Evening star., 1923-11-14
IN TODAY'S SPOTLIGHT
BY PAUL Y. COLLINS

fsix months and thereafter 20 and 15
shillings. This free donation to the
unemployed ceased in 1921 after the
government had paid out In support
of $4,000 males and $4,000 females
f66.00o.000 Cat par. 3330,0o0,0 ,0eO. BY
putting this premium on idleness 1t
wes kened the morale Of the workers
instead Of arousing Industry and
agriculture to self-support and pro-
duction. To the English statesmen
tits donation to the unemployed
civilians seemed necessary, in the
face of unemployment insurance In
some trades. under the insurance law
or 1911. The insurance Is supported
partly by assessments or pence a
week divided equally between the en-
ployer and employe and | "a pence
added by the government. But the
benefits We're only GhilIings 4 week
and were Insufficient to support the
beneficiary In idleness. The official
insurance. filed last July, testifes to
the failure Of the system. Id!enes.
there is Increasing and now the
United Kingdom is struggling with
the question OF free trade, led by
Lloyd George. or protection by a
tariff. urged by Premier Baldwin.
While England Is supporting in 'dle-
ness more than a million ana half
or Its wOrkmen. It's homo markets arc
largely supplied bv Germany and the
many curtatls the former outlet Of
English industry.
In contrast with the British plan of
supporting the unemployed. the Amer
lean plan has been to open the mills
instead of the mints." During the last
year, through the Labor Department,
100000 men have been given employ
ment. and II IL planned TO make fed
eral employment agencies In large
cities permanent.
The authors OF the book. ECLIPSE
or Empire" appeal 70 their govern
ment 10 establish scientific instruc-
ton throughout the kingdom The
premier of Australia, Mr.. Hughes, has
already adopted that policy, and
there Is 4 national laboratory and
extension Of science education with
continent. Chemistry il one of
the Keys OF future industry, and the
book cites the fact that, in proper
ton 10 population OF the respective
countries, Switzerland has 800 chem
lists and Germany $50. contrasted
with France's :. and Z for England.
How many industrial chemists has
the United states, on the same basis?
Why is America the most pros
porous country In the world? Not
because of strikes. not because of
restricted output of labor. but be-
cause IL uses labor "amplifers"-
labor-savipE machinery-and the
methods and secrets of modern sci
encc. Because the average work
man produces not IL minimum but
= maximum output. According TO the
English authors cited, the average
American produces ut least three
times the value OF what a British
work man turns out.
Yet how efficient are we? y great
manufacturing concern employed o.
0oo men making tires. and it's daily
output was 1900 tires. New and
more energetic management came
which discharged ali but 5000 men,
and, these now produce 10000 tires.
y factory for making other parts
OF automobiles was half a mile long,
and its practice was TO admit the
lumber At ono end of the works, then
after rouGh-hewins II, haul it on
trucks to the other end. Now there
~ not truck needed, for with
"brains-just u little brains" as Edi-
son recommends, the routing has been
improved America has Yet much
slack to take up.
Il
The words OF Gladstone in 1873:
1T IS America who at a given time
will wrest from US that commercial
supremacy. We have no title; have
no inclination to rhurmer at the pros
pect. If she acquires il, she Will
make the acquisition by the right OF
the strongest; but In this instance
the strongest means the best. She
will probably become what We are
uow-head servant in the household
OF the world. the employer OF all
employed. because her service will be
the most and the ab1est We have no
more title against her, than Venice.
or Genoa or Holland has against U.S."
Copyright, lo25, By Paul V. Collins.)