Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1922-04-20
WHAT THE COAL STRIKE COSTS

dustrisA. for reports Of shutdowns are
OF necessity, incomplete and no.
~tor1ously Inaccurate. 1t may b sig
nifcant 10 note, however, that a large
steel mill in youngstown. Ohio. that
has been closed down for a Ion period
was scheduled TO resume work ths
nrst week IN April and did not 90 70
because Of tho strike and threatened
coal shortage, and that other b1gs
stesi plan - In tho Pittsburs district
wers cioring down or reducing their
scale OF operations within a few days
after the strike was called.
TO the wsgs loss Of ali these work.
ers Is 20 be added the productive vAue
u their labor had they been employed
for every mar at work produces some
thing Of value q society that IL lost
irrovocably when ne II IDLE. Naturally
each mans productive value depends
upon the nature Of his work, and TO
arrive at INF. item in the cost VI the
coal STRIFE one mans estinat-or
guess-is as dependable as the nexts
Perhaps the most Illuminating con-
ception ~. the value ~ time whsnf
usefully employed is conveyed in mo
old ~copybook aphorisn. LOOT, yer
terday. somewhere between sunrise
and sunset. two golden hotrs, each
SGT with siyty diamond minutes; no
Reward f. offered for they are gone
forever"
4 Loss Everybody Shares.
But every member OF society, DO ne
business man. professional man. farm
er, workman or parasitic idier. U
share in this loss occasioned when .
day'a wage Is not earned M hence
cannot be spent and the product on
a dayss labor has not been realized
/. and ,s gone forever. Everybody has
I sean a town or small city largely de-
T pendent upon one business or manu-
. Featuring establishment go dead"
: when that establishment ~suspenos
Z operations for a period. and a Ike
ld~eaheninR effect. moro or less serious,
q must be felt in every section Of the
r country when 50 essential an indus
8 try as coal suspends operations or q
Il only partially productive and hum
dreds Of thousands Of wags earrsrs
% go on an indefinite vacation.
a This d~eadening effect, moreover. ac.
cording 70 economists, began with tn.
q nrst serious threat Of the coal strike
They point out that with the open
& Ing Of the present year there was
very general determination TO pull tn
country out Of the slough OF business
depression and bring about that re
turn 20 normally" OF which 80 mucl
has been heard and so little realizes
On for many months. Men IN all lines o
n endeayor were planning TO get unds
fun swing again. and perhaps to eS
- lend or expand their operations. Ee1
enterprises were projected. banker
=" were more optimistic. credits were be
IA coming easier. capital was seekin
ne work to do instead OF a hole IN whic
ne 10 hide. The road to prosperity SCENE
= open again.
III Then came the controversy betwee
ne the coal miners and operators, wit
Se' a practical certainty OF q strike g
ey. the first OF April. Better wait ar
err see what happens" instead OF up ar
he at emil" became the watchword
the business and commercial worl
III, and there again Is found a very indsi
he mite but none the lesA real item
BOO loes that Is to be added 70 the CO
Ike OF the coal strike.
a st LOST 1PIOIlS 70 (Od4 opeldbct5- ~
freight revenues to railroads tan enc
,9n nous sum IN the aggregated; 10
:. profits to all rniddie-men and deale
handle coal. and lost profits TO all !
dustries and businesses affected a
verseiy by a real or threatened CO
famine, are other items in the to'
eeA bill which the country must pay
cause the men who own the coal a
VIII the men who dig II would not
or their house in order before March
US II will be a long time before anyo
.oal Will hazard an estimate as to WI
the this total cost g In cold. hard ca.
ers but n thing has been made certs
'ust already-it viii be enough Optiml
/ to among Members OF Congress and 9th
leaders in public affairs agree, 40
It'll ever. that whatever the bill IL Il '
n "a not be too much II II arouses the pJ
lie until measures are aiken 20 av
similar debacles IN the future.
ton
lade Want a driver7 Telephone a cIas
in fed ad-Call 1900.