Two Bankers Talk to the Public

Dominion, Volume 21, Issue 172, 21 April 1928, Page 19

Two Bankers Talk to the Public

Sermons Preached from the Business Pulpits

“ British bankers are proverbially cautious to the verge of conservatism. It is they that have given to the City its reputation for the long view and the sound, unsensational method. The present heads of the Big Five, most of whom have delivered their annual addresses during the past week, are men of varying capacities, personalities, and affiliations. But they are all steeped in the steady-going traditions of British finance, and they are all instinctively on their guard against any undue optimism. When, therefore, one finds them unitedly giving it as their opinion that trade is genuinely on the mend, the average man and the average manufacturer are only too ready to take their word for it.” —” Sunday Times.”

ME. E. HUGH TENNANT, Chairman of the Westminster Bank, in his first speech in that position, proved himself a worthy successor of the late Dr. Leaf. He dealt with the question of saving and spending. “In spite of the substantial volume of money constantly seeking investment, whether through new or old channels, there is a consensus of opinion among economists that as a nation we arc saving less and spending more than we did before the Great War. The phenomenon of freer spending obtrudes itself upon our notice every day. “The masses of the people are better clothed and better fed. The motor-car, a few years back, was a luxury of the rich; to-day garage accommodation is one of the first preoccupations of architects of even humble houses. This phenomenon compels . us to face the question whether it is beneficial because of the quickened demand for commodities which it entails, or whether it is harmful because it means a diminution of the rate at which the nation is replenishing its saved and invested capital which, in the past, has proved itself the corner-stone of the country’s economic structure. “Superficially, the answer is easy. In so far as this freer spending represents a higher standard of living, better health, increased efficiency and happiness, it is entirely welcome. In so far as it represents mere squandering, it is to be wholly condemned. But the problem cannot be dismissed so lightly as that, for it presents many complexities. Probably most authorities would agree that the general public should pay closer attention than they are at present paying to the need for economy. “The same applies to the Central Government and Local Authorities, for the higher level of taxation, central and local, gravely affects the capacity to save. But in this matter of private and personal expenditure appearances are often deceptive. For instance, in a period of rapid changes, such as we have been passing through, a number of goods have a way of passing out of the category of undoubted luxuries into, or very nearly into, the class oFcommodities regarded as necessities. “Two factors which facilitate this change are scientific invention and mass production. In the present case, the former has brought silkwear within the reach of almost every purse, while by the latter method the motor-car has become cheaper and cheaper, and, therefore, progressively available to wider and wider sections of the population. “There are two more aspects of this difficult problem of spending and saving which deserve more attention than they receive, and both are connected with developments of a permanent nature. There has been since pre-war days a substantial measure of re-distribu-tion of income as between various classes of the population, the result of which is that the purchasing power of the richer classes has declined, while increase has taken place in the real income of the poorer. “Since it is easier for the richer to save than for the poorer, this tendency probably means a permanent decline in the volume of national savings, and emphasises the importance of such efforts to inculcate thrift as that undertaken by the National Savings Movement.” Mr. E. M. Holland-Martin, C. 8., at the annual meeting of Martin’s Bank at Liverpool, proved, too, that all the finest speeches are not made in London. Speaking on the importance of the human touch in industry, he said:—

“Most of our industrial troubles arc a bad heritage from the past and the result of too rapid a growth.

“Two hundred years ago Defoe wrote: ‘There is in England more labour than hands to perform it, and consequently a want of people out of employment.’ “To-day, on the contrary, we undoubtedly suffer from too large a population and too little work, so that some unemployment is inevitable. “When Defoe wrote most towns and districts' were self-contain-ed and exported their surplus production with more or less ease; and in .those days, and' for long after, masters and men, living at each other’s doors, knew each other intimately. Then came the age of invention, of steam-driven machinery, of factories, and the consequent herding of the population into large towns, ill-constructed houses—and the factory age was at its worst. “No longer was it possible for all those employed to live near their work, and with the improvement in road and rail communication the .employer himself moved far from his works and tried to leave his cares behind. Thus was broken the close and intimate connection between man and man that had been made less possible, too, by the increasing size of the works. “Whilst opportunities of intercourse, except in working hours, gradually grew less, labour was being driven to think that its interests and those of capital were irreconcilable and that only by combination could a worker obtain his rights. Combination has many merits and has accomplished a great deal, but it fails completely when it is thought that it can only be through the leaders of combinations that any communication between labour and management can be established. “In all man’s affairs, however mechanical they may become, the human touch is.essential and is more important than ever to-day if-this country’s trade, by which we all live, is to be carried on successfully. And it is this human touch that can save the present situation. “The three elements in every business—capital, labour, and management—can, if endowed with that human touch, work together. In these days of joint stsock companies and small share holdings, capital is less and less becoming confined to one class. Everyone is encouraged to savei and saving for investment in the trade of his country is the duty of each of us to-day. Share-holding by the workman in the business he works in is being more and more encouraged, and is certainly one of the ways in which he can share in the profits. Even' if, so as not to have all his eggs in one basket he invests in some other business he is acquiring capital and realising that capital must be remunerative if he, as a shareholder, is to make certain of selling his shares for at least the money he puts into the business. “Then with regard to the management and the worker himself—is there really so wide a gulf? Many of the greatest business men to-day have risen from the ranks. Talent is in greater request each day and everyone starting work should feel that he has the chance of rising, to the top, a chance .that should improve if the energies of all concerned in a business can be devoted to seeing that the quality of its wares is of the highest standard and that it is getting at least its share in the markets of its trade. “The tide has undoubtedly turned, and if all internal strife can be ended and al! energies directed towards re-establishing this country’s great name for the quality and price of its goods, we may hope for a great revival in our trade.”