Evening star., 1938-09-13

care for Mexican labor-the work.
mans way Of sharing in Mexico's
abundance" This is the simple
sounding program. Complications of
working 1t out will be dealt with in
succeeding articles. But there's nolh-
Ing In 1t that came from Russia.
Morrow Was Teacher.
The most important development is
the rise of class more conscious of
wealth to be made through production
OF finished goods and exploitation Of
home markets than through landlord
ism. Ironically enough. Gales, now
sulking this side of the border. was
the promoter OF this new capitalist
group and Dwight Morrow. late AM
bassador to Mexico. was its teacher
Thanks to his advice Mexico now
has native technical men to con-
struct roads, run the oil industry and
build factories. But the sight Of one
capitalist group raising up another to
compete with it is a commonplace
Of history.
Naturally, the new Mexican capi-
talists are not averse to seeing for
eigners barred from the exploitation
Of Mexico's richest resources. Silly
Of our oil men to think that MeM-
can capitalists would battle for them.
Government ownership will mean
many splendid opportunities for the
native industrialist. In theory the
land distribution policy dovetails per-
fectly with the new industrialism.
Turn poems into purchasers by max
ing them farmers! And workers must
have more than 40 cents q day to
become buyers-here's where the labor
movement enters. Agrarian and labor
reforms are designed to bring support
both to the government and to Mexi-
can industry.
Development Of Mexican industry
is one of the planks of the "six-year
plan'-historically the most impor-
tant, though most generally overlooked
in the U. S. A. Cardenas has given
native industrial capitalism every pro-
lection, turned over the immense new
bus, and truck transport business to
1t. put through favorable banking
laws and given subsidies to Offset the
deprecated peso on necessary imports.
while the lowered peso automatically
assists the capture of the home mar
ket. These are plans to make Mexico
the factory for all Latin America
note the Canadian Car Il Foundry
deal-and to set up promotion COM
merce department similar to ex-Presi-
dent Hoover's.
Paying Royalties to U. s.
There is not space to list the hun
dreds Of new items Mexican capitalism
is producing-some paying royalties on
United States patents, such as tires,
Stetson hats and Coca Cola; some au-
thorized limitations such as soaps and
cosmetics, and some original products,
such as leather goods. Suffice to quote
a two-year-old industrial census OF
some 5000 factories valued at 7,000.-
900 pesos, with a yearly output worth
approximately billion. and employing
10000 wage earners at an average OF
$50 pesos year-if salaried men are
included, the average leaps to 1000.
A fair capitalist start!
Maturing Mexican nationalism now
resents the removal of $4,000, 900 900
worth of silver from its mines and
81, 500. 900 900 worth of oil from its SUBJ
soil without apparent equivalent wealth
left behind. Cardenas speaks the
Mexican mind. Capitalist and Socialist
alike. when he refuses henceforth to
foreigners the profit on 10000. 900 bar
rails Of Mexican oil and $4,000, 900
worth OF hennequen fiber taken yearly
-regardles sof whose contracts and
what international laws are outraged.
In the face Of this frankly confisca-
tory nationaliSm there are only two
practical attitudes: Use force, economic
or military or both, to crush it, or
write of the losses and play ball with
1t. In the former, the cost and. con-
sequences Of force, direct and indirect,
must be considered. In the latter
choice there is the consolation that
the losses have been many times cov-
cred by the takings. The bad strategy
Of injured British and American in
terests and our State Department is
that the generals moved into the Of
fensive without bringing an army
along!
Mining Industry Intact.
There are huge American industries
that do not relish such a mistake.
American metal mining. chiefly copper
and silver, is having its profits squeezed
by union labor, but is far from ready