Imperial Valley press., 1935-06-03

stand relative to development of
power on the All-American ca
nal. was given before the Asso-
ciated Chambers of Commerce at
INLAND on April 26.
I appreciate very highly the op-
portunity offered me this evening
to address the representatives of
the Associated Chambers of Com
merce of Imperial Valley. I am par
ticularly pleased at being able to
talk to a group of businessmen.
There is, or should be, something OF
common bond between those
struggling to conduct a business
enterprise these days.
We are living in a period when
all business is, to various degrees,
under attack-when mounting taxa
ton. government regulation and in
many instances government COM
petition are making the successful
conduct of any business most diff
ficult task.
We are having it very acutely
brought home that the so-called
profit system which our Socialistic
friends would Go away with. is bet
Ter named profit and loss sys-
/ tem," as it always, in reality, has
been. AS matter of fact, during
/ the past few years the loss sys-
tenn" would seem to be the better
designation.
/ Not only is private business hav-
ing its troubles today, but public
1 business is in even worse condi-
/ ton, with national, state ana
municipal governments all operat-
! ing with enormous deficits which
can only be met by mortgaging the
/ future.
! Our national leaders are sincerely
] struggling to bring the country out
/ of the morass into which it has
j fallen and I have nothing but SYM
pathy for their efforts, although 1
cannot agree with the wisdom OF
many of the plans adopted.
/ I. for one, do not believe that
wealth can be created by destroying
wealth; that we can spend our way
to prosperity, or that the law oil
i supply and demand can be repeal
/ ed by legislative fiat, nor do 1 be-
lieVe that regulation and reform
should be carried to the extent OF
destroying greag agencies that con-
i stitute an important part of the
+ financial and industrial structure OF
/ the nation. My conception OF the
relation of the state to its citizens
is that the people should support
the government rather than the
/ government support the people.
i Never has it been so difficult as
/ it is today to look into the future.
i What lies ahead no man can say.
j The picture is, however, not al
/ together black one. We know that
great natural forces are at work,
worldwide in extent that unre-
strained will lead to recovery; that
we have written off the boom period
and all its eXcesseS; that inflated
values and prices have been thoro-
ughly nquidated that there is a
! plethora of credit available to
carry on a great expansion OF
! business, and that there has ac-
/ cumulated during the past five
years a pent-up demand OF unpre-
cedented volume for goods of every
kind and variety which, if once re-
/ leased, would soon put us on the
! highway of prosperity.
Every factor in the formula of re-
cevery is present but one - the
missing factor is confidence. Until
| businessmen have enough con-
| fidence in the future risk longtime
investments, recovery will not take
place.
! Can we expect such change IN
attitude while the campaign of de-
struction of invested wealth still
continues? You need not look fur
! ther than Imperial Valley to fino
an example of what is going on.
The Southern SierraS Power COM
pany over a period of 20 years has
! built up a great electrical system
4 dedicated to the service of Imperia
and Coachella Valleys in which
over Sl1,000,000 of the peoples saw
ings has been invested. From the
! standpoint of invested capital
wages and salaries diSbursed anc
taxes paid, this is the largest busl'
ness now being carried on in the
two valleys. Yet we are today faceo
with a plan to use government
funds to buiIo publicly-oWnet
system which will duplicate and dis
place the properties and service o.
the company, leaving 1t with al
electrical system built for the serv
ice of the valley, for which no othe
economic use exists. This ruthleS
destruction of invested capital /
proposed without apparently tn
smallest consideration for tn
thousands of people who have thei
money invested in the enterprise
who pioneered its development ant
for two decades have rendered tn
valley an essential service.
In the face of proposals such a
this, it is surprising that business
men today are fearful of MAXIM
new investments, or commitments
or that business recovery awaits tn
return of confidence?
Perhaps the question may b
raised as to whether the company
in its 20 years of service, has justi
fled it's continued existence. Let U