TWENTIETH ANNUAL YEAR BOOK— PART VII 603 



retaining his residence in Iowa, but he is in Chicago and Wash- 

 ington most of the time, and it certainly gives me great pleasure 

 at this time to introduce to you people once more our leader who 

 has been before us so many times and who has been our guide 

 and our kind of balance wheel in all these things. At this time 

 I am going to introduce to you the Hon. Clifford Thorne, of 

 Iowa. 



ADDRESS OF CLIFFORD THORNE. 



Friends: It does me a world of good to get back here to the Corn 

 Belt Meat Producers' Association. I cannot express it too strongly. But 

 you know how I feel about it. 



At the present moment we are living through a period of uncertainty 

 and change and upheavals in government and industry. We don't know 

 what is going to happen next. It is interesting to live these days even 

 if it is hard on some folks. 



In lieu of the world war, there are some problems in industry between 

 the employer and the employe, between organized business and the pub- 

 lic at large, that are challenging the thought of the whole human race. 

 In the counting room, in the shop, in the field, in the court room, and 

 in the legislative halls of state and nation the discussion is centering 

 about some great industrial issues. 



There are some who fear that international wars will be succeeded 

 by industrial warfare. It would be difficult to estimate which would be 

 more unfortunate, more costly to humanity. Some other way out must 

 be found. Some method must be devised for the peaceful solution of 

 these questions — a method that will protect the just rights of all parties, 

 if you and I expect to hand down to our children, and to our children's 

 children, the fruits of two thousand years of Christian civilization. One 

 road leads to welfare and progress; the other leads to destruction and 

 anarchy. We of today must make the choice. 



The labor question is probably the greatest before the American peo- 

 ple. You have that question on your farms. Yesterday in Minneapolis 

 I learned of a fellow that had solved the labor question so far as he was 

 concerned — he has a family of three and one-half dozen children. (Laugh- 

 ter.) He believes in producing it on the farm, thereby eliminating the 

 Issue — three and one-half dozen children, actually. That man has that 

 family by one wife. (Laughter.) Nine children, altogether — three, and 

 one-half dozen. (Prolonged laughter.) Of course, that is rather discour- 

 aging for a young fellow like me. (Laughter.) 



This labor question cannot be solved offhand. A few weeks ago I 

 was in conference with the shippers, and I was asked to commit myself 

 definitely to a particular policy that had been reduced to print and passed 

 one house of congress. I took the position that I wasn't ready yet to say 

 what stand I should take. I am heartily in favor of such legislation as 

 will make impossible a general railroad strike (applause) ; that would be 

 a catastrophe to human industry; but, on the other hand, that legislation 



