Evening star., 1941-08-17

900 for the boom days of 1929. For the
sake of accuracy it should be noted that
these 1929 and 1941 figures are only esti-
mates since there are no official statis-
tics on unemployment. The A. F. L..
| estimated June unemployment at $780,
600 and the C. I. o. 6,305 900. The labor
organizations include as unemployed
those persons who are certified as on
| the relief rolls such as the c. C. c., the
W. p. A. and the N Y. A.
Where Income Goes.
An article in the current issue of Sur
vey of Business. published by the Com
merce Department, gives a general idea
come. Although the latest figures are
for 1910, it shows that employees are
getting larger share of the income than
in 1929. In 1929 the total compensa-
ton paid to employees" IN wages, salaries,
work-relief wages and Social Security
contributions of employers, was 64.3 per
cent of the national income and by 1910
this item had increased to 688 per cent,
while entrepreneurial )ownersD with
drawals from enterprises other than
agriculture slipped from 10-2 per cent to
9.8 per cent, and total dividends. inter-
est, net rents and royalties dropped from
1876 per cent to lab per cent. Many
owners are making greater profits this
year than in 1910 but many employees
have gained wage and salary increases.
With increased employment the workers
| share this year is likely to be greater
| than last year and far greater than in
1929, both in percentages and in actual
dollars.
Another large group benefiting from
the growing prosperity is composed of
farm owners, tenants and workers. The
Department of Agriculture recently made
the following estimate:
During the first five months of this
year cash income from farm marketings
was IA per cent higher than in the cor
responding period of 1910. Present
prospects are for a relatively high level
of agricultural production in 1s4l, which.
together with the probable trend of farm
prices during the remainder of the year
and cash farm income to date, indicates
that the total cash income from farm
marketings in l94l may be as much as
10 billion dollars. In, 1910 the cash in
come from farm marketings totaled
s8.357 900 900. Should the present pros
poets for income in 1941 be realized, it
would be the highest for any year since
1929, when income was 112 billions.
Highest recorded farm income in the
past 80 years was IA billions in 1919"
One Big Group Excluded.
One large segment of the population
is not now included and is not likely to
be included in the coming boom, and,
in fact, will be penalized by rising prices.
This group, numbering millions is made
up of Federal and local civil servants,
including school teachers police and fire
men, and the unorganized white-collar
workers and persons with relatively fixed
| incomes. If the prosperity can be pro-
longed, they will eventually. benefit, but
| their immediate prospects are not bright.
| Also likely to be affected adversely are
| those who will be thrown out of en-
| ployment by shortages of materials and
| capacities created by the change of pro-
| duction from peace to wartime goods.
The Eastern seaboard is experiencing an
economic disruption recently for the
| first time because of the order of Sec
retary of the Interior Ickes, as oil CO.
ordinator, that all filling stations shall
close down between pm. and 7 am.
Other descriptions are bound to follow
if the Government cuts production of
automobiles, refrigerators and electrical
Appliances.
This brings up the question:. How will
the increased national income be spent?
| The answer is not so simple as it would
| be If the administration was not trying
to prevent imitation by governmental con-
troll of prices and rents while ignoring
control of wages. There will be more
money than certain types of goods and
| in free economy the natural answer
would be to let the law of supply and
demand determine the price of commod-
tiles The Roosevelt administration, how
ever, has different plans for the national
economy and the next few months will
tell whether they are the right answers.
| Price Administrator Leon Henderson,
in a recent article in Fortune magazine,
guessed that the national income
would reach sos 900 900 900 during the
fiscal year ending June 30, 1912, and that
IF we do not find means Of increasing
capacities that would mean taking S.
100000. 900 to $1,000. .oooo 900 out Of the
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