Vagabond Editorials

Bv Jock Dionne

What a mad world this is, my masters ! Look about you, and everywhere its madness must impress you.

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Look abroad ! The Mad Hatter of Germany, envious to an unspeakable degree because the Mad Hatter of Italy has been satiating his blood lust to the South, tears up another "scrap of paper" and moves his armies into the Rhineland. The very air reeks of the blood threat.

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The peace of the world again trembles on a brink that makes that of the summer of 1914 look like a sunny summer's day by contrast. These dictators think only of militarism, and militarism can only live on war. Just as it requires a fire now and then to keep people buying fire insurance, so it requires a war now and then to keep the warmad men in the saddle.

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France trembles under the war menace, just as she has done for generations whenever her sweet neighbor to the East feels the blood lust. Italy assures France that she will help against Germany; all France has to do is help lift the embargo against the slaughter of the Ethiopians.

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The little yellow men of Nippon, driving farther into Mongolia (like Italy seeking room under other guises) is snarling at those who oppose them; and the big Russian Dictator, who, under the fag of "freedom?" has established a Czardom such as the most demoniac Czar never dreamed of, announces in cold terms that he'll lick Hell out of the yellow peril if it doesn't quit crowding his way.

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The world trembles. And well it might.

Here in America the economic situation steadily improves; yet creates a situation increasingly more difficult to understand. The headlines proclaim in clarion fashionand few voices are raised in disagreement-that business is rapidly swinging toward a high peak. It looks from the road as though that were true. Every business you investigate and every business man you talk to, tells you so. Yet look at the unemployment situation !

If we can believe the figures of the American Federation of Labor. UNEMPLOYMENT IS HIGHER TODAY THAN IT HAS BEEN AT ANY TIME SINCE TIIE DEPRESSION STARTED. Think of that! Their most recently publicized figures show more than 12,000,000 men unemployed, which includes, however, about 3,000,000 now on the WPA rolls. They do not consider that genuine unemployment. But even without those millions there are still more than 9,000,000 unemployed, and in a country that looks like a boom.

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Think of it ! These lines are being typed in a county where every business contact shows amazing improvement, and where a boom in all lines of business seems to be imMiNENt; BUT THERE ARE FIVE HUNDRED THOUSAND PEOPLE EATING ON CHARITY ! Can you make all these things add up and come out right?

Yet, judging from business contacts alone, business conditions are steadily improving; have definitely advanced since this column was written just two short weeks ago. Nationally speaking the lumber market isin splendid shape, softwoods surpassing hardwoods in the way of pickup. With the country still swathed in its winter clothes, the softwood lumber business is amazingly active. When spring actually comes and the people begin to really work out-of-doors, it should improve still further. ***

And I can't help anticipating what will happen to lumber and other building materials this coming summer when the bonus money goes into the money-stream to the tune of a couple of billions; and the new farm relief cash begins to flow in copious quantities. It looks from the road as if we were entering into the spring of a magnificent lumber and building year. In fact, the prospects are so dazzling they hardly seem real, after the past five or six years of nothingness.

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I can easily imagine that before the coming summer is over the manufacturers and distributors of building materials are going to be taxed to their utmost capacities meeting the high tide of demand. ,f**

But to get back to this unemployment situation. It is apparent now, and provable, that most of the countless cash spent to relieve that situation, has been hopelessly wasted. The charges of the New Deal critics who have been constantly so alleged, now seem to prove themselves. We have spent sums of money never before heard of on

(Continued on Page 8) strength with light weight---and weight reduction is a

Catwalk of Golden Gate Bridga, scen lrom middle looking north. The little houss is control room for thc spinning shuftlc. The arches over the catwalk are where wires areinterchanged. Shuttles (spinning wheels) starting f rom each end simultancously neet here, exchange their wires and return, thus speeding up thc job 1OO%.

Redwood was specified bccause it combines great factor here.

-Pt@to @wrtesy Aareioted Oil CampaUr.