The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1921-09-27
JOBLESS MEET
WON'T DISCUSS
LABOR TROUBLE
VIII Get Facts and
Figures on Actual
Conditions.
BY DAVID LAWRENCE.
Copyright, 1921
(Gnoc{oI 10 Tho ARGUS


nual skepticism that attends every
endeavor of an experimental nature
enveloped the unemployment con-
ference today Curious about re-
suits, the query on most every
body's lips was this What can
the conference really do. can it fur
nish work for the unemployed, can
it alter the laws of supply and de-
mand, can it bring normalcy?"
Inquiry at the White house de-
velops the fact that President Har-
ding in acceding to the suggestion
of Secretary Hoover that confer
ence be called did not himself know
exactly what might be achieved. If,
indeed, he knew remedy, he would
not have called a meeting OF econ
omists but would have applied that
remedy without delay. He had con-
fidence, however, in the engineering g
mind of Herbert Hoover and he be-
! lieved that many of the fundamental
causes of unemployment might be
/ removed if everybody were agreed
as to what those causes are.
PesSimism Bred Timidity.
If nothing else comes out of the
unemployment conference but an
/ agreement as to what are the facts
( of Americas industrial situation
/ officials will be more than glad Fer
: il is true that some businesses have
been retrenching purely because
other businesses have done so. Pes
simistic talk has bred timidlty
Psychological factors have had more
to do with the industrial depression
than anything else Fear that the
European market would not yield
orders because of a diminution OF
its purchasing power has caused
! abandonment of plans at a time
! when the business men OF othel
countries were just beginning to lay
plans for long siege of new mar
kets.
What the unemployment confer
enee probably will give the people
of America is an economic surve!
of the United States. Without fact'
and figures, all stories about thu
ups and downs of business condi
tions are mostly conjecture. Sur
face conditions are not always al
: index of what is going on. Presiden
Harding said so himself in his open
ing address to the conference wheI
he remarked:
4, Frankly It is difficult to know
: whether we have reached that bed
rock to which reaction runs befor
the upward course begins, but her
/ are representative of the force
l which make for all we are or eve
= can be, and your soundingS ough
to be reliable"
Raps League PaTGsans.
The president saw before him tn
, representatives of labor and EN-
ployer groups, captains of industr
as wei as students OF economic:
An agreement by them as to wha
: constitutes the true condition of th
3 United States will go a long wa
: toward carrying conviction with tn
people of the country.
incidentally Mr. Harding took
: fling in his opening address at tw
. currents of thought advanced b
d folks who have been more or les
> opposed to administration policie
He sounded a warning against IN
idea of looking to the governmer
treasury for relief, and he took /:
sue with those who have been CRY
ing that American membership
the League of Nations would hav
= helped our economic situation. VIII
, respect TO the first point, he a.
clared that the excess OF stImuli
ton" from, raids on the treasury
TO be reckoned as a cause
trouble rather than a source
8. cure" The president said liquldi
tion and readjustment were an II
evitable consequence of the war an
that "he who thinks they mlgl
have been avoided by this plan
d that, by this International relation
e shin or that, only hugs deluslc
/ when reason is needed for sa
IS counsel"
Troubles NatGraL.
u The president aimed his remarl
narticularly at those who nave i
y sisted that Americas abstenuC
from the councils of the allies du
al ing the treaty fight caused SUI
lie moral depression in the Europe;
1T business world as to bring about 4
lie collapse of trade between Euro
9Continued on Page Eleven.l