ao 



HAKDWOOD RECORD 



•'\.'r\ttiiii|; wrubbrd rlran nod fVorrtliinK wha in lino •■undition. Mrs. 



ml when lUie nrrivml, "Why linvo you cicnnr.l up no unu-h 



•All, MrK. I'lnnry, lUi< byt-ji nrc K<»''>8 *» Ix' '"' ""• "f •'*'"H 



> ■ ■ " Hut Uioy won- iiciit up for U>n yoam npioco, anil it in 



. now." "Yen, MrH. Clancy, but Uioy coch Rot off 



.;..ih1 bohavior. " "All, Mrn. McGowan, it is ii (if'ot 



ti.iit you havo two such good by«i. " 



.-v.. ;.^ ui iiiivt in this n!»ocintion, wc Rntlior strength bccauiic of 



ir nii-<'tiut; with one another. Wo K>arn to linvo confidence in one 



,: .'IIht, «t> Icam to bcliovo in ono another. Wo loarn to fool wo aro 



•\i by mon all about us who think along tho saino linos as wo 



Miij;. That is a splendid purpose and a i;ood plan for tho men 



n tho hardwood lumlior industry to pursue, to get toi»ethor 



t'lon of this kind. You havo a magnificent organization, 



■ ■• ■ ,!.ly until two years ago you had no opportunity of 

 > ■•., ^ |.r ,. ii.:illy in iini."oii with the wholesale lumber dealers ami 

 !lio yollow pine jieoplo, with the shoo manufacturers, tho clothing 

 iiianufarturors, and .«o on. There was no particular machinery to be 

 iiflTortsI to the busiiii>s.s men to operate through a common center. For 

 lifty years Germany has had a national (1iamlH>r of Commerce. Ger- 

 many has not imA a war for forty years, and Germany has shown 

 ;;roator progress in the development of itji manufactures, its industries 

 :ind business life than any other nation in the world. The German 

 (liamlier of Commerce at Berlin has a school with 2,000 students, 

 young men who are being actually trained to the business experience 

 of Gorman life. When Gennany wants to open up a foreign jmrt thoy 

 take a young man well tr.ained in that school and send him to that 

 foreign port. He does not do anything but go there and spend three 

 years and spend money: he learns tho customs and habits of the 

 lieoplo. Then he goes back and says to the manufacturers: "Send on 

 your stuflf. I know those people. I can sell your goods," thus ful- 

 filling the two functions of a good salesman, knowing his goods and 

 knowing his customers. 



We have not been doing much of that, and I think one reason that 

 wo are running a little low today is that we are over-capacitated in 

 our factories. I Ijelieve that if all of our factories would work full 

 time for ninety days they could produce anything that this country 

 would actually want for a whole year. Of course we have to open 

 up foreign ports, foreign markets. China wants to trade with us ; 

 Japan wants to trade with us ; they are trading with us. 



All of us must work through one common center. Two years ago 

 the Chamber of Commerce of the United States was organized at 

 Washington, on the call of Mr. Taft, who realized that tho administra- 

 tion ought to be closer to all of the business interests of the country. 

 One thousand men as.sembled in Washington and organized this cham- 

 ber. Harry A. Wheeler of Chicago was elected president because of 

 his wonderful powers for organization, and within the last two years 

 this chamber has become numerically the strongest federated commer- 

 cial body in the world; an institution that brings together the lumber 

 people, the shoe people, the steel people, the retailer, the wholesaler, 

 manufacturers, the real estate dealer, all of the men who are en- 

 gaged ill business, and whenever a question comes up that h.is to do 

 with business, in so far as legislation is concerned, .a referendum is 

 taken on that subject. Your secretary is so advised. A vote is taken 

 by your body and the result of that vote is carried to the proper 

 committees in Congress and also to the President and to those to 

 whom it might be necessary to take it. In that way we are gradually 

 getting one million and a quarter of business men connected with 

 many great institutions to come together in close cooperation. But, 

 passing the referendum is not the whole thing. Wo get tho vote of 

 the people, and then comes a time when we must back it up. Almost 

 two years ago we took a referendum when the sundry civil service bill 

 was ])assed, having appropriated $300,000 for prosecution of trusts, 

 but no part of which was to be used for the prosecution of labor 

 unions or agricultural associations. Mr. Taft vetoed that bill on the 

 ground, judicially, that it was cl.iss legislation and, therefore, not 

 constitutional. Mr. Wilson signed the bill and simply said that it 

 was not constitutional, but the attorney-general had other funds 

 from which to draw if he wanted to prosecute a labor union. Now the 

 labor unions have come l>ack and have had incorporated in the Clay- 



ton bill tho pro|>oiiiUoD that labor uuioua and agricultural OMocia- 

 tions aro to Ih< exempt, and nomo luir the bill was cleverly worded, 

 NO tliat tho labor unionit«« can go out to all of tho induiitrial worker* 

 of this country and soy, " If two or threo of you follow* got together 

 and are not memlwrs of tho lolmr union and attempt to go on ntrike 

 or enter into n conspiracy for restraint "f trade, they con get you; 

 but if you wilt join the labor union you ivill Im- exempt under Uii* 

 law. ' ' 



The Chamber of Commerce of tlie United States has Htart<>d n fight 

 on that — no lobbying. Wo aro simply going to call on tho busineu 

 men of this country to «cnd in their protests, and thousands and 

 thousands of letters have gone to individual congressinon. When 

 you get home you shouhl write to your congressman and tell him that 

 you are backing up tho Chamber of Commerce of tlie Unito<l States, 

 of which your organization is a member, in reference to this propo- 

 sition. 



Wc are not declaring against labor unions; we are not declaring 

 against agricultural organizations. Thoy have the right to organice, 

 tho same as you have, the same as we have; but we do declare that it 

 is unconstitutional and not consonant with the fundamental principles 

 of American freedom to give any man a right that is not given to 

 another man. (Applause.) Wo do declare that tlio man who has 

 created the opportunity for another man to be prosperous shouhl be 

 regarded equally before tho law. 



I will admit that perhaps business, in some form or another, has 

 been guilty of misdemeanor and felonies, possibly high crimes, but 

 only a small percentage of it hos been so guilty. I would venture to 

 say that, if you could investigate and ascertain definitely the facts, 

 you would find that less than one-half of one per cent of the business 

 men of America were voluntarily dishonest. I do not believe that you 

 would find any body of men, representing so much invested capital, 

 doing such great work and accomplishing such large results who are 

 so upright and just and who so largely contribute to the prosperity 

 anil happiness of this country as the business man. There was a 

 time when Caveat emptor (let the buyer beware) was the usual busi- 

 ness maxim. The business man of today knows that the only way 

 he can keep his customer is by honesty and fair dealing, and he likes 

 the dollars he makes by fair business dealing. Suppose you swept 

 business out of existence today; suppose you silenced every factory, 

 every mill; suppose you closed the doors of every business institu- 

 tion of this country today, what would be tho result f Wc would nat- 

 urally revert back to barbarism. I think a new patriotism is sweep- 

 ing over this country and business men are realizing that it is becom- 

 ing more and more difficult to keep what they have; that tho course 

 of many national problems is becoming suicidal and that it is doubt- 

 ful whether the maxim "equal rights to all" is in truth a fact; they 

 aro realizing that with less hammering of business, business men can 

 accomplish a great deal more that will lie for the best interests of 

 all; and that is what the Cliamber of Commerce of the United States 

 is trying to do. Everything that it attempts to do is out in the open; 

 is the subject of newspaper comment ; there is nothing concealed about 

 it. It simply presents the views of the various business communities 

 throughout the country. When wc take action the result of our work 

 is sent to the members of Congress. Your own organized action is 

 sent to them. A business man of Oskaloosa, Iowa, writes to his con- 

 gressman — not "Congressman So-and-so," but "Dear Bill" — and 

 he says, ' ' We want you to support this measure ' ' — such a thing as 

 they havo under consideration at that time — and Bill is more than 

 likely to -see a very distinct and clear light, because Bill 's constituent 

 helped to finance the congressman's political campaign. Out of 475 

 organizations represented by this chamber, more than 200 are in the 

 smaller communities; they are a part of congressional districts, and 

 the people living in them aro close to their congressmen. They do not 

 attempt to exercise any insidious influences, but they are all out in 

 the open. AVe have a right to ask the .support of our congressmen 

 and our representatives in the Senate, and they are learning that 

 business men are not asking anything that will harm the country, but 

 that they are asking only for such things, for sifeh legislative action 

 that will bring about stable prosperity an<i the largest amount of 

 hai>piness to the greatest number; and we all know that business pros- 



