The potters herald. [volume] (East Liverpool, Ohio) 1899-1982, 1944-06-15

of the more important points which
Mr.. Vol enveloped in his very abl,
address before the Chemists Associa
ton meeting in New York recently:
Job Security OF Paramount
Importance
Faced with the huge problem OF
shifting approximately 30,000,000 o1
war workers and service men int,
avenues of profitable employment il
the postwar period, the question OF
unemployment in the period of transi
tion is of transcendent importance.
After all, the whole life of the work
er is pervaded and nodded by his job
by the physical condition under which
he works; by the length of his work
ing day; by the adequacy of his pay
by the extent to which he is protected
against arbitrary discharge; and by
the nature of the strains under which
he works.
The harmful spiritual consequences
of enforced unemployment are no less
than its material deprivations. How
ever keen and anxious we may be to
help build up the economy of other ma
tions and peoples, we must not attempt
these efforts at the sacrifice and we'll
being of our people.
We are and have been living more
or less under a protective philosophy.
We have our trade unions and trade
associations to look after our respec-
live interests. We have our minimum
wage laws, our child labor laws, our
sanitation and compensation and Sc
curity laws. We have their counter
parts in other spheres of activity. We
have our immigration laws, etc, all
designed for protective purposes. 1t is
therefore just and proper that we
should protect our American standards
of life and of work against destructive
foreign competition.
There has been a tendency in the
United States to discuss the adyan-
tages of freedom of trade and freedom
of enterprise for farmer worker and
business man in general terms, which
almost completely ignore the manner
in which freedom of enterprise has
American economic life, as well as
abroad.
1t would be unquestionably a great
victory for American principles of
free enterprise if the rest of the world
consented to adopt a revised interna-
tional gold standard, based upon
American gold and American credit.
Also, if the world agreed to discard
state controls of domestic and foreign
trade, and to break up giant corporate
groups and cartels that sprawl over
the world markets. There is, however,
no present prospect of the achievement
of these laudable detectives. There is,
therefore, every reason for this coun-
try to take intelligent and prompt
measures to meet postwar realities.
Other Trade Restraints And Barriers
In addition to the foregoing other
considerations must be recognized in
trade Some of these considerations
relate to-
(a) Lack of purchasing power on
the part of the masses of the people of
the world
(b) Lack of price stability; insta-
bility of currencies, laws and regula-
tions restricting the free flow of trade
and currencies.
(c) Quota restrictions and prohibit
ton of imports.
(d) Preferential tariffs.
(e) Government bartering; govern
ment monopoly of trade.
f) Government control of vital raw
materials.
(g) Subsidized shipping and state
industries.
(h) Patents.
All of these are more or less trade
barriers. They do have an effect on
foreign trade and act as trade re-
straints.
Submerged and low living and work
ing standards of people abroad do re-
strict and limit and as well tend To
degrade the markets of the world. This
condition may rightfully be considered
the most vicious of all our trade re-
If standards of living and OF
work were increased everywhere to
our American standards the Increase
of the purchasing power of the masses
in all lands would be tremendous.
Even were such an additional pur-
chasing power in existence interna-
tional trade as well as the masses
would benefit little unless stability Of
prices was assured. The possibility of
securing an assurance of the stability
Of the money of the peoples of the sew
erai nations will be one of the inn
portant problems in our postwar
world. Depreciation in the value of
is therefore closely associ-
ated, as q trade barrier, to the lack
Of purchasing power on the part of 50
many of the nations of the world
Placing quota limitations on either
imports or exports constitutes other
grave trade barriers. These preclude
an equal opportunity to all producers.
Preferential tariffs, such as are in
effect among the nations of the British