The Appeal. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. ;) 1889-19??, 1923-11-10
Geo. E. Roberts Tells How Co.
operative Character of Cor
porations Is Obscured.
RADICAL AGITATION RESULTS
Maintenance Of Present Industrial Sys.
tenn Necessary to Maintain Present
Standards Of Comfort for All
the People, He Says.

finance, declared in a recent speech
before the American Bankers Associa'
ton Convention at Atlantic City, N. J.
"The primitive man knew that the
harder he worked the more he would
have" Mr.. Roberts said. when a man
exchanged work with neighbor he
had the whole transaction under
his eyes. But when a man works
with thousands of others for q
great corporation he doesn't see any
definite relationship between what he
does and what he gets. He doesn't
know whether he Is getting fair
share Of the industrial results or not
and he suspects not.
"The modern industrial. system Is
essentially cooperative, but you can
not have. effective cooperation with
out understanding. Because people do
not see the industrial organization as
q whole we have the tendency for so
ciety to break up into groups and
blocs and unions and organizations OF
one kind and another, many of whom
are trying to advance their own inter
ests at the expense of society as a
whole. The population of this country
today could not be supported in the
state of comfort to which it is accus
toned without the modern, specialized
organization.
BoIshevism in Russia
"The extremity of social disorgan
ization has been seen in Russia, where
has been enacted the greatest tragedy
in the history Of the world. What hap
pened there will happen everywhere
unless there is a development of the
capacity of people to work together
and understand each other.
I'm its final form the revolution in
Russia was against what is called the
capitalistic system, or the private own
ership Of property and direction of in
dustry. The results of the revolution
are so calamitous in Russia as to give
a check to revolutionary tendencies in
other countries Yet the economic
principles of Bolshevism are influenc
ing public opinion more or less every
where.
"The motive behind all this agita
ton is the desire to establish equality
The social struggles of the past have
been for political equality. Now the
demand is for equality in possessions
equality in incomes, equality in the
management OF industrial affairs
There is no argument against the as.
pirations of men for better social con
ditions. but radical ideas result from
lates to the employment and service
of private capital. Men read abou,
vast sums of wealth belonging to indi.
viduals, and think Of these sums al
devoted exclusively to the owners. In
fact wealth employed in production
for the public market Is rendering
service to the entire community, no
matter who owns 1t.
1.-THE whole radical argument ia like
claiming that nobody ever got any
benefit from the development Of the
steam engine but the owners of steam
engines. OF course, the theory only
needs to be stated for the fallacy to
be apparent. The man who works for
wages is benefited by every investment
Of capital which increases and cheap;
ems the supply OF the things for which
his wages are spent
The Service Of Capital
TT is a fundamental truth that al
productive property although privately
owned, is part Of the equipment of so
ciety, by which its wants are supplied.
1.-The progress of the past has been
accomplished under the individualistic
system. The theory of this system 10
that every one shall have for his own,
as nearly as may be, that which re-
suits from his own efforts. It is sys-
tenn calculated to stimulate the inftia-
tive, call out the energies and develop
the ability Of each Individual He is
free as to his undertakings; there are
no restrictions except that he must
seek his own gains by activities that
are serviceable to the community as q
whole, and he Is inspired to labor, not
simply by the desire for personal ad-
vantage, but by the desire to provide
for loved ones, by the impulse to self
expression, to realize and develop his
natural abilities, and by the ambition
to achieve, to win distinction and to
render service.
1T does not promise equality. Un-
less there Is equality In production, In
service, in effort, in resolution and in
self-denial, why should there be equal
ity IN the division of results?
"The justification of individualism,
however, is not merely In what 1t al
lows to the superior individual, but in
the results that inure to all It is in
the interest Of all to secure the most
effective organization. the most effec-
tive management and the largest pos
sible production. These cannot be had
by adopting the fiction that ali have
equal ability for any position. or by
any other system than chat which
Judges men by their individual qualt
ksations.