Show p Washington There There is an m era of good feeling going the rounds that thatis is quite different Era of than thin anything we Good Feeling have had since earl early in 1929 1920 It is being promoted with a great deal of at enthusiasm and present results as well as indications justify the promotion work that is going on in the New Deal press agent circles This era of at good feeling is quite an nn interesting thing from another angle namely politics It is being used by the politicians again to establish es es- I. I President Roosevelt in the same situation as he found round himself at the beginning of or his first term in inthe th the White While House I am afraid heI he ho heis I 1 is being built up again as a superman superman super super- I man and in politics a superman or his position is hard to maintain in inthe the public mind Business also is Indulging in this era of good feeling Business always al at- ways puts its best foot forward just justas as lovers do It wants to develop a spirit of good will on the part of the public and it wants to show its financial financial finan finan- cial backers how things are coming along all hunky There is nothing nothing noth noth- ing wrong in the attitude It is perfectly perfectly perfectly per per- logical and human human and and it is S very interesting to see this wave of healthy feeling grow 5 The important as well as the interesting interesting in in- thing about this era of I good feeling is that to the expert students it shows a gradual if it not conclusive decline in depression conditions It proves that things are on the up grade not grade not that they tore tre re at the top yet but that a momentum momentum momentum mo mo- mo- mo is being established which economic may carry the recovery to the top if it the federal government government govern govern- ment meat settles down and treats business business busi busi- ness with fairness As I said above New Deal press agents are promoting this business recovery for all that It is worth Naturally they are attributing it to the election re-election of Mr Roosevelt asU as U- U tt tt- basic factor in this upward surge surg of business The are Ire capitalizing capitalizing capitalizing cap cap- it to the fullest because by so capitalizing it the political party in n power gr is its due share of credit There is no doubt that they will continue on this course because everyone likes liles to read or hear about S improved business conditions restoration restoration resto resto- ration of dividend payments increasing increasing in increasing in- in creasing volume of traffic any and andall andall andall all things that show the nation is slowly but surely getting back on its economic feet While the New Dealers Dellers are shouting shouting shout shout- ing from the tile housetops how President President dent Roosevelt has accomplished all Ill of these things there comes a I discordant discordant dis dis- note from business itself Business leaders just like politicians politicians politicians want credit for whatever is accomplished whether they are ore responsible responsible responsible re re- re- re or someone else They do donot donot not care any more than politicians whether the credit properly property is theirs It is simply an exposition of the vain ain glorious trait that seems to exist in hi nearly everyone S Business is seeking to show that it is pulling itself together opening opening open open- ing new factories Whose raising in inthe wages 5 the Credit spite of New Deal policies with the handicaps that some of those policies policies poli poli- 5 cies des include So business is seeking seeking seek seek- ing lag to counterbalance the politicians and the politicians speaking S through New Deal press statements are trying to fortify their own position position position tion as saviors of the country Neither Neither Nei Nei- ther one is correct Without doing too much debunking I believe it ought to be said that President Roosevelt and his associates have executed some government policies that have been beeD helpful to the business business business busi busi- ness structure With equal frankness frankness frankness frank frank- ness it ought to be said that business business busi busi- ness leaders have taken the bull by the horns and have proceeded to help ma materially in putting commerce and industry back on the right track again Neither one ought to take 5 too much credit Some credit i is due each but neither one ne nor both r together is entitled to claim all of the credit for the recovery of business business busi busi- S ness that is now underway S The answer to the upward swing of business lies chiefly in the fact act factS that the depression has S worn itself out Jt It would have worn itself out Just the same whether the administration administration administration admin admin- was New Deal or lican It would have accomplished Just as much in the way of expanded expanded ex ex- buying power and increased I production whether Mr Roosevelt was re-elected re or whether he had be been n defeated and nd Governor Landon of at Kansas had been elected at the end of the recent national cam COlm- I am reminded by this discussion of a remark that the late Black made while he was governor r of the Federal reserve board Ont On t that occasion I asked him whether r there were signs of the th end of the depression n. n His reply was not yet He lie added however that the Ule depression would destroy Itself as other depression In history had bad done and that when this point a t exhaustion had been reached commerce and industry would take an nn upward swing Th Then n he added with rc reference to some of the economic economic economic eco eco- students of the Ule administration tion in power It will wear itself out and good times will come back again and again and every doggone professor and economic theorist in the world will try to claim credit for it So I think It can cnn be said without equivocation that if anybody or anything anything anything any any- thing is entitled to credit for the indicated recovery movement we had better be fair and admit it was wasa a combination of circumstances not the least of which was the natural law of supply and demand It seems utterly silly to me for any individuals als or groups of individuals to attempt attempt attempt at at- tempt to corral all of the praise 0 Those who have access to the market market market mar mar- ket pages of the Ule great metropolitan daily newspapers Wage must have been Increases impressed by the rap rapid i d fire announcements announcements an an- noun cements coming from big industrial industrial industrial in in- corp corporations rations of wage increases increases increases in in- creases bonuses for employees and melon cutting in the form of dividends dividends dividends divi divi- for the shareholders They must have been impressed likewise likewise likewise like like- wise with the sharp rise in security security security ity prices that obviously has reflected reflected reflected re re- the expanded and increased earnings A prosperous na nation tion may not always always always al al- al- al ways be a happy one but there is a certain psychology about a prosper- prosper 01 0 i nation that makes it carefree It is a psychology that makes the average m man n and woman forget to toa a 3 large extent about the recent pinch of economic displacements and as well those same people are inclined to disregard and ami give no I consideration to the morrow Let us look into those circum circum- stances When corporations or other forms of business have reasonable years in their particular lines early in the winter they begin tc te see what the years year's total will be They can figure rather accurately what the returns will be In the last two months say after they have made their totals for the first ten months of the year ear So whenever they reach that stage in a reasonably successful year they tiley can make their plans for distribution of the profits Now we have a tremendously high tax rate on corporation surpluses surpluses surpluses sur sur- pluses and we have rather high tax rates on incomes of als Corpora Corporations lions and other businesses businesses busi busi- nesses therefore start figuring how to do the best they can with the earnings of the year Some of them determine that their employees should share substantially in the profits of their labors others want to distribute as much of these earnings earnings earn earn- earn earn- ings lags as they may to their stockholders stockholders stock stock- holders because such a showing creates a demand in the market for their shares and such a do demand is influential in establishment of the corporations corporation's credit for borrowing money if it needs to borrow from the banks In either cither event corporation corporation corporation corpora corpora- tion managements obviously give considerations to the tax the corpora corporation corporation corpo corpo- ra ration tion would have to pay and I think it is not a matt matter r of condemnation condemnation condemnation nation for them to turn over as much of their profit as they can to o those interested in the business Instead of to a 3 government which wastes so much To be perfectly fair It must be said that the money now being dis distributed either in dividends or in bonuses to workers or in wage Increases increases increases in in- creases was earned before the recent recent recent re re- re- re cent election Its distribution however how ever is motivated largely on prospects prospects pros pros- for the future In other words those responsible for tor of earnings feel that at they can let that money out of their hands Th They y may not be distributing all of the sums available but the era of good feeling is accepted by all of them as indicating the chances for continued earnings are bright S I have merely touched on the effect effect ef ef- ef- ef feet of distribution of earnings among the holders How It of capital It Is Works Out Oat Just as important to consider the effect of distribution of these earnings earn earn- ings lags on the laboring classes Labor has been convinced under the American Amer- Amer American Amer ican lean system for many years that itis it itIs itis is entitled to some share of the profIts profits prof prof- Its from its products ts Employers are taking that same view to a greater extent than anywhere else In the world When labor gets bonuses bonuses bo bo- or gets Increases In its pay there Is a reaction among those workers who have sound judgment that prompts them to do the best they can on their jobs That is to say they become contented workers workers work work- em ers and they are less susceptible to tc the propaganda of radicals who seek to promote strikes and labor disturbances to further the ends of communism That is a part of the era of good feeling as much as the added earnings 01 oi oi corporations or orthe orthe orthe the enthusiasm of politicians over victory CD Western Newspaper Union |