The Western news. [volume] (Libby, Mont.) 1933-current, 1939-11-23

WTAoiiiaSd io4ss-NOSt vi lile new
Deal economists have not been op-
timistic about business and employ
ment prospects for the coming
spring. They have heavily discount
ed prosperity from war orders, in
sisting that these will not be so great
as expected. But the chief thing
worrying them is inventories. They
insist that American producers have
piled up tremendous stocks in antic-
lpation of popular demand, that
this demand has not increased in
proportion, and that hence produc-
ton must ease off They are not
predicting anything remotely resem-
bling a crash, just an increase in
unemployment
These arguments are pretty near
ly the whole case of those left wing
ers who have been screaming late
ly for a new spending orgy by the
federal government. 1t is only fair
to say at this point that this desire
for federal spending, so essential in
the eyes of most left wingers, is
neither the chicken nor the egg in
this case. Some of the govern
ment economists making this pre-
diction of spring conditions are per-
sonally not in sympathy with spend
ing at all. They are holdovers-
not appointees given places at the
suggestion of the Frankfurter-Cor-
coranCohen group.
But to the layman, SO ignorant of
statistics that he might have diff
ficulty understanding one of the
elaborate charts SO dear to the econ
omists, there is much skepticism
about these gloomy prophecies. The
war orders are very tangible. They
are tremendous. They promise to
grow bigger. Far from slowing
them down, sinking of ships carry
ing the supplies to Britain and
France will increase the demand,
for every cargo sunk must be re-
placed.
For example, if a situation should
arise under which every other cargo
exported to Europe were DESTROYED.
and continuation of this condition
clearly faced the British and
French, they would still be COM
PEELED to keep on buying, and to buy
twice as much as though the seas
were clear! They have to defend
themselves and eventually to win
the war, as they see it, and though
neither the British nor the French
will like wasting money, money is
not and cannot be the prime essen
tial for long time to come.
May Fly Planes to Europe
To Auoid U-Boat Menace
Already there is talk about flying
the planes to Europe-from New
foundland-to circumvent the sub
marine menace. But it is obvious
that the more serious the submarine
menace becomes, and the more seri-
GUS the menace of German bomb
ing planes becomes, the more air
planes Britain and France will need
both to fight Nazi planes and to
spot Nazi subs.
Starting from that, and looking at
the whole situation with a cold eco
nomic eye, it is obvious that Amer
lean factories reducing planes, mu-
nitions and c.ner supplies for the
allies are going to be kept pretty
busy. 1t is just as obvious that the
people working in those plants will
have money to spend, and hence
will buy things calculated to keep
other lines of production occupied.
The very argument so much used
by left wingers as to the advantage
of federal spending-in that the dol
lars spent keep right on circulating
with equal force to this
war spending.
Besides, there will be heavy fed
eral spending, even though no great
new WPA fund or anything of the
kind is voted by congress.