Arizona republican., 1921-01-23

Mir Roberts pointed out that the unsound core of the present situation is Europe. The war broke down a highly organized, slowly developed and complicated system of industry and ex- change, and it has not sbeen re-estab- lished since.
 He explained that as all business is in the last analysis simply an ex- Tchange of products, so there cannot be a full free circulation of goods, full employment of people, the desired con- sumption of goods, until industry is again in balance.
 Speaking of labor conditions and the necessity for the reduction of wages before this balance can be achieved, Mrs. Roberts asserted: "All the employers and all the wage earn CTS in an industry together do not have it in their power to fix the amount of wages that will be paid because this amount of wages will depend in the last analysis upon the amount of goods that can be sold and the amount of goods that can be sold will depend upon the ability of the public to buy them"
 Tn discussing the banking situation Mir. Roberts pointed out the great dan- ger in the free extension of credit, and said that easy credit conditions would SlInDlY QTlNe lut price IlalAlS AhONS- ment still higher. People think" said MT. Roberts. "that credit can take tho place of capital to a greater extent than 1t can" Credit is purely pur- chasing power. You can buy thing: with credit but you cannot make thing: with credit. You have got to have la bor and material and machinery tt make things. Credit is an intangible thing It is based on faith and conf dence Capital is always something tangible"
 Speaking of a banks function, MT Roberts said A bank is not a ere ator of wealth in the sense that fac tory or a farm is. 1t is merely tn reservoir of the liquid wealth of tn community. It's officers are reall, trustees. It receives only what is pu into it and under sound banking pol icy somebody must put into the banl every dollar that is paid out. Now that is the reason" declared Mir. Rob erts, "why year ago the banks of tn country, alarmed by the enormous in flation of credits and under the advic and counsel of the federal reserve au thoritiess at Washington, decided tC make an effort to hold this inflatio in check"
 MT. Roberts said that the great trou ble with our people is that they d not realize the danger of a great bod of indebtedness; they do not stop | think that their assets may shrink rap idly their debts will not shrink at al
 In closing, Mir. Roberts said: T be lieve that while we will have a perio of quiet times while these adjustment are being made, the situation in thi country is remarkably good consider ing the experience through which W have passed There is one other wa in which the situation can be helpe and that will appeal to the engineer namely, by Improvements in the meth ods of industry. "Automobile engi neers have led the world in this rt spect in recent years. They hay shown the world how industry ma A be revolutionized by highly organize production. They have done more tha h any other set of men to teach us tl lesson that the essential thing abol wages is not the wage rate per wee or per day, but che cost of labor p unit of product That is the goldt key to the solution of this entire il dustrial problem.
 You can reconcile the interests wage earners and of employers ar of consumers by increasing product, and we have got the task of. convin ing the great body of people of tn country that they are interested large scale economical production. al of convincing the wage earners of th country that they are interested, n in restricting production, but in ir creasing production and in reducil the cost of all the necessaries' and cor forts of life"