The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1921-03-06
Today
No League Of Nations.
No Lower Wages.
Stage Coach Bonds.
North Oakota's Lesson.
1BTHUB BkIbBl
(copyrisht. issl)


- President by rspudiating the
League OF Nations finally and. re-
storing the United States TO its
right place. a. an Independent Ma
ton. free from sntsnglsments or
obligations to Europe.
This does not suit Europe. and
was not expected to. One Euro
pean statesman 10 kind enough TO
compare Harding to PontiuS Pi-
late, washing his hands OF Europe
Nnd her affairs. which you might
call gratitude.
Some Europeans were foolish
enough to imagine that the United
States would become paymaster
Tor their wars-responsible for
their local Qusrrels. They natu-
rally are disappointed. They will
get over It.
President Harding proposes that
the nations Of Europe shall pay to
the. United States what they bor-
rowed and owe. That will be re-
sented by Europe In some quarters.
But there are two kinds of men.
One kind. when he borrows, means
70 pay, and tries to pay afterward.
Tho second kind does not mean,
and does not try, to pay. The
United States will. not attach i'm
portance to the dislike Of the sec
0nd kind.
Perhaps We never shall know
the old level of wage again"
That 10 from President Hard
tng's Inauguration speech. Let US
hope that the perhaps" will be-
come permanent reality. Nobody
should want to see the old wage
level again. Workmen, who bear
the brunt Of war, might at least
get something substantial from 1t.
They usually do,. and they will
from this war.
Before the war Of 1872 there
was only one workman In the
United States making rs much as
one dollar . day regularly. Be-
fore the civil war wage conditions
were greatly improved. After the
civil war they got still better.
After the Spanish war they inn
proved again. They ought to and
they viii improve after this war.
Employers always shiver fool
ishly when wages 60 up, just as
workmen shiver foolishly when
improved machinery il invented.
The improved machinery helps the
workers always, and the higher
wages help the employers always,
for all the employers can get is
what workers can spend. Increase
their pay, they increase their
wants, and general prosperity in
, Not workinsmen alone, but svsry-
body that knows the first letter OF
the A B C Of Industrial history,
should fight against lowering
wages.
Flying machines will teach lower
passenger rates to the railroads;
motor trucks will force lower rates.
The flying fare from Brussels to
London is now fixed at twelve
dollars, and from Brussels to Paris
ten dollars.
Inside Of ten years it will be pos
sible, if the people have brains
enough to keep corporations from
owning the air and all the landing
places, to travel from New York
to Chicago in four hours or less
for ten dollars. That will be an
improvement on fifty dollars for
twenty hours.
Railroads, also investors in rail-
road stocks, should interest them
selves now in flying machine pos
.sibilities.
Changes rarely come suddenly.
There are more sailing vessels on
the oceans now than when the
steamboat was invented. But
there are not as many stage
coaches running between cities as
when the locomotive vas invented.
There won't be as many fast
passenger trains between cities
after the flying machine is per-
fected.
You wouldn't care to own bonds
on q stage coach line to Chicago
via Buffalo. Think a little about
what the flying machine may do to
the express train.
The North Dakota Leader, de-
voted to the Non-Partisan League,
Believing that the people can man
age their own affairs, publishes
photographs Of gigantic grain ele-
vators and -four mills that North
Dakota is now building to be
owned by the farmers and oper-
ated for their benefit.
That helps you to understand
why North Dakota is boycotted by
4 organized finance and cannot bor-
row a dollar on her bonds.
North Dakota or some other
4 state should start another plant
owned by the citizens for the
manufacture Of cement Farmers
need cement In every building to
keep away the rats and build per-
manently. All packing houses de-
pend on the supply OF cement.
n IL has just been Imonstrsted
ii nv criminal indictment of prac-
y Xtically the entire cement industry
3<hst the cement busfness In N lot