer may be able to get
money at a price, but he cannot afford to
borrow unless he can see how to pay it back
out of its earnings.
The conference will consider the relation
Of the money market TO unemployment. The
situation will be discussed by builders and
architects, bankers and representatives of
building, and loan associations. Costs Of
transportation. fuel and building materials
will be examined and compared with the
cost of food and clothing and with the rates
Of wages and the hours of~ork. And charts
will be exhibited showing the price condi
tiOns that existed before the war, the peak
Of war prices and the present levels.
II is announced that at the final session
on Friday resolutions will be adopted EN- .
bodying the findings of the conference, and
committees will be appointed to carry them
into effect.
1t will be noted by the discriminating that
wages are to be considered along with the
prices of commodities used in construction
work
Those who have no confidence in the dis.
interestedncss Of the Chamber of Commerce
may be disposed TO say that the whole un-
dertakinG is for the purpose of hammcring
down wages Of men engaged in the building
trades in order that builders may find it
possible and profitable to begin active opera e
tions in the spring.
Those who suspect such u purpose will
follow the discussions with great care, con-
| NdCnt that that purpose, If it exists, will
! o5trUdc itself before the conference adjourns.
| Yet wages are. one Of the obstacles in the
! way Of resumption of building operation,
on a large scale. And wages are high be-
! cause everything else is high. If it can be
| demonstrated not on charts prepared By
! StatSticans, but by the prices one has tC
! pay insthc shops, that the cost of living has
! fallen materially, then reduction in wage
| will come abO"t automatically. Working
people discovered during the war, If they di,
| not know it before, that the value of
dollar depends on its purchasing power
When they were paid in dollars with
purchasing power OF only lOTtY cents N'
cording 70 the 1913 standard. they natural,
demanded that they, get more dollars. An,
they are naturally reluctant to have tn
number Of dollars in their pay cuyclop
reduced. But the wage question is lkcI
to adjust itself as the cost Of food come
down. An exhibit more graphic than an
statisticiun'S chart has lately been on vicy
in some OF the provision stores. 1t is
basket Of groceries the contents of whic
cost S3.O5 year ago, but which can b
bought this spring for $2.05. The price vii
have to fall still lower before II reaches tn
level Of 1913.
with all due respect to the Chamber q
Commerce conferccs, it must be said that tn
declining cost Of food is likely to have
grcatcr Influence in bringing about build
ing revival than all their talk this wcel
We call the dollar Il measure Of value. bu
more accurate measure is a bushcl
NNTl- 80 !