New Britain herald., 1929-04-27
MASS PRODUCTION AND SOCIAL ADVANCE


 The welter of pro and con re- garling the effects Of mass produc- ton receives d valua ble contribution from the experience of Edward A. Filene, Of Boston. who in the May iEsu@ Of the Atlantic Monthly ener. getlcaily answers the critics oi American industrial life who profess to See dangers 10 our social we'll being as result of the develop ment of machine civilization. It is impossible 10 read the impassoned pages Of this investigator 0. in. dustry and commerce without con- cIuding that. properly controlled, mass production eventually will benefit the human race far more than il injurss lt
 One of the benefits of mass pro- duct.on. as MT Filene sees it. is that it has caused business leaders to realize that their own prosperity is dependent entirely upon the pros perity of the masses Of the people, Mass production turns into ghastly orerproduction due to lack Of buyers unless the masses have the buying power 10 consume the goods produced. The demands Of modern conn mpetiiion. vastly intensified by mass production. is forcing indus try 10 organize in such way as to benefit the masses and enable them 70 be consistent consumers as well as producers This. Mir. lilene holds. is the basic logic Of lie entire system. T have studied mass production in aii oi its aspects since its inception, and hay. watched it's devclopment," " fays Mr. lflene T have studied es- Nooially closely its social and eco nomlc aspects and can say vi'hout qualification that if i. is used by leaders who understand that in order 10 make the greatest total profits hey must pay ever higher wa 7es. constantly reduce prices and keep rrcfits per unit oi output town to the very minimum. mass production liE1fS j,t welfare hut on the contrary holds poHsihili'..s of accomplishing Of f1aIkiuI II ot the g,ods that theo- rstical rcform"rs or irrational raii- calls Lopo to secure by re,o.u;.onary mephs."
 The day hen it was the object of lug business 10 create s uonopoly and therefore increase prices is past. lt on work in day ot mass pro- duction. As the Boston merchant aptly points Out, ''i' would be fool i-h 70 make 3 million utomobiles Or 2,4eo.e pairs ot shoes if you were going 10 charge s25.oeo for each automobile and s50 for each pair Of shoes" The aim today is low erins Of costs and prices through ,arzs volume production and sa les It has been discovered that goods must be sold 3s Hrll Us manuta ctured. Busi- ness must realize more thoroughly as the years pass that the consumer not th. marufac' urer. seta the sell. ing pric"-a point that Mir. Filens well emphasizes. When the price oi goods is above the average buyinl power Of thos- uho could logicall, be expected 70 be interested in buy. ing the goods they remain unbought
 Under 'he old industrial system. the Boston investi igator reports,
 Factories produced only fh, limited number Of articles tho thought they could sell. Then, gen erally. they computed their costs added their profits and so esta blish ed selling price. Under mass pro duction and mass distribution th' price that the public can pay deter mines the selling price. and. az [ rule. the lower the price ia set th' larger the market and the grea'c' the total profits Of big buGlness. A. nt And strarstly that inc desire fol profits is force for lower prices The manufacturer produces in suc' large volume that hts lower cost and redrceH overhead exprnee en able him tn soil at price th' , masses can afford to pay"