Evening star., 1924-08-17
POLITICS AND BUSINESS
Expert Denies That Elections Are Cause of
Hard Times.
BY JOHN T. FLYNN

! that everywhere business was get
ting better, that this continued un+7
interrupted after the election and
| went on well into the next year
| This brings us to 1916 when BUST
| ness was at its height"
But what Of the war; ] suggested,
| Did not that account for our BOOM.
| 1916 boom?
| The 1916 Campaign.
| beyond d doubt, it did. But re-
! member that in the campaign of 1916
| the result was very much in doubt.
| In fact, it was so close that for n
| time it was thought Mr.. Hughes had
been elected. Yet the campaign did
| not operate to suspend any of our
activities. The war had brought il.
| great food of business to this coun-
try. The prosperity We enjoyed was
unrelated to the campaign. But that
is the very point / am making-that;
our prosperity or depression is tho
result of economic forces and the per-
| formances of the politicians havo'
| very little to do with it,
| "Of course, l do not wish to mini
| mize the stake of the citizen and the
| business man in good government.
| There is much he can do to aid or
hamper business by either attending to
or neglecting his public duties. But l.
| think we make a capital mistake t.
| suppose that politics and politicians
| and elections enter into our business :
conditions sufficiently to make the
difference between prosperity and
| paralysis.
| We make the same mistake about
Europe. Most of the news we get.
| from Europe is about the quarrelinE
| or politicians, their predictions OF
| ruin and their promise of plenty.
! But the fact is that while these polI=
| ticlans have been talking. the people.
| of Europe have been working. great
| economic forces have been at work,
| and slowly it is beginning to dawn -
| on US that Europe is struggling back
| to her feet. This is tho result of
| the work of the manufacturer in his
shop, the farmers upon their fields,
| the WorkEen at their benches aud ,
not of the politicians upon the hust
| inGs."
But what of 1920? The year of tho
| Harding election is still recalled as one r
| Of widespread gloom in business.
| I pointed to the lines on the chart
which made abrupt desccnts.
Defation's Results. 10
! There can be no doubt. Of that
| replied Mr.. Gluck. But busine 81 s.
! men also remember the reason. They -
remember it only too woll. That was
| the year dcf1ation st in. There was
! liquidation following the post war
| boom. The seeds Of it had been sown
long before the election. 1t went or
! through the election and continued
| for sometime after. ] am sure nbf.
| economist has ever associated the
| two phenomena.
| But why go back so far? Look
at the present year. Here are three ;
parties Wrauglfng over some rather,
| fundamental things. economically.
Yet the two leading political conven-
! tions are scarcely over when business =
| begins to pick up. Why? Eyery>-
| body knows why. Because the prom
ise of settlement in Europe is bright.
Because worldwide agricultural con-
| ditions are giving our farmers the ,
| best price they have had for the
| crops in several years. We are at
! the very threshold of the campaign. n
yet stocks are beginning to rise and
! are at the very highest point since
1916, bonds have gone up. the volume
| of transactions has increased, the
sag in prices has ended and things
| generally arc looking up. No one %.
doubts that they will continue to i'm
prove OF course, the campaign Is :
not making them good. That is the
| work of other forces altogether" r,,
I But, l inquired, does not this very
notion that elections hurt business have
| had a bad effect upon it? -
| DO not me- dO't
not mean to insist that elections
| have absolutely no effect upon bust
| ness. There are some lines which"
| feel them directly. And indirectly ,
all business suffers a little from this
very thing you mention. Business
! is always hurt q little when conf :
dence slumps And there is always
| a little sagging OF confidence during
| elections. But il is a minor factor.
| 1t is a minor factor now. For by a.
curious coincidence there has been.
| recently very marked revival OF
confidence at the very moment when
| the campaign is supposed to be un-l
! dermininS it. .-.
NO, sir. Don't let the campaign
worry YOU, SO far as business is con-
| cerned. No campaign has hurt buSi-n
| ness since 1916. No campaign since
that time will have less effect upoe
| business while it is going on than
| this one"
Copyright by Z. p. C. News Service, Inc