New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1872-01-10

! ly law, with full powers, when INC absence OF
! tine Mayor extends over ten days. TINS IS a
change which is not only noteworthy, but one
n, which the citizens Of Ncw-York are to be
congratulated. Gen. Cochrane is above parti-
san considerations, has a high ard honorable
record. and will zcalousIy cooperate with the
parry OF Reform in his new field of duty.
IfrOR REFORV-THE EiGHT-H0UR SYS-
ITEM TESTED.
CONGRESS-. not long since, passed, At the
solicitation of the class who sell their Labor
for wages, bill making Eight Hours labor a
legal davis work in the Federal service. At
the request of the same class, the House has
lust raised a select committee and charged 1t
with thc duty OF inQuiring into the condition
and Ipconpcnsc OF those who work for wages,
not merely CAS- we undcrstand) in the National
service, but generally Throughout the country.
| This is "a wise and timely act, from winch
( great good may be expected.
As vet the statistics of Labor are dcp'or-
ably meager. The manifestOcs Of those VINO
! fguro as champions of Hired Labor lick
method aud precision. They seem 20 the
employing class to demand twenty per cent.
more compensation for gwen amount OF
/
not having the National Treasury at their
hack-arc absolutely unable to give. 50 the
two classes stand i'll antagonism, when it may
! be that clearer understanding OF TIER
reciprocal demands and needs would bring
| them into friendly cooperation.
| s cheering indication on this head reaches
us from the National Armory at Springfield,
Mass. The material facts are as follows:
I l,vr.
suucrintcndcnt reduced the wages Of the work
men to correspond with the shortening OF the
working day. On an appeal to the President
this cutailmcnt of wages was 0verruled. Inc
laborcrs for day-wagcs now apply to Congress.
for PAYMENT of the difference between The
wages they were allowed By the superintcnd-
cnt and those they now receive, and are likely
TO obtain it. Among the documents on which
bcy base their claim is one from the Com
maHdant Of the ArmOry, who, with reference
10 the fle-wOrkors in that establishment says
"rhcy have managed to make. under the old tariff Of
wages, quite much Ter DAY under the EiShlour ~
under the Ten-Tour system; while believe that tho
. dav-worlmen have worked harder and more faithfully
under the EightHOur than under the Tenour system
The foreman of the Milling Department re-
j ports (Aug II, 1863, that the average earnings
Of twelve of his piece-worl,men under the Ten
D. Hour system in the month of June previous
. was 81 G2; while in July, under the Eight
Hour, they earned 81 10 per day In Othel
words: they did considerably more work fol
t the Government in day of Eight Hours than
+ in one wherein they worked Ten Hours This
is very important fact, worth more to the
cause of Short Hours than three ballOOns-ful
- of dcnunciatiOn of greedy capitalists and whin-
= inc over the miseries of the Labcring Glass.
Nor does this fact stand alone. The fore
= man of the Water Shops reports that the
average earnings of twentythrce piece
-. workmen in his dep&tment, which, under
the Ten-Hour rule, was s. 100, under the Eight
: ! Hour system was 50 10 per day. From
statistics obtained from the worlmen, we lcarr
that the pece-prce Of the work alluded to il
the Report has been reduced over nine pei
cent.
The average earnings OF twenty-nine piece
vorlmcn go the foreman reports) i'll thu
Filing Department were, under the Tcn-HOu
system. 81 80, and under the Eight, 81 i&o pc
dav. We are informed that the wOrkmen il
, this shop gradually became able to earn il
, | Ficht Hours their usual wages when the
worked Ten Hours and even more so tina
, the officers were able to reduce the picce-pric
f., from 10 to II per cent.
. These statstics-and we see nothing to i'm
peach their accuracy or fairness-are Of great
. interest and value. II seems to be demon
strated that the reduction from Ten to Eigh
of the hours of daily labor in the Springfield
ArmOry has nowise diminished the cliicicnc
or product of the average days work, bu
p rather increased it.. In other words the work
q. men accomplish rather more, in the average
- when working but Eight Hours pc
i day, than they did while working Te
s Hours. And, while the piece workmc
8 doubtless made special efforts Ito secure thi
! result their officers testify chat those workn
= in the same shops for day wages have bee
:, equally alert and effective, since the reduction
l. of the Hours, with the workers paid by Tn
f piece We have been favored with transcript
4 from the official returns of the labor pcrformc
Il in the Armory which fully sustain this aver
- mcnt
T. OF course, one swallow makes no abidin
- Summer. 1t may be that there are other fact
that conflict with and ncutralize those abov
set forth. If there be such, we shall give ther
20 place whenever they snail have reached Ms
g Thus fer, however, we have 10 Offset TO th
Is ray-.oils OF tho GpliagGold Annoy and TIA