Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1875-02-25
Wanted n Place.


SOME THINGS LEARNED WHILE LOOKING
FOR 4 CLERKSHIP.
a lew weeks ago we received letter from
FARMER in the northwest part of the country
desiring us TO get q place for his son, in one
OF our stores. The boy could read write and
was a falr mathematician. An inquiry, how
ever, revealed the fact that places were prom
ised for several years ahead i'm case fhe va
flous prOpTietOrs should want anyone The
inquiry revealed the further fact that clerks
are the poorest paid lot of people i'm the citv
Ihey are the poorest paid for two reasons:
]. There is so much competition that mer-
chants are not averaging six per cent. on the
amount of money they handle, and conSe-
quently mrst cut their expenses down to tine
lowest possible unit.
2. There are so many persons seeking en-
Pioyinent IN stores, that plenty can ne found
VINO VIII work faithfully behind counter
for less tran the same ability and clpaci tv
W0uld command in the workshop
Ihls announcement led us to an i'lvestiga-
IlOn OF some important facts which we com
mend 10 our readers. There are more appli-
cations in CarliHT lille for clerkshipS i'm stores
during the year than for positions In all the
shops ana offices combined. There is grow
ing up among the great majority of bows n
feeling of repugnancP to any business cXcppt
clerkShlpS IN stores, the law, teaching, meii-
cine ana the ministry. The result is thai the
wages of clerks are low, the teachers are ret
ting poor salaries, the Supreme court has
been compelled to adopt very stringent rules
with regard to the admission of new mem
bers To the bar, the country is filled with med
lcal quackS, and the word OF God is eXDOund-
ed by many persons whose idea of theology
consists OF big salary and fashionable
congregation.
Competent mechanics are getting scarce. \
good carpenter, blacksmith, wagonmaker
plaster painter, bricklayer, printer or q com
petent man IN any OF the other trades. as they
are termed, can make from three to five dol
lars per day the yearthrOugh, while there are
not TWO clerks in the city who are receiving
thousand dollars, and there is not firm i'm
the city which could afford 10 pay any one
connected with that amount. The education
for any of the positions named in this para
graph need not be so thorough and expensive
as that required for the persons named i'm the
preceding paragraph, yet the fol mer makes
more than the latter-and they make il be-
cause, though there is greater demand for
good Journeymen in the trades named, the
supply is very limited as compared with the
supply in the other cases.
In our effort TO get place for the son OfOur
friend, we talked with the head of one of the
firms of our city. We learned that the highest
wages paid to clerks of that establishment
was hfty dollars per month. We expressed
surprise, and informed the gentleman that
the highest we paid was eighteen dollars per
week or So more per year than his clerk re-
ceived. We asked him what he would do if
ms clerk should demand the same salary our
foreman received: he would let him go where
he would receive il. We suggested that by so
doing he might lose some trade; he admitted
mat IL would no doubt make difference of
5000 in their sales, "but" said he. s'Our
profits on the 5000 would not exceed 5000:
and we could not afford To pay the additional
1886 for the sake of saving 500. And then. if
he were TO leave we can supply his place at
much less wages than we are paying him and
not lose more than the estimated - 900 in
trade"
Upon further inquhS we found that other
firms were like situated, and an inquiry at
Springfield and st. Louis revealed no better
state ofaffairs. There are too many bows who
are afraid Of dirt-they prefer some trade
where little muscle will be required, and
where they can wear nice white shirt and a
fashionable suit of clothes all the time. These
things are all very nice, but they are doing
more than all else to degrade labor and CEN
traliZe capital. Our reply TO our friend is the
advice we would give to all boys Have him
learn trade if he wishes to leave The farm;
If he will master il and become proficient. he
can always make more than living unless
he Is a worthless, eXtravagant Spendthrift
which few good mechanics are He will be
equally as much respected as if he spent his
days in measuring tape, and at the end will
nave something left for his family. To the
farmers boys we would say: ''Stick 20 daI."
Get all the SchOOl-bOOk education you can,
but learn how TO cultivate the soil; don't try
to get into town, where you can learn to
smoke cigars. play billiards and drink gin
cock-talls-they may be nice accomplish
ments, but there is good deal more man
Illness and ultimate happiness in raising tur-
nips and bu ckwheat.