The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1934-04-17

in spite of the handicapS which g
Until the tariffs are lowered we
are forced in agriculture to fol-
low in some measure the plan of
nationalism. Frankly, don't like
it but there is no alternative for
the time being. 1t may, of course,
have invaluable results if a high
degree of social discipline is de-
veloped. Already there are signs
that our wheat acreage reduction
plan is developing some of this So
cial discipline.
The national quota is split up
among the states and then among
the counties and individuals.
There is the hard problem Of
wrestling with the stubborn indi-
vidual facts to meet social out
come. Some of the newer Kansas
counties claimed the right to grow
more wheat than we thought they
should. We had to re-examine
our facts; the farmers had to re-
examine theirs. There have been
literally hundreds of thousands of
individual debates, many of them
conducted on a very low plane, but
all the time I believe there has
come an increasing appreciation
of both the international and the
national problem in terms of the
local welfare. In another year the
problem will have shifted but I
trust there will still be a machin-
cry for voluntary social discipline.
XTE must have more and more
w of this kind of thing
througout our entire national life.
If the international plan instead
of the national plan is eventually
decided upon We shall still need a
social discipline, though of a
somewhat different type. In any
event every individual in the
country should feel that he is
necessary to carrying out the plan.
He should feel that the plan is
necessarily shifting one but that
the shifts are to be made in terms
of the total welfare and not as
the result of pressure from a par
ticular region or class. He should
feel that the national plan is to
be fitted into the welfare of the
world as rapidly as can be done
with safety.
The social discipline can be given
a very definite machinery but
after all the really important
thing is the spirit pervading the
whole effort. If men close to the
inward realities are able to grasp
the present national and world
picture with their minds they can
make the necessary social dis
cipline seem tremendously worth
while. Without such men the
discipline will prove sterile and
we shall drift on a sea of sophis-
ticated materialiSm toward not
only national disaster but world
catastrophe.
BY religion I have meant in this
discussion that instructive, fun
damental, underlying attitude
which every one has to the world
outside of himself and especially
toward the less tangible, more
enduring spiritual forces. Under
this definition, religion comes
first and from it springs the arts,
the sciences, the inventions, the
division of wealth and the
attitudes between classes and to-
ward other nations.
n ELIGION of this kind has
Nnothing to do with creeds or
churches. 1t is the kind of thing
which caused David in the depths
of despair to cry out toward God
in the psalms. 1t is not surprising
that the Puritan and Scotch-IriSh
pioneers sang psalms as they con-
quered this continent. Neither is
it surprising that their descend
ants should have saved money and
become capitalists thoroughly i'm
bued with the doctrine of ram
pant individualism.
David's religion stood him in
good stead as long as he was con-
fronted with adversely. He did
not have a religion which en-
abled either himself or his children
to hive so very satisfactorily with
material abundance The pioneers
of this continent were the spirit
ual descendants of David as
young man, God-fearing man Of
war, overcoming the enemy with
the odds terribly against him.
Our wealthy people of today are
the spiritual descendants of the
mature, licentious David with con-
tentious, hcentious children. David
did not have the spiritual re-
sources to live with material
abundance-neither as yet do we.