The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1930-04-21

Economic Crisis in U. s. A.
5. Into this general crisis of world capt.
talism comes tremendously accentuating
factor the present economic crisis in America.
This present economic crisis in the United
States is the inevitable outgrowth of basic
contradiction of capitalism, "a growing con-
tradiction between the tendency toward I'M
limited expansion of production and the re-
stricted consumption of the masses of the
proletariat general over-production), and this
resulted in periodical devastating crises and
mass unemployment among the proletariat."
program of the Communist internationally.
This crisis, which broke in its sharpest form
upon the heels of the crash of the stock mar
ket in November, continues to deepen. While
the first period of the crisis lend of 1920
showed first of all the sharp decline in heavy
industry (steel, machinery, construction), in
the first three months of 1880, the decline
has penetrated into the industries producing
for mass consumption, spreading throughout
the economic life Of the country. The can
nalist" index of business activity registers
general decline of about one-eighth i(more
than II per cent?. Car loadings have fallen
from their 1929 record (highest in history)
and for 1880 are running more than per cent
below the five-year average of 1925-29 The
Federal Reserve index of industrial produc-
ton shows a decline below the high point of
last year Of about 20 per cent. Commodity
prices have declined approximately 10 per
cent, with the trend steadily downward Build
ing contracts run more than 20 per cent below
last year, with the gap constantly widening.
Gross railroad earnings declined in the first
ten weeks of 1880 by from 10 to Is per cent
below the same weeks of 1929. Bituminous
coal production for February was about 20 per
cent below last year. Automobile production
has declined approximately one third, with a
perspective of further immediate reduction
Bank cearngs are about 16 per cent below
last year. Financial factors and signs of
deepening crisis are seen in reduction of the
discount rate.
The present flood of stock market trading
with its creation of paper value is an out
growth of cheap money" The accumulations
of the immediate past find no market of in
dustrial investment and flow, as "cheap
money into the field of speculation For a
while, this stimulates the stock prices. But
because of the crisis in industry, these prices
are purely fictitious. Thus tho very stock
market figures, which capitalist propaganda
cites as signs of an abating of the crisis are
in reality creating conditions for a new stock
crash with new downward trend of produce
tion
Those branches of production which pro-
duce means of production, first and hardest
hit by the crisis, remain at a level even lower
than the general decline. Employment and
wages, diminishing more rapidly by far than
production itself (due to intensified ra-
tionalization) serve to deepen the crisis BY
further limiting the purchasing capacity of
the masses.
The spreading of the economic crisis thru
out the world is also seriously diminishing ex-
ports. The export figures of the month of
March alone showed decline of 26 per cent
The recent stock market crash in Japan indi-
Gates that this factor will be accentuated in
the near future.
Uneven Development of Crisis.
9. The. growth of the crisis is not uni
form downward trend of economy as whole,
nor OF its separate parts. The general decline
proceeds at varying Tempo while within the
general decline occur fluctuations of specific
industries and localities, with more or less
sharp movements upward and downward. Par
tlcularly is this unevenness of development
marked in the leading industries (steel, ma
chlnery) which, after deep punges downward
to "A to 40 per cent capacity, make quick
turns upward which, however, still leave them
lower than the general level of economy. Sea-
sonal increases are almost uniformly smaller
than the average of past years Especially in
leading lndustries) that the widely trunl-
peted improvements noted from time to time
in the capitalist press are in reality further
declines, masked by the tricks of statisticians.
The leading industries are entirely unable 10
lead toward ameoration of the crisis. but
instead lead toward deepening and widening
OF the crisis The cumulative effects of all
these ups and downs is persistent though
uneven decline of economy as a whole. The
unevenness of development of various branches
OF industry is sharpened, the stability of their
relations one to another still more upset. and
the crisis as whole is intensified
Unemployment Grows.
z. The development of unemployment is
not to be measured only by the development
OF the economic crisis. Capitalism always has
It's industrial reserve army, an army of unenn-
ployed. Already before the economic crisis
this army was tremendously enlarged as a
result of speed-up and naturalization To
this army have now been added the millions
thrown upon the streets by the economic crisis
and curtailment Of production. On the other
hand, permanent employment is, in turn, now
Being intensified to all unheard of degree by
new wave of specd-up and naturalization
which is spurred on by the economic crisis.
thus even local and temporary increases in
production of certain industries (stee auto)
are not reflected in corresponding increases in
employment, but are the occasion for further
cutting down Of labor forces by the speed-up,