The Skyland post. [volume] (West Jefferson, N.C.) 193?-1988, 1937-12-30

community, the nation as whole was face to
face with an economic crisis
Those were serious days and it looked as
though our great capitalistic system and our
still greater system of democratic government
were falling by virtue of this economic crisis
caused by lack of adequate distribution.
Something had to be done and done at once.
So the courageous new president, Franklin D.
Roosevelt, launched upon an entirely new pro-
gram of federal government activity, in an eff
fort to reduce unemployment raise the income
of farmers and industrial workers, as well as
manufacturers, insure the safety of banks and
numerous other things which were completely
foreign to our capitalistic-democratic systems.
The program of the New Deal was purely So
cialistic, yet it endeavored to stay within the
bounds of constitutional limitations
The immediate effects were altogether graft
flying and it accomplished amazing results from
temporary or emergency standpoint. 1t pro-
vided the necessary amount of high-powered
stimulation needed by the sick patient but as
permanent policy, many of its features have
been questionable. In fact several of them were
killed by the Supreme Court and it was obvious
that the government couldn't long continue to
spend far more than it was collecting.
However, in practically every election that
has been held during the past five years, includ-
ing the presidential election of 1886, the New
Deal has won by overwhelming odds. But in
1887 the sailing of the Roosevelt ship hasn't
been so smooth. The Presidents Supreme
Court plan, launched last February, hit rough
and rugged sea, the lawless action of dictator
ship and strife assumed by labor and labor
leaders have mudded the waters, the big break
in the stock market and the resulting business
recession and industrial inactivity have stirred
up high waves of opposition and in response to
all this conservative congressman and senators
needed the warnings of "stop, look and listen"
and during the special session they didn't get
far with the administrations wage and hour
bill, agricultural program, tax revision, govern
mental reorganization, etc. And in the closing
hours Senators Bailey and Vandenberg at
tempted to form a coalition movement de-
signed to return to age-old principles OF
sane and safe" legislation, and put an end to
governmental interference with business,
growth of bureaucracy and the concentration
of powers in the hands of the president The
movement was prefaced by an address to the
American public, containing an outline OF ten
basic principles.
Shall we return to our old system and
abandon the socialistic New Deal? That
is the question before Congress today.
We don't claim to be authorities or to
Be able to answer that question for Con-
gress, but we do not believe it would be wise to
return completely to the old system, as much as
we like and admire it. Governmental control
of crop production and industrial working con-
ditions are absolutely essential to maintain
buving power and avoid collapse in the capt.
talistic system.
On the other hand before setting up any
crop control, wage and hour legislative restric-
tons Congress should realize the fact that to-
day the United States no longer holds her
unique position of having products that the rest
of the world want and are willing to pay for
For the past twenty-five years we have had
workers paradise in this country. Due the IN
ventive genius of many American brains and
to our capital, we pioneered in the fields OF
transportation radio, mass production OF silks,
woolens and cottons and rayon materials, food
items and numerous other things that the rest
of the world didn't have and was willing to buy
and pay for
But due to our philanthropic disposition, we
have taught other nations how to make all OF
these things in their own countries, and the re-
suit is that today we are having to compete on
foreign markets with all other nations There
fore, what is the outcome?
It is simply this We don't have much of
chance and at the same time maintain our high
standards of living. How can we compete when
fIroo limos &c MIR