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P E N D I N G P R O B L E M S VOR W A G E - E A R N E R S . ~ By A. E. OUTERBRIDGE, JR.

In studying the important question of m a n a g e m e n t of employ6s of industrial establishments from a commonsense as well as just and humanitarian point of view, it is necessary to r e m e m b e r that a factory is not an eleemosynary institution; the functions of the two are radically different, and experience has proved that modern m a n u f a c t u r i n g industries cannot be practically conducted under the old idea of paternal or patriarchal regulations. The operative is jealous of his personal freedom and suspicious of purely philanthropic schemes originating within the establishment, and he resents any beneficial regulations savoring of charity. He does not complain of the strict enforcement of just rules, but he is quick to take advantage of laxity on the part of overseers, which, if continued, soon leads to chaos. On the other hand, unjust regulations cannot be permanently enforced under the modern labor restrictions, for labor legislation in this country is extremely comprehensive, and takes cognisance of such infractions.~" An address to students of the W h a r t o n School of Finance, University of Pennsylvania, Class in Sociology, on the occasion of a visit to the works of Win. Sellers & Co., Incorporated, P h i l a d e l p h i a ; with an appendix and footnote references added thereto for this publication. t The labor laws differ greatly in the different States. Massachusetts has led t h e way in such legislation, and the other States are following in her footsteps. Most of these laws increase the responsibilities of employers, thus : Methods of protection from fire and accident must be provided in all factories and workshops, a n d employers c a n n o t by contract exempt themselves from liability for injuries to an employd. T h e buildings must be provided with proper sanitary a r r a n g e m e n t s ; each room where m a c h i n e r y is placed m u s t be connected with the engine room by s p e a k i n g tubes, electric bells, or appliances to control the motive power. The most m i n u t e regulations exist relating to the entire economic system of factory construction, operation and i n s p e c t i o n ; a n d laws g o v e r n i n g the payment of wages, e x e m p t i o n from fines or g a r n i s h m e n t of wages, or tools of trade for debts, etc., cover every phase of e m p l o y m e n t growing out of t h e factory system, and are distinctly favorable to labor. (See .Eng..l~rag., September, 1895 ) . VOL. CXLI. No. 845. 22

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In some instances w h e r e labor legislation has been elabor a t e d to a d e g r e e w h i c h was u n d u l y oppressive to employers, it has served to restrict industrial development, reacting u p o n the i n t e n d e d b e n e f i c i a r y - - t h e e m p l o y 6 - - a n d has n e c e s s i t a t e d the a b a n d o n m e n t of such policy. T h e " g r a n g e r l e g i s l a t i o n " relating to railroads in some of the W e s t e r n States affords a well-known illustration of this tendency. Employ6s are no longer ignorant of their rights or privileges, and employers, as a rule, n e i t h e r care nor dare to t r a m p l e upon t h e m ; b u t experience has also p r o v e d that w h e r e v e r n u m b e r s of men are m a s s e d together, a certain degree of strict g o v e r n m e n t is essential to the preservation of order and the proper c o n d u c t of business. M a n y of the rules and r e g u l a t i o n s of w o r k s h o p s and factories w h i c h to the u n i n i t i a t e d a p p e a r harsh or unjust, are, in reality, n e c e s s a r y to protect the faithful employd from impositions of shirkers, of w h o m there is a l w a y s a certain n u m b e r even in the b e s t - r e g u l a t e d e s t a b l i s h m e n t s . It is a favorite o b s e r v a t i o n w i t h w r i t e r s on social and political e c o n o m y t h a t the world is c o n t i n u a l l y passing t h r o u g h periods of " social evolution." One of the latest and m o s t p o p u l a r of t h e s e a u t h o r s ( B e n j a m i n Kidd) calls the p r e s e n t time " t h e m o s t r e m a r k a b l e epoch in the history of h u m a n t h o u g h t . " P o r t e n t s of i m p e n d i n g c h a n g e s in the established order of things, affecting the v e r y f o u n d a t i o n s of society and the welfare of mankind, are f r e q u e n t l y revealed to the innate p e r c e p t i o n s of such writers; and it w o u l d seem from some of t h e s e - - m o r e especially the Germ a n a u t h o r s - - t h a t the industrial world is n o w u p o n the v e r g e of a social cataclysm, o u t of w h i c h a n e w civilisation, the r e s u l t a n t of m a n y o p p o s i n g forces, w o u l d be evolved. Such prophecies (like Benner's) h a v e h i t h e r t o apparently o b e y e d the " l a w of a v e r a g e s " w i t h r e s p e c t to the proportion of hits and m i s s e s ; yet new forecasters of future social conditions, who believe that t h e y perceive s h a d o w s of " c o m i n g e v e n t s " cast before, continue to decipher these signs according to their introspective vision r a t h e r than t h r o u g h the light of p a s t experience. T h e f u n d a m e n t a l principle of the Malthusian theory, that

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population tends to increase in geometrical progression, and that the supply of food and other necessaries of life can only be increased in arithmetical progression, tersely expressed the social problem of Malthus' generation ; but the subsequent wresting from N a t u r e of virgin soil of vast extent in India, Russia, America, and other parts of the globe, affording feeding ground for countless flocks and herds, together with facilities for plowing, sowing and reaping unlimited crops through the aid of modern agricultural machinery, and the modern methods of rapid distribution, changed all the former conditions, rendering the law inoperative during the century which has elapsed since its promulgation. Some of the more recent prophecies have proved equally abortive, and others are likely in the near future to share the same fate. The growth of socialism in Europe during the past quarter of a century is one of the "signs of the times" which is just now affording a fruitful field for such speculations. If we permit ourselves to view the present state of civilisation through the spectacles of some of these theorists, or if we countenance the foreign socialistic propaganda, we must, it seems to me, close our eyes to the countless evidences of truly wonderful progress in mental, moral and material welfare which has been made by the wage-earning class in America during this period. The operative of to.day is not only the peer, b u t the superior of his predecessor in all the qualifications that form the mental gauge by which we may measure the intellectual and social relations that an indiVidual bears to the c o m m u n i t y in which he lives. W e may freely admit the statement of the socialist that " t h e rich are growing richer," but it does not follow as a corollary that the poor are growing poorer. It is true that capital, through combination, has vastly increased its power to organise and prosecute industrial pursuits on a scale of unprecedented magnitude, and that, especially as the result of energetic exploitation of new inventions, large rewards have been gained by bold investors; but I claim that, in the aggregate, labor has gained a much larger share of these benefits without incurring any of the risks.

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The rich pecuniary rewards which have been reaped by Sir H e n r y Bessemer, and by other manufacturers who were far-seeing and courageous enough to develop his cheap process of steel-making and its later modifications, make b u t a small item when compared to the countless millions paid to labor during the past thirty years as the result of the development of these discoveries through the aid of capital. The Bessemer process of steel-making did more than this for labor: it sounded the death knell of the most exhaust. ing form of toil known to man, that inferno of labor, the puddling of boiling iron by h u m a n hands. Many similar illustrations could be given. I claim that modern mechanical inventions have in all cases proved to be distinctively beneficial to the wageearner: he is, through their aid, better housed, better fed, better clothed, better educated, has more numerous and better amusements, and is thus approaching more nearly to the condition of the employer. Indeed, the wage-earner to-day enjoys m a n y advantages of civilisation which were unknown to employers of former generations. H e r r Liebknecht, the leader of the Social Democrats in the Reichstag, presented to American readers in The Forum " T h e Programme of German Socialism." I carefully studied his paper with the view of discovering, if possible, some rational explanation of the p r o b l e m - - " H o w is socialism going to benefit the condition of the working class in America?" b u t the question remains unanswered. It is true that figures are given showing the marvellous growth of social democracy in the German Empire since 189o, and the author glories in the title which he gives to German social democracy, viz.: " t h e party of the discontented ;" he also perceives signs of " a n impending social crisis;" he likens the struggle between socialism and the Government to the fable of the goblin and the peasant; b u t the introduction of such a m o v e m e n t into this country could, I think, be more appropriately likened to the fable of the killing of the goose that laid the golden egg. T h e recent presence in this country of more than one agitator from abroad, and the industrious dissemination of

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socialistic l i t e r a t u r e a m o n g our w o r k i n g m e n , w i t h the evident intention of m a k i n g proselytes, t h e r e b y d i s t u r b i n g the peace of m i n d of the operative, e n d a n g e r i n g the stability of our industrial laws, and t e n d i n g to nullify t h e gain w h i c h has come to wage-earners in A m e r i c a t h r o u g h the comparative f r e e d o m from such d i s t u r b i n g elements, is a s u b j e c t of concern to all real friends of the w o r k i n g m e n . In G e r m a n y , the l i t e r a t u r e of socialism has n o t confined itself to a g i t a t i o n of labor questions, b u t has catered to the demand for p o p u l a r r e a d i n g and also for p o p u l a r education. In this w a y it has gained the confidence of the people. " I t has abused this confidence b y g i v i n g d i s t o r t e d views of the writings of m a n y of the g r e a t e s t thinkers and e d u e a t o r s ; " it has used p o p u l a r e d u c a t i o n as a club with w h i c h to beat into ignorant skulls the socialistic p r o p a g a n d a . T h e e n o r m o u s socialistic vote in G e r m a n y proves the success of the force used. Such a force, if properly applied, w o u l d be immensely beneficial to h u m a n i t y ; b u t i m p r o p e r l y used, socialism is, as H e r b e r t S p e n c e r declares, " t h e g r e a t e s t calamity t h a t has ever befallen the h u m a n race." T h e most intelligible exposition of m o d e r n G e r m a n socialism m a y b e found in a little book entitled " T h r e e Months in a W o r k s h o p , " w r i t t e n b y a student, Paul G6hre. In a p r e f a t o r y note to the E n g l i s h translation b y Prof. R i c h a r d T. Ely, it appears that "Mr. G6hre, perplexed b y conflicting theories and r e p o r t s t o u c h i n g the lot of the German wage-earners, d e t e r m i n e s to b e c o m e a wage-earner himself, and, d o n n i n g the g a r b of a workman, finds e m p l o y m e n t in a large e s t a b l i s h m e n t for the m a n u f a c t u r e of m a c h i n e tools in S a x o n y ; he m i n g l e s for three m o n t h s with his fellows, w h o n e v e r s u p p o s e d him to be a n y t h i n g else than a wage-earner; he shares their life, participates in their a m u s e m e n t s , a t t e n d s their political meetings, and then tells what he has seen with that simplicity which is itself liter. ary art of a h{gh order. T h e n a r r a t i v e is plain, straightforward, truthful." T h e book is m o r e than this; it is a practical view of a s u b j e c t w h i c h has b e e n clouded in mists. T h e w r i t e r has shown himself a keen observer, a d i s i n t e r e s t e d and enthusiJ

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astic investigator, h a v i n g nerve to e n t e r the factory on the l o w e s t r u n g of the ladder, and to live and toil with the h u m b l e s t employds, for the definite purpose of g r a s p i n g the b o t t o m facts of socialism as it is c o m p r e h e n d e d b y the w o r k i n g m e n themselves, not as p r e s e n t e d to the world by the leaders in the m o v e m e n t , m a n y of w h o m do not really b e l o n g to the class t h e y a s s u m e to represent. T h a t Mr. G6hre should have succeeded, u n d e r t h e s e heroic conditions, in s h o w i n g in his little book a d e a r e r i n s i g h t into the labor question and social d e m o c r a c y in G e r m a n y than can be f o u n d in m a n y m o r e e l a b o r a t e treatises, is not altogether surprising. In t h e chapters, " W o r k in the Factory," and " T h e Material Condition of My F e l l o w - W o r k m e n , " the A m e r i c a n s t u d e n t and o p e r a t i v e will recognise a b u s e s still existing in G e r m a n y , which our m o r e p r o g r e s s i v e establishm e n t s h a v e eliminated. T h e contrast, also, in rates of wages and q u a l i t y of living w i t h wage-earners in A m e r i c a will excite s y m p a t h y , b u t will also weld the A m e r i c a n more firmly to the belief that the condition of the wageearner in this c o u n t r y is a h a p p y and f o r t u n a t e one, by c o m p a r i s o n ; that its s t a b i l i t y m u s t not be j e o p a r d i s e d by c o u n t e n a n c i n g socialistic agitation. ¢ In the chapters on " P o l i t i c a l T e n d e n c i e s of m y FellowW o r k m e n " and " S o c i a l Democracy," t h e s t u d e n t of industrial sociology will find m u c h v a l u a b l e information. In the c h a p t e r s on " Moral Conditions " and " E d u c a t i o n and Religion," ethical q u e s t i o n s are plainly discussed. T h e final chapter, on " R e s u l t s and D e m a n d s , " will interest all read* On entering the shops, Mr. G6hre received 2o pfennige (4"8 cents) per hour. Compulsory deductions were made for assessments for sick benefits, insurance, fines for lateness or carelessness, etc. Men working at the vise earned I5 to 2t marks ($3.6o to $5.04) per week ; their foremen, $5.28 to $6.72; drillers, working on time, $3.6o to $4.56. " Piece workers " made considerably more. A specially skilled workman " w o u l d receive as m u c h as 40 marks (~9.6o) per w e e k . " It thus appears that the highest wage of the most skilled operative slightly exceeds the lowest wage for unskilled labor in this country. The h o m e life of the men is shown to be on a plane far below that of the average wage-earner in America. Some suggestive and important information is to be gathered from a book just issued by the British Board of Trade, giving the statistics of wages paid

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ers. It is s h o w n t h a t the l a b o r q u e s t i o n is not m e r e l y a wage question w i t h the v a s t m a j o r i t y of the l a b o r i n g class. .It is only one factor in the m o v e m e n t u p e r h a p s the m o s t tangible, b u t not the most i m p o r t a n t or d e t e r m i n a t i v e one. " T h e r e is an ardent longing on the part of the w h o l e class of factory l a b o r for m o r e respect and recognition, for g r e a t e r actual and social e q u a l i t y in addition to the formal and poiitical equality, w h i c h is theirs already. ¢ * ~ It is the irresistible impulse to a larger intellectual freedom, the craving for the benefits of k n o w l e d g e and education, and for a fuller u n d e r s t a n d i n g of those high and lofty p r o b l e m s of the h u m a n soul which, despite the universal p u r s u i t of wealth and externals, rise up before h u m a n i t y to-day, n e w riddles in n e w forms. All this, rough, discordant, full of anomalies and extravagances, y e t plainly visible to the observant eye, s t a m p s the b e g i n n i n g of the labor m o v e m e n t in G e r m a n y . " If confined to such lofty aims, the mission of socialism would be w o r t h y of, and w o u l d c o m m a n d the s y m p a t h y and hearty co-operation of all e n l i g h t e n e d people ; b u t Mr. G6hre shows that it is n e c e s s a r y first to u n m a s k the h y p o c r i s y of social-democratic literature, to oppose the true to the false, the impartial to the p a r t i s a n ; he tells us that " G e r m a n Social D e m o c r a c y is to-day not m e r e l y a political party, not merely the p r o m o t e r of a n e w s y s t e m of economics, or even b o t h of of these and n o t h i n g more ; it is also the e m b o d i m e n t of a philosophy, a logical, anti-Christian, materialistic conception of the universe. U p o n this materialistic s y s t e m it founds its for manual labor in Great Britain. F r o m this it seems that the average earned by men is $6.o 3 a week; by women, $3.o8; by boys, $2.24; and by girls, $1.56. These are the averages of the wages of 816,1o6 persons. In Scotland, the rates are lower than in E n g l a n d by Io, and in Ireland by some 20 per cent. The best-paid trade is that of builders, and then, in order, distillers, brewers, metal workers, engineers, saw-mill workers, coach builders and printers. Railroad m e n average $5 a week. The chances of earning $Io a week are not common; 37 per cent. of tlle printers, 33 per cent. of the tinplate workers, 13 per cent. of the Ship-builders, ri per cent. of copper and brass workers and io per cent. of coopers attain that amount. On the whole, the report indicates t h a t wages in a11 British trades are on the increase, but at a very slow rate of progress.

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economic and political system. This principle, the caricature of a so-called science, w o r s h i p p e d by its followers, is the corner-stone of t h e party, gives it a u t h o r i t y and ideals, and. exercises the m o s t fatal and lasting influence, not so much on the social and political tendencies as on the intellectual and ethical character of t h e w h o l e G e r m a n l a b o r i n g class." T h i s n e w gospel of socialism ran like wildfire a m o n g the h u n d r e d s of t h o u s a n d s of G e r m a n w o r k i n g m e n . Herr L i e b k n e c h t tells us that " n e a r l y 2,ooo,ooo of m e n v o t e d for the socialistic p r o g r a m m e on the ISth of J u n e , 1893, to w h o m m u s t be ad,ded nearly I,OOO,OOOof voteless y o u n g men b e t w e e n the ages of t w e n t y and twenty-five years." T h e spread of socialism in G e r m a n y has n o w reached the degree w h i c h is p o p u l a r l y t e r m e d w i t h us a " c r a z e . " Its earliest converts b e c a m e its n e w prophets, its inspired p r e a c h e r s ; from inner conviction t h e y g a v e their whole strength, their u t m o s t capacity, to the cause. " W h e r e v e r t w o or three m e t together, m e n set forth and discussed the t h o u g h t s t h e y h a d i m b i b e d from one b o o k or half a dozen • books of the n e w l i t e r a t u r e ; s o m e t i m e s fairly grasped, s o m e t i m e s only half c o m p r e h e n d e d and more than half forgotten, b u t Mways b r o u g h t afresh to their m i n d s b y t h e articles in their social-democratic paper. ~ ¢ ~ T h e effect of this agitation was the one desired. U n d e r its p r e s s u r e all t h e old y o u t h f u l training of t h e w o r k m a n gave way, and is still g i v i n g w a y in e v e r y individual w h o b r i n g s such training with him to a f a c t o r y w h e r e the spirit of social d e m o c r a c y prevails." If, now, we cull out these true and noble y e a r n i n g s of the w o r k i n g m e n , discarding the sophistries of their self-elected leaders, we find t h a t their aims are those which have already been largely a t t a i n e d b y the w a g e - e a r n i n g class i~ A m e r i c a t h r o u g h e d u c a t i o n ; and while we m a y reasonably: s y m p a t h i s e with the G e r m a n " p a r t y of the discontented," we h a v e n o t h i n g to gain b y the d i s s e m i n a t i o n of their socialistic literature, t h o u g h t h e y h a v e m u c h to learn from US.

In E n g l a n d the socialistic m o v e m e n t p r e s e n t s a different phase of d e v e l o p m e n t : there are f e w e r factions or cliques

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of socialists, and the t e n d e n c y t o w a r d anarchism, while n o t so rabid as a m o n g the most radical w i n g of the p a r t y in Germany, is a p p a r e n t l y even more g e n e r a l l y diffused. S o m e of the r e c e n t socialistic literature p u b l i s h e d in E n g l a n d h a s a decided flavor of anarchism, at least in so far as it preaches the o v e r t h r o w of laws b y w h i c h land is held in private o w n e r s h i p ;. the p r i v a t e or corporate o w n e r s h i p of all kinds of property, factories, railroads, telegraphs, etc.; and evidences are not lacking of w i d e s p r e a d d i s c o n t e n t and unrest a m o n g the industrial population, w h i c h d e v o u r s such literature with avidity. It is r e p o r t e d t h a t I,ooo,ooo copies of a single b o o k of this c h a r a c t e r have r e c e n t l y b e e n sold to w o r k i n g m e n in England. The latest cabled reports indicate t h a t a reaction in labor sentiment has set in in Englaud. T h e r e w a s r e c e n t l y in session at N e w c a s t l e a " F r e e L a b o r Congress." T h e president's o p e n i n g address is r e p o r t e d to have b e e n " a vigorous a t t a c k on trades-unions, which, he declared, were manipulated b y self-seekers, w h o s e t y r a n n y disgraced the cause of labor." H i s association, he said, h a d already f o r m e d " b o a r d s of conciliation " at m a n y i m p o r t a n t centers. T h e s e boards were f o r m e d of equal n u m b e r s of m a s t e r s and operatives, and were all w o r k i n g in perfect harmony. A n editorial writer, c o m m e n t i n g u p o n this cablegram, says : " T h e revolt from trades-unions was not unexpected. It was bound to come as soon as the m o r e intelligent w o r k m e n perceived that t h e y could no longer own themselves, b u t were v i r t u a l l y m a d e slaves of the lazy and inefficient members of the organisation. It is singular t h a t this should have b e e n p e r c e i v e d first in E n g l a n d i n s t e a d of in America." This writer is e v i d e n t l y not well informed in the history of the rise and fall of several labor-unions in this country, which, a few years ago c o u n t e d their m e m b e r s b y thousands, w h e r e they n o w n u m b e r units. Compared with a period of four or five years ago, the larger n u m b e r of the unions h a v e sunk into a condition o,f " i n n o c u o u s d e s u e t u d e , " controlled b y cranks. Labor-unions, however, s h o u l d not all be classed u n d e r one category, for some of these are beneficial organisations,

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with high motives, s o u n d constitutions, and, a b o v e a11, wise leaders. Such o r g a n i s a t i o n s are o p p o s e d to violence and disorder, e n c o u r a g e h a r m o n y and arbitration, and are mutually beneficial and helpful to e m p l o y e r and employ6 ; they are aiding to discourage the spread of a n a r c h i s m and sociali s m in this country. Socialistic theories are inimical to A m e r i c a n ideas and principles, for the h u m b l e s t w o r k m a n i~ a free citizen, to w h o m a p a t h w a y is o p e n e d to the h i g h e s t positions of honor a n d wealth. M a n y of our f o r e m o s t m e n h a v e risen from lowest origin, and h a v e no cause to be a s h a m e d thereof. Socialism can offer no c o m m e n s u r a t e a d v a n t a g e s ; its tende n c y is not to raise the m a s s e s to a higher plane, b u t to r e d u c e the c o m p e t e n t to the level of the i n c o m p e t e n t . The world is always c r o w d e d with i n c o m p e t e n t operatives, while at the s a m e time there is an unsatisfied d e m a n d for the a b s o l u t e l y competent. In daily friendly i n t e r c o u r s e w i t h w o r k i n g m e n , extendi n g over a period of t w e n t y years, I h a v e f o u n d a prevalent idea in m a n y m i n d s that e m p l o y e r s of labor are, as a class, j e a l o u s of the m a t e r i a l a d v a n c e m e n t of w a g e - e a r n e r s b e y o n d a certain point; t h a t a m a x i m u m w a g e is soon reached b e y o n d which t h e y cannot hope to pass, and t h a t extra effort on their part w o u l d result m e r e l y in an increase of tasks w i t h o u t a c o r r e s p o n d i n g increase of pay. T h i s impression is more g e n e r a l l y inculcated in the m i n d s of operatives than e m p l o y e r s realise, and it operates to their m u t u a l d i s a d v a n t a g e . Modern " p i e c e - w o r k " s y s t e m s of p a y have b e e n devised (and are n o w g e n e r a l l y practised) w i t h a view of s t i m u l a t i n g w o r k m e n to p r o d u c e the g r e a t e s t o u t p u t and largest p e r c e n t a g e of perfect w o r k ; b u t these elaborate s y s t e m s are, to a certain extent, r e n d e r e d inoperative by reason of the suspicion mentioned. T h a t t h e r e m a y have been, and m a y still be, some g r o u n d for such impressions I do not dispute, b u t I do believe t h a t a m o r e enlightened v i e w of the m u t u a l relations existing b e t w e e n e m p l o y e r and employ6 is g r a d u a l l y p e r m e a t i n g the industrial world. T h e g r e a t d e v e l o p m e n t of mechanical i n v e n t i o n has not only increased the d e m a n d for skilled l a b o r b y increasing

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the output and opening constantly new fields of labor, but it has increased tenfold, and in some instances one hundredfold, the possible product of labor per capita. This is the reaso~ why the American employer, paying the highest wages in the world, is, nevertheless, able to compete in the markets of Europe with so-called " p a u p e r labor" in m a n y manufactured articles. ~ It has been proved by actual experiment on a large scale in certain sections of this country, that ignorant foreign pauper labor in m a n u f a c t u r i n g industries is ultimately the most costly, and the aim of enlightened employers today is not to obtain the cheapest labor but the most intelligent service. The true policy of the workingman is, there. fore, not agitation but education.+ * Mr. Mulhall, the English statistician, has recently published some tables relating to the producing power of the different nations of the earth. They show an enormous increase during the latter h a l f of t h e century of the productive power of the people of this country, and they prove, moreover, that no other nations possess equal producing power 1her capila. By the figures which he has tabulated, Mr. Mulhall shows t h a t from i82o to I89o the " f o o t t o n " power of the United States increased from 4,292,ooo, ooo foot-tons daily to I29,3o6,ooo,ooo foot-tons. A foot-ton is a m e t h o d that statisticians have of measuring the producing powers of a country. It signifies the ability of a man to accomplish, with ordinary exertion in ten hours, an amount of work equal to raising 3oo tons I foot high. In I82o, the forces at the command of the Americans were equal to 446 foot-tons of power p e r capita of the population. By i89o , the productive forces had increased to 1,94o foot-tons per capila. These forces are now busily engaged in developing the resources of the country, in cultivating t h e soil, working the mines, operating the industries, carrying on the commerce, or in looking after the development of the mental powers and the e n l i g h t e n m e n t of the people, whereby their producing powers may be still further increased. Next to America in the scale comes Great Britain, the producing power of which is 1,47o foot-tons to the inhabitant daily. Germany's forces amount to 902 foot-tons for each person daily; those of France to 9Io foot-tons ; t h o s e o f Spain to 59° foot-tons ; those of Austria to 56o foot-tons, and those of Italy to 38o foot-tons. Thomas Carlyle, in his essay on Labor, said : " T h e latest gospel in the world is; K n o w thy work and do it ; * * * for labor is l i f e ; from the inmost heart of the worker rises this God-given force. * * * Knowledge, that will hold good in working, cleave thou to that, for Nature herself accredits that, says ' Y e a ' to that. Properly thou hast no other knowledge but what thou hast got by working ; the rest is all a hypothesis of knowledge --a thing to be argued of in schools, a t h i n g floating in the clouds, in endless logic vortices, ' till we try it and fix it.' "

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The organisation through the aid of capital of large industrial operations, superseding former small independent industries, is a frequent source of lamentation on the part of well-meaning philanthropists and others, on the theory that the small merchant has been injured thereby. This is probably true in isolated instances, but the evidence that the wage-earner (the subject of our discussion)has been benefited by improved regulations, superior factory buildings, and amelioration of exhausting toil under modern methods, is overwhelming. Moreover, the employment of large capital and improved machinery has enormously increased production and decreased cost to the consumer. Wages are higher and cost of living is lower than formerly. The average wage-earner in America lives to-day in a m a n n e r quite superior to the small manufacturer of former days. The large factories employ armies of skilled operatives, m a n y of whom would be incompetent to conduct even small industries successfully. T h e y are reasonably assured of a fixed income, and are often enabled, by saving a portion of their wages, to become small capitalists themselves. Capital is, after all, nothing more than the aggregate savings of labor. The great financial operations are conducted by the aid of these savings of the masses, otherwise the thrifty workingman could receive no interest on his deposit in the savings' bank. The individual millionaire is a much less important factor in the world's work than the socialistic agitator would have us believe. The " g o o d old times " are hallowed in our recollections and in our traditions; but when subjected to critical comparison with the improved civilisation of modern times, we find, I think, that the masses have gained immeasurably in all the comforts and conveniences of life, in social position, in political power, in freedom from care, in health and happiness. The coming conflict between proletariat and plutocrat is a favorite theme with socialistic writers. According to these, wealth is p e r se criminal, and its chief employment the oppression of the poor. I claim that modern experience

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proves the a n t i t h e s i s of this s t a t e m e n t , which selects exceptional i n s t a n c e s of financial crimes and a t t e m p t s to use these as a b l a n k e t with w h i c h to s m o t h e r all the good deeds and grand u n d e r t a k i n g s in which capital is ever e n g a g i n g . Patriotic s e n t i m e n t also protests a g a i n s t such s t a t e m e n t s . The aid of capital has b e e n the means, within little m o r e than a century, of raising the U n i t e d S t a t e s of A m e r i c a from the condition of an insignificant a g r i c u l t u r a l colony, which was not p e r m i t t e d u n d e r monarchical rule to manufacture the simplest articles for h o m e c o n s u m p t i o n , into the greatest w o r k s h o p of the world, and has placed it in the front rank of w e a l t h and p o w e r a m o n g nations. ~ Capital has s t i m u l a t e d the i n v e n t i v e faculty of the people and t h e r e b y aided the operative, in m a n y instances, to emerge from the condition of the laborer into that of the capitalist. V e r y many, p e r h a p s a m a j o r i t y of e m p l o y e r s in this country, are men w h o have risen from the ranks of labor. T h e reckless d e n u n c i a t i o n of w e a l t h b y foreign socialistic agitators is the chief d a n g e r c o n f r o n t i n g the industrial class in A m e r i c a to-day, since it tends to retard i n v e s t m e n t of capital in industrial enterprises, and thus to restrict the e m p l o y m e n t of labor. It is far easier for the a g i t a t o r to "kill the goose that lays the golden e g g " than it is for the mischief-maker to turn his h a n d to h o n e s t labor. T h e free soil of A m e r i c a is not a d a p t e d to the g r o w t h of such The first s p i n n i n g j e n n y ever seen in America was secretly imported from England and exhibited in P h i l a d e l p h i a in I775. In I774, the British Parliament enacted s t r i n g e n t laws p r o h i b i t i n g the exportation to America of textile machinery. It was provided (by 2I George III, Chap. 37) t h a t " a n y person who packed or p u t on board, or caused to be b r o u g h t to a n y place in order to be put on any vessel for exportation, a n y machine, engine, tool, press, paper, utensil, or silk m a n u f a c t u r e of the kingdom, or goods wherein wool, eotton, linen or silk are used, or any model or plan of such machinery, tool, engine, press, utensil or implement, should forfeit every such m a e h i n e , etc., a n d all goods paeked therewith, and ,(2oo, and suffer i m p r i s o n m e n t for one year." In I782, a law was euacted which prohibited, u n d e r penalty of X~5oo, the exportation or a t t e m p t to e x p o r t "blocks, plates, engines, tools or utensils used in, or which are proper for, t h e p r e p a r i n g or finishing of calico, muslin, etc." The same act p r o h i b i t e d t r a n s p o r t a t i o n of tools e m p l o y e d in iron and steel m a n u f a c t u r e s . - - U . S. T e n t h Census, Vol. II, p. 537.

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noxious weeds, and the sooner such pernicious doctrines are eradicated, the sooner will our i n d u s t r i a l population reap the rewards to be g a i n e d in the r e t u r n i n g prosperity for Which it has so l o n g and p a t i e n t l y waited. APPENDIX.

Tlte Cost and Danger o f Strikes.--Few persons are aware of the e n o r m o u s a n n u a l loss of wages due to strikes. Startling figures are f u r n i s h e d by the L a b o r B u r e a u at Washington in a recent publication, covering the period from 188t to i894, inclusive. It appears t h a t no less t h a n 3,714,4o6 persons were thrown out of e m p l o y m e n t , suffering a loss in wages of $I63,8o7,866. Fifty-five and one-half per cent. of the strikes failed entirely; 32 per cent. are classed as successful, and I2½ per cent. as doubtfl/1, or p a r t l y successful. L a b o r organisations c o n t r i b u t e d $Io,914,4o6 to assist strikers. T h e promoters of strikes a r g u e to t h e i r comrades that unsuccessful efforts are, nevertheless, u l t i m a t e l y beneficial; b u t s t u d y of the s u b j e c t has led me to take the opposite view, viz.: t h a t all strikes of skilled w o r k m e n are, in the end, h a r m f u l to the participants. No one single cause has done more, in m y opinion, to h a s t e n the i n t r o d u c t i o n of entirely a u t o m a t i c m a c h i n e r y in operations where a certain degree of skilled labor was considered indispensable, than strikes on the part of such skilled employ~s. N u m e r o u s instances m i g h t be recalled where large m a n u f a c t u r e r s have, on account of strikes, c h e e r f u l l y e x p e n d e d i m m e n s e sums of m o n e y in p e r f e c t i n g a u t o m a t i c m a c h i n e r y , not primarily to effect e c o n o m y in wages, b u t as an i n s u r a n c e against f u t u r e d a n g e r from such causes. A n o t a b l e instance of this n a t u r e occurred a few years ago at one of the largest iron and steel works in the world. In a certain d e p a r t m e n t , specially skilled m e n were able to m a k e wages which now seem incredible; t h e y were, however, paid a p e r c e n t a g e upon the tonnage, and, o w i n g to e n o r m o u s o u t p u t , the profits of these operatives exceeded in some years t h a t of m a n y successful m a n u f a c t u r e r s having large capital at stake. T h e s e m e n considered them-

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selves indispensable, and s t r u c k - - n o t for h i g h e r w a g e s or shorter h o u r s - - b u t at the dictation of outsiders. When work was resumed, t h e y f o u n d their o c c u p a t i o n gone forever; a u t o m a t i c m a c h i n e r y h a d s u p p l a n t e d the f o r m e r skilled labor. I do not believe t h a t any employd (I m y s e l f am o n e ) i s indispensable, and m a n y highly skilled and o t h e r w i s e valuable operatives have, u n f o r t u n a t e l y for themselves, failed to appreciate this fact until too late. T h e d a n g e r I h a v e indicated r e g a r d i n g the effect upon skilled l a b o r of strikes, does not appear to have p r e s e n t e d itself to the m i n d s of the w o r k i n g m e n ; and if their leaders have perceived it, t h e y h a v e concealed it. I regard the strike as a b a r b a r i c w e a p o n of attack, r e s e m b l i n g s o m e w h a t the boomerang, which, we are told, f r e q u e n t l y r e t u r n s and injures its projeetor. A n o t h e r e l e m e n t of d a n g e r to the w o r k i n g m a n , w h i c h usually a c c o m p a n i e s a strike, is the license which it affords to the irresponsible and lawless e l e m e n t of society to c o m m i t depredations, e n d a n g e r i n g the lives and p r o p e r t y of innocent persons, and s o m e t i m e s compelling the use of a r m e d force for its suppression. T h e strikers, t h o u g h innocent of t h e s e overt acts, are i n j u r e d thereby, and the suspicion l u r k i n g in many m i n d s is not w i t h o u t foundation, that some leaders of strikes, while openly e x h o r t i n g their followers to preserve the peace, secretly c o u n t upon this outside aid ; and, if t h e y do not, t h e y are s t r a n g e l y blind to the result of past experience. The Eight-Hour Agitation.--This is the f u n d a m e n t a l principle or p h i l o s o p h y of the trades-union m o v e m e n t in this country, and, in 1888, the A m e r i c a n P e d e r a t i o n of Labor, numerically one of the s t r o n g e s t of the unions, v o t e d to unite with the E i g h t - H o u r League, and thenceforth to concentrate all effort on the s t r u g g l e for eight hours. T h e i r program was then to take charge of one trade at a time. Thus, in 189o, the g a u g e of b a t t l e fell to the lot of the carpenters, w h o accordingly struck, u n d e r orders, for an eighthour day on May 1st, and won t e m p o r a r y victories in 137 cities. P l a n s were laid for the miners to strike on M a y I,

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I89I , for eight hours, but the conditions were not then f a v o r a b l e ; a n d , a l t h o u g h t h e s e p l a n s h a v e s i n c e b e e n in abeyance, owing to depressed conditions of trade, they have not been abandoned, and I have reason to believe that employers in almost all trades will be called upon to meet this question in the not very distant future. The argument of the eight-hour philosophers is that, by r e s t r i c t i n g t h e h o u r s o f w o r k , m o r e l a b o r e r s m u s t b e employed and the idle surplus provided for. I consider that this is specious reasoning. T h e o v e r f l o w i n g s t r e a m of immigration from European countries, attracted to America by comparatively h i g h w a g e s , s u f f i c e s e v e n n o w t o produce a permanent flood, at least in the fields of unskilled labor. If to this we add the still more powerful attraction of a legal working day of eight hours, the tidal wave flowing from all the less-favored countries in the world would swamp our native industrial population, and induce a condition which would be far less favorable to them than that which now obtains.* * I am able to substantiate these views by figures bearing upon the subject. The official statistician of Paris, M. Bertillon, gives the proportion of foreigners in that city as 7"5 per cent.; these are chiefly wealthy persons who distribute a portion of their funds among the tradespeople. London and Vienna have each 2'2 per cent. Berlin has I'I per cent. of foreigners, also mainly persons of wealth. The foreigners residing in American cities are chiefly poor immigrants, who compete with the native working class for wages, and are accustomed and content to live in comparative squalor. The percentages of " foreignbgrn " to total population in five principal American cities are as follows: Philadelphia, 25"74 per cent.; Boston, 35"27 per cent.; New York, 42"23 per cent.; Chicago, 40"98 per cent.; Milwaukee, 38"92 per cent. More than 3° per cent. of the foreign-born males, 21 years of age and over, in the five cities named, are aliens. The percentages of "persons of foreign parentage" to total population in these cities are as follows : Philadelphia, 56"58 per cent.; Boston, 67"96 per cent.; Chicago, 77"9° per cent.; New York, 8o'46 per cent.; Milwaukee, 86"36 per cent. This information was courteously furnished by the Chief of the Census Division, Department of the Interior, Washington, March 12, I896. More rigid enforcement of contract labor laws has decreased importation of foreign labor under direct or written contract, but there is ample evidence that Italian labor purveyors still influence such immigration. Immigrant Inspectors Birmingham and Hinkle reported (under date of January ii, 1895) to the Secre'.ary of the Immigration Investigation Committee, among other

May, x896.]

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T h e eight-hour p a r t y has succeeded, t h r o u g h political influence, in m a k i n g e i g h t hours a legal w o r k i n g day in governmental e m p l o y m e n t , and largely also in municipal contracts, and violators of the law have been r i g o r o u s l y prosecuted. A r e m a r k a b l e case occurred in Buffalo, w h i c h w o r k e d g r e a t hardship upon a citizen, and led to the decision of Justice White, of the Superior Court at Buffalo, declaring the eighthour law unconstitutional. Justice W h i t e ' s decision was based upon the clause of the Constitution w h i c h provides that " no person shall be deprived of life, liberty or p r o p e r t y without due process of law." T h a t provision of the Constitution has been c o n s t r u e d to m e a n t h a t the r i g h t s and privileges of a citizen to m a k e contracts relating to his business or property c a n n o t be i n t e r f e r e d with by legislation. It has facts, as follows: " M r . Desabadia (an Italian padrone of New York) informed us that h e was regularly e n g a g e d in supplying Italian laborers, in any numbers, to contractors or others desiring labor done; that he was prepared now to furnish from 2o0 to 6o0 men (Italians) for work of any nature ; that he could furnish stone-masons, carpenters or men of almost any of the building operations." The equivalent of the padrone system is not confined to Italians. Poles, Hungarians, Greeks, and other foreigners, temporarily camping in this country, are forwarded, " on call," wherever large operations are in progress, crowding out American labor by accepting lower wages. In Texas and other border States, invasions of Mexicans occur at regular intervals, especially at s h e e p s h e a r i n g time ; these people contribute n o t h i n g to the wealth of the country, and patronise the railways by walking home on the ties ! An investigation made b y t h e Senate Committee on I m m i g r a t i o n in I893 (Senator Hill, chairman) developed the startling fact that Italian bankers remitted to Italy from New York City alone $25,o0o,ooo to $3o,ooo,ooo a year, largely savings o f " D a g o " laborers, and a marked increase in wealth in certain sections of Italy has been traced directly to m o n e y earned in the United States by these " b i r d s of passage." Italians who have become domiciled here for a few years are b e g i n n i n g to make incursions into skilled labor fields where formerly t h e y were unknown, and where even a suggestion of the kind would have been ridiculed. In the shoe trade, for example, it is said that large numbers of Italians have been substituted for American workmen who went out on strike some time ago. The facts stated in these various foot notes have been gathered by the writer at different times during several years from a variety of i n d e p e n d e n t sources, and it is only when placed in juxtaposition that their true significance becomes apparent. These illustrations are but a few samples of facts at h a n d t h a t are too numerous to mention, and they present practical problems for legislators and workers, of far more importance t h a n any theoretical discussions. VOL. CXLI.

No. 845.

23

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been declared by the courts that liberty, in its broad sense, a s u n d e r s t o o d i n t h i s c o u n t r y , m e a n s t h e r i g h t n o t o n l y of f r e e d o m f r o m a c t u a l i m p r i s o n m e n t , b u t t h e r i g h t of o n e t o u s e his f a c u l t i e s in all l a w f u l ways, to l i v e a n d w o r k w h e r e h e will, to e a r n h i s l i v e l i h o o d i n a n y l a w f u l c a l l i n g , a n d to p u r s u e a n y l a w f u l t r a d e or v o c a t i o n . All laws, therefore, w h i c h i m p a i r or t r a m m e l t h e s e r i g h t s , w h i c h l i m i t o n e i n his c h o i c e of a t r a d e o r p r o f e s s i o n , o r c o n f i n e h i m t o w o r k o r 1 i r e i n a specified locality, or e x c l u d e h i m f r o m his o w n h o u s e , or restrain his otherwise lawful movements, except where the p u b l i c h e a l t h or s a f e t y i n t e r v e n e s , are i n f r i n g e m e n t s upon h i s f u n d a m e n t a l r i g h t s of l i b e r t y , w h i c h a r e u n d e r c o n s t i t u tional protection.*--People vs. W a r r e n , 34 N . Y. S u p p . , S u p e r i o r C o u r t , B u f f a l o , 942. T h e i m p o s s i b i l i t y of r e g u l a t i n g t h e r a t e a n d h o u r s of labor by legislation, unless in the exercise of the police p o w e r , or law of p u b l i c h e a l t h a n d safety, w a s r e c o g n i s e d y e a r s a g o b y C h i e f J u s t i c e R u g e r , i n M c C a r t h y vs. M a y o r , *" Henry J. Warren, superintendent of the Barber Asphalt Company, was convicted by a police court in Buffalo of a misdemeanor for a violation of this (eight-hour) section of the Buffalo charter, and punished by imprisonment. From his conviction he appealed to the Court of Sessions and to the General Term of the Supreme Court, where the conviction was affirmed, the courts holding the act constitutionM and the conviction valid. As Warren could not by law appeal to the Court of Appeals in that case, he sued out a writ of habeas corpus in the Supreme Court, to test the questions affecting the validity of the conviction, and to inquire by what authority he was restrained of his liberty. This proceeding is a good illustration of the efficacy of the ancient writ of habeas corpus, for, although the Special and General Terms of the Supreme Court dismissed the writ, and again declared the prohibitory stalute constitutional and the accused properly convicted, yet, upon an appeal to the Court of Appeals, the decisions of the lower courts were reversed, and the arrest, trial aud conviction declared without jurisdiction and void. "After this long and tedious fight Warren was released, only to be arrested again for a violation of the eighthour law, this time for employing an alien Italian laborer. He wasindicted by the grand jury, and convicted in the Superior Court at Buffalo. His counsel contended that the act in question, so far as itseemed to prohtbit the employment of alien laborers upon public works, was repugnaut to the Federal and State Constitutions and to the treaty between the United States and Italy. Upon an appeal to the General Term of the Superior Court, the act, so far as relates to the employment of aliens, was declared unconstitutional, and Warren was discharged."--People vs. Warren, 77 Hun., I2o ; People e x re']., Warren vs. Sheriff, I44 N. Y., 225.

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who said in reference to the original e i g h t - h o u r law t h e n u n d e r discussion : " I t is well to premise t h a t this act was not i n t e n d e d to affect or r e g u l a t e the rate of wages which should govern as b e t w e e n e m p l o y e r and employ6. T h a t s u b j e c t is left by the act, as it always m u s t remain, open, to be fixed by the a g r e e m e n t of the parties i n t e n d i n g to enter into those relations. Experience has shown t h a t legislation on the s u b j e c t m u s t always be futile a n d ineffectual, for the reason t h a t it is controlled b y the n a t u r a l laws d e t e r m i n i n g the value of labor a n d property, and w h i c h are as m u c h b e y o n d the power of s t a t u t e s to affect as t h e y are above the control of the wishes of t h e parties i n t e r e s t e d therein." I do not m e a n to i m p l y from the foregoing s t a t e m e n t s t h a t I am opposed to s h o r t e r h o u r s for labor; on the contrary, I believe t h a t a s h o r t e r w o r k i n g day, w h e r e v e r it is practicable, is beneficial alike to employ6 and e m p l o y e r ; b u t u n d e r present conditions, it appears to me, after a careful s u r v e y of the field, t h a t t h e r e are some p r o m i n e n t o b s t r u c t i o n s w h i c h m u s t be r e m o v e d before an eight-hour d a y can be u n i v e r s a l l y adopted, or before the operatives who now work ten h o u r s a d a y can r e a s o n a b l y hope for a general r e d u c t i o n to e i g h t h o u r s w i t h o u t a c o r r e s p o n d i n g r e d u c t i o n of wages. W i s e m e n u s u a l l y c o u n t the cost of a n y new u n d e r t a k i n g before e m b a r k i n g in it, a n d a v e r y simple calculation will show s u r p r i s i n g figures as to the a d d i t i o n a l cost of manuf a c t u r e s h o u l d employers be called upon to pay the same wage for e i g h t hours' t h a t t h e y now p a y for ten hours' work. If we a s s u m e t h a t an e s t a b l i s h m e n t employs a t h o u s a n d h a n d s (there are factories h a v i n g c a p a c i t y for four or five times this number), a r e d u c t i o n of two h o u r s per d a y per m a n w o u l d m e a n an a g g r e g a t e of two t h o u s a n d hours' r e d u c t i o n per d a y in the shop. A s s u m i n g the a v e r a g e w a g e to be IO cents an h o u r (this is m u c h below the true average), the additional cost for this i t e m alone w o u l d be $200 per d a y ; while the loss from decreased o u t p u t and increased fixed charges, rate of i n t e r e s t on plant, etc., per u n i t of product, would, I believe, e x t i n g u i s h a n y m a r g i n of profit

356

Outerbridge.

[J. F. I.,

o b t a i n e d u n d e r p r e s e n t prices in a n y m a n u f a c t u r e d article w h e r e c o m p e t i t i o n is keen. It is, of course, possible t h a t in those o c c u p a t i o n s in which the o u t p u t d e p e n d s more upon m a n u a l d e x t e r i t y than u p o n the m e r e t e n d i n g of a u t o m a t i c m a c h i n e r y a decrease of w o r k i n g hours may be partly offset b y an increase of effort; b u t this would, I think, prove an exception, the effect of which is, in p a r t at least, d i s c o u n t e d b y the low figure selected to r e p r e s e n t a v e r a g e wages. It is a p p a r e n t t h a t a r e a r r a n g e m e n t of some kind w o u l d be n e c e s s a r y ; is it not likely that this r e a r r a n g e m e n t w o u l d be f o u n d in a c o r r e s p o n d i n g r e d u c t i o n of w a g e s ? S y m p a t h i s i n g as I do with all l e g i t i m a t e efforts of w o r k i n g m e n to b e t t e r their condition, it a p p e a r s to m e t h a t the aim of their organisations should be to secure a reduction in the h o u r s of those workers w h o are n o w compelled to s u b m i t to clearly excessive c o n s e c u t i v e hours of a t t e n t i o n to d u t y - - c o n d i t i o n s t h a t are not only deleterious to the welfare and h a p p i n e s s of the l a b o r e r himself, b u t in s o m e instances increasing the d a n g e r to life and limb of others, w h o s e interest and s y m p a t h y w o u l d be a p o w e r f u l lever, if properly applied, to help to r e m o v e this i n c u b u s r e s t i n g at p r e s e n t u p o n the b o a s t e d freedom of labor in this country. If the v i e w s w h i c h I have here a d v a n c e d shall have t h e effect of tending, on the one hand, to d i s c o u r a g e the u n w i s e and i m p r a c t i c a b l e s c h e m e s of s o m e m i s g u i d e d wageworkers, and, on the other hand, to s t i m u l a t e keener and m o r e general interest on the p a r t of e m p l o y e r s of labor in the welfare of their operatives, and t h u s to foster a closer union b e t w e e n these two g r e a t i n t e r d e p e n d e n t e l e m e n t s of society, I shall feel that m y efforts h a v e been repaid. T h e n a t u r e of m y occupation for the past fifteen years has perhaps afforded u n u s u a l l y favorable o p p o r t u n i t i e s for v i e w i n g b o t h sides of the sociological q u e s t i o n s here d i s c u s s e d ; it has certainly a r o u s e d keen personal interest in the s u b j e c t and has s t i m u l a t e d s t u d y of these problems.