Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1924-01-01
A HINT TO BIG BUSINESS
BY Dr. Frank Crane
~ IG business is Americas greatest fact
* 1t is now praised as our chief glory


and again cursed as our chief shame.
Cursing and blessing are equally useless.
Why not tell the money masters just what
to do?
They spending money in schools, Ii
braries, missions, and for museums, monu-
ments, the promotion of science and religion,
and the prevention of disease.
A less proportion of profits go to luxury
than at any period of history. The spirit of
the times exerts constant pressure toward
using the enormous gains of organized indus
try to help mankind.
Here is plain, common sense suggestion
to big business, therefore, indicating a prac-
teal way to use it's money:
Give every human being in the United
States enough to eat and wear and decent
housing.
A shattering proposal! A thing never be-
fore tried! Dangerous! Let us see
The first objection that arises is that this
would encourage idleness and laziness. II
people can get the necessities of life with
out effort they will not work. 1t is the
pinch of need that makes industry We
should presently have a horde of contented
paupers our hands. And so forth
But we reckon without human nature. In
the first place only a small fraction of the
people would accept this aid All of this
fraction, now, in devious ways, are living Oft
other persons They are getting a subsst-
ence by beggary, by charity, by crime.
The only question, therefore, is this: Would
preserving the life of the lowest edge of the
people by endowment be worse than doing
the same thing by driving them to mendt-
cancy and stealing?
But would not the number OF the idle
be enormously Increased? It would not.
Very few would be satisfied with bare ex-
istence. Man does not live by bread alone,
not even the shiftless man. He would still
be urged by his wants to earn something to
| live a little better.
Let big business therefore, take of its
mountainous profits and rebuild the slums
of the cities. Provide decent shelter for
every family Abolish rotting, overcrowded
tenements.
Let the swollen, surplus from our national
products go TO giving at least one simple
meal every evening and cup of warm drink
and piece of bread every morning to any
human being that is hungry.
To say that would debauch the race is a
silly libel on humanity On the contrary. the
all-seeing God alone knows how many a
CHASTITY tragedy this simple human scheme
would prevent!
Let every child at least have simple cloth
ing enough to keep warm in winter.
Let the distribution of these gifts be made
with ordinary precautions against fraud.
All this would be the wsest stroke of
policy big business could make.
1t would cut down the feeling of violent
discomfort now constantly growing. 1t would
lessen crime and hence reduce the cost of
police.
1t would increase the consuming power of
the masses: they would buy more of big
business goods, more beef, more bread, and
clothing.
Best of all the moral effect of the act
would be tremendous. 1t would be as much
! as to say: People, by fortunate circum-
stances we have been Bile to get huge divi-
dends, all of which, in the end, have to be
paid by the workers. There is no legal force
to make us give these profits back; so we do
| it voluntarily. The system of the distribu>
| ton of wealth is now faulty. 1t is not our
fault, nor yours perhaps. 1t is the fault of
conditions, of imperfect social organization.
Hence what we are not compelled TO do we
will dc of our own free Will. After all, we
are fellow creatures. We cannot sit at our
turtled feast while women and children any
where are starving and cold"
Do this, 0 masters of millions, and let the
people build their own schools, hospitals, Ii
braries. and churches; for it is better to
pauperize the lowest rung of society than the
highest. Free bread, I doubt not, will do
less harm than free universities.
-------.----- Copyright. 1920 z4s