The Tipton advertiser. [volume] (Tipton, Cedar Co., Iowa) 1856-1962, 1872-06-06

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Ms AFPH1NTTCEDHIP.
A Boys Prospect ofa Livelihood
xssay on This Important
Subject.
At . meeting of the Department. Of
Education of the Philadelphia Social
Science Association. hell in Mercan-
tile Library Hall, Mr.. James 5.
Whitney read paper on Apprentice
ship, ora Boys Prospect Of hveli-
hood, OF which the following Is an
abstract:
The strict definition of the word
apprentices ts "a learner" aud it has
been used In what are called 1.-THE
liberal" rs well as the mechanic arts.
A person may. therefore, be an ap-
prentice without being indentured.
We do not fad any traces of apren-
ticeship either by the indenture of
youth or placing them to learn trades
outside of their fathers houses among
the civilized nations Of antiquity, not
withstanding the progress the arts had
made among them. This is due to
the Institution OF slavery and the
division OF the people into social class
es, from one Of which it was not easy
to pass into another. But, as tn g
modern free Institutions OF Europe
arise, apprenticeship begins to appear.
1t owes its origin to the guilds. These
voluntary associations, originally
formed to protect the members of
them. inhabitants OF villages, from the
expressions Of the nobility, grew into
powerful corporations, frequently
merging into the government Of the
town and always having large share
In It. sa
Besides the social or friendly guilds
there were those formed for religious
and for mercantile and manufacturing
purposes. The latter, or guilds Of
crafts, regulated the. different trades,
supervised the quality of the goods
produced, aud allowed no man to
work at them unless approved by
them. They provided for the admis-
sion Of apprentices to the various arts,
and allowed no workman who had
not served his apprenticeship This
system, the foundation Of the modern
one, was confirmed by the State laws,
and was In use throughout Europe
from the fourteenth century. About
the beginning of the present century
the growth Of the larger manufactur-
ing Industries. and the disputes Of
employers and workmen led to the
gradual relaxation of the rules, and
the apprenticeship has ceased to be
necessary, either by law or custom,
In Europe and this country to the
practice Of . trade.
The result Of the decay Of appren-
ticeshiP is at presents . great want Of
thoroughly skilled workmen. This
keeps up the price Of many articles,
and ut the same time we have great
numbers of men looking for employ
nlent who are not skilled workmen.
This keeps up the price of many
artlcius, ana nj the same time wa ha-o
great numbers OF men looking for en-
ployment who are not skilled work
men, and many of them become q
burden on the community. At the
same time, in many trades il is diff
ficult to get good, faithful boys as
learners In others there are restric-
tions by the unions as to the number
of boys that can be taken, and in some
the employers do not like to take the
risk and trouble that may be caused
by the use of boys. The number Of
apprentices (boys in this city is about
3.OOO-say one to every twenty six
men. At the same time there are
about II 900 lads of apprentice age not
in school or college.
The various hindrances that appli-
cants for apprenticeship meet with in
different trades were described. The
supply of skilled workmen is mostly
kept up by immigration and by half
taught native workmen. But the best
OF the foreign workmen do not come
here. Some statistics Of immigration
were given showing the number of
certain trades reported arriving at
New York In 1870. The same state of
things abroad "a here tends to diminish
constantly the supply of good work
men from that source.
The writer does not see any way
which will harmonic all interests,
but In the action of Government, as
the representative OF all. This should
not be by legislation interfering with.
the natural laws of trade, but by recog-
nizing apprenticeship as part of the
system OF public education, and giving
every child an opportunity in the
public schools to acquire SO much of
the use Of tools and Of the rudiments
OF trades as will enable him to be
worth something to his employer from
the beginning, to reach full wages at
an earlier period, and thus to replenish
the ranks Of skilled workmen.
Compulsory education, if it included
. knowledge, to some extent, of the
means Of livelihood, would be less
distasteful to the mass of the commu-
nifty. Reference was made in the close
to industrial schools abroad, and to
polytechnic and other schools here, as
illustrating the principle of industrial
education.
The reading Of the paper was fol-
lowed by discussion and it was, on
motion, agreed that the paper should
be printed in The Penn Monthly, tho
organ Of the Social Science Associa-
tiOn. and reprinted. with the report of