The spectator., 1921-10-04

has forced nearly six million Ancrican men and women to idIeness"
 Apparently no official in Washing.
 ton seems to think that means can
 easily be found 10 put the idle bacl, tc work but it seems to be the hope that i somehow something can he done,
 through legislation GIT otherwise, to
 relieve the present situation. There
 are doctors enough with their cures for the trouble, but most of the doc l tors disagree as to the remedy. and i as one high official put it. the man wh0
 can find a remedy not only will be q l public benefactor. but can write him-
 self down as the first person who ever
 succeeded in overcoming that rare old l partnership of supply and demand.
 As matter of fact. no one here 1 believes that the men who are to come here to discuss unemployment will be 1 abc to suggest anything definite that i will relieve the situation, unless the 1 recommendation shall follow the line of suggestions of legislation of various kinds which already has been pre- 1 poscd
 l ItIP are HIGH l1tIt Nllo say SIuu if congress will put the railroads back into running, so to speak on smooth i. rails. and will supplement proper legislation for the benefit of the agri-. i cultural interests. all will be well; but here again one runs up against conflicting views There are men who think that the railroads do not ped any additional legislation for their benefit and that the farming interests i alren1y have been sufficiently pro vided for and that therefore some thing entirely new in the way of iegiS- lation is needed to start the factory whistles of the country to blowing again.
 Disagree on Legislation. Concerning some of the legislation 1 which the administration evidently l desires to have put through for the purpose of ending unemployment. there is Il vast gulf of disagreement | between representatives of the em- ployers and representatives of the enl- ployed. Legislation for the relief of the railroads is q point at issue. The executives of the roads look at It one way and men employees look at if anotler way There will he some kind of T compromise on legislation. but the history of things ever since the days of the Missouri Compromise goes to show that compromises gen erally arc only strong enough to struggle through short life.
 II is certain that there is economic trouhIe- in the country. Some six millions of Americans have acute knowledge of this fact. Men and women who made big wages during the WHIT and did not waste their money are much better ofr today than their brothers and sisters who also made big money but who insisted on enfold- ing themselves In silk shirts and Alaska seal skins The virtue of thrift is preached from a good many pulpitS of the land every Sunday. hut therc are some millions of Americans today who apparently stand ready {" say that experience Is Il better teacher than any preacher.
 Small Nations and the Conference.
 Based on information which came from men in touch with the intentions of the various countries of earth, the statement was made six weeks ago that '"while the disarmn- ment conference membership will be limited to certain great nations. there will be present outside the conference chamber many pieaders in behalf of countries and half-countries which lie along n line much longer than that which runs from Byzantium to Spain"
 Although warned long ago the ad- ministration and the State department are only today taking something like alarmed notice of the intention ef ev- cry small nation of earth. every half nation, and every country that wants to be a nation. to have representatives in Washington at the forthcoming dis armament and Far East conference.
 Today Washington otticialdom Is re- asserting its determination that there shall be no consideration of any Inter national problems that may heciOud the main issue" Apparently 1t took the State department n long time tc learn of the activities of the agents of small countries who have been working in Washington with x view to securing some kind of n represen- tation in the forthcoming conference, or. failing this, to force the consider ation of problems with which the rep resentatives at the conference are sup posed to have nothing to do.
 Headquarters for Propapanda.
 Of course the will of the adminis- tration will prevail. and nothing will be taken up at the conference execpt disarmament and Far East problems. but If the propagandists in behalf of other things are given. the news and newspaper opportunities which they seek. the public will be given. fun in- formation concerning the allegedi needs of this land or of that land, the,