Henderson daily dispatch. (Henderson, N.C.) 1914-1995, 1937-01-22
U. S. Standard of Living
Will Definitely Advanc.
Continued from Page OneO

! almost 20 per cent below. Business is
actually back to the figures of late
1929, but living standards have not vet
pushed above the levels of early 1880.
why should business be closer to
the 1879 peak than living standards
II the latter have rallied more vigor-
| ously than business? The principal
reason Is our constantly rising popu-
lation curve. The total gain in our
population since 1929 has been about
eight million. Right here I should de-
fine living standards. Stated simply.
our standard of living means the
total numer of goods produced in
excess of bare living requirements di-
vided by the total number of people
Hence, because we have had a big
increase in our population, total in
dustrial output must break through
the 1929 highs before living standards
can again reach their old-time peaks.
Ten Million Back To Work.
Now, why have living standards
come back. sharper from the lowest
levels than business activity? The
principal reason is that temporarily
wages and payrolls have come ahead
faster than prices. In certain indus
tries wage rates are today still pitt
fully low; but in many others they are
at an all-time high. Furthermore, not
only are those employed receiving bet
ter pay and getting in more hours,
but ten million jobless have gone back
to work since 1888. The nations week
ly pay envelope has fattened along
with this tremendous gain in business
activity and industrial output Even
so, there are still millions out of work
in the country today who must be
supported by the earnings of those
painfully employed. Naturally, this
worries the average man who does
not believe that our living standards
can improve under such conditions.
Now, what is the future trend of
our scale of living? Does my chart
give hope of our ever breaking thro-
ugh the 1929 gilded peaks, or is 1929
to be the zenith for all time? NV
chart is definitely bullish It shows
strong rising trend and it forecasts
that living standards will follow in
dustrial output into a greater era of
prosperity than we have ever known.
In recent years, great strides have
been made in industrial efficiency
Leading authorities state that in a.
few industries each worker can pro-
duce fifty per, cent more today than
he could in the last boom. The in
crease in efficiency for all industries
averages about twenty per cent.
What LabOr-Saving Machinery Does.
This progress is significant. Tenn
porarily, it may seem bearish to those
who see the machines putting men out
of work. After the period of read
jnstment is over, however, it will be-
come apparent to every one that it is
a great forward step. In the long run
it will mean one or combination
Of three things: CD Prices of goods
will be one-sixth less. (2) Wages will
he one-fifth higher. 90 Each worker
will have one-sixth more time to him
self. This has been the experience of
the motor and other industries over
the past quarter-century where wages
| have been steadily boosted higher,
prices constantly pushed lower, and
hours gradually cut shorter.
There is, however, one dark spot in
the outlook for American living stand
ards;-that is waste. Billions of dol
lars are squandered every year in the
! United States. / estimate that acct
dents, fires, worthless products, use
) less competition, failures, sickness
and the like eat up 5000, 600, 900 an
nually. To this terrific destruction
must now be added the new item OF
| government extravaganza: Living
standards are advanced through i'm
provement in production methods
which result in multiplying wealth OF
increasing our annual "good income.
Bureaucracy, boondogglin, shovellins
dirt from one pile to another,-these
do not create wealth or produce goods
They destroy our wealth and dissipate
our income in terms of goods.
Our Federal expenditures this pas