The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1877-10-18
eRoApCLora VS.. FUssIXsy


without work. Is the tendency OF the
times toward quill-driving and broad
cloth, rather than muscular work and
fustisn? Or, to put 1t in the qusint old
English way, does the American youth
prefer broadcloth, bad pay and dignity,
to corduroy, good pay and mdependepee1,
These are questions that will bear
little comprehensive thought, and we are
not inclined TO dismiss them, as many do
by saying that the average American
youth is afraid to dirty his hands with
work. and that be would rather starve IN
the calm of q four hundred dollar clerk
ship, and "dress as other people dress,
than to earn three dollars a day MS an
artisan and be obliged TO dress in tustan.
can incident occurred IN Pittsburgh
few weeks ago that is worth repeating III
this connection.
"a very wealthy gentleman OF that
city, who boldly declares, since the riot,
that the country has become an academy
of ethics, snd that we are going to the
dogs for the want of producers, inserted
the following advertisement In n Pitts
burgh daily newspaper:
'WANTED-A young man competent
TO take charge OF a set of books. Apply
by letter or in person at No. 3 street,
Pittsburgh, Pa
This advertisement brought TO the
surface no less than ono hundred and
thirteen applicants, all Of whom were
anxious 10 drive u quill and do any
kind OF office work Tor almost any wages
the gentleman named. A lew days Al
terwsrd it so happened that this same
gentleman needed man to work on one
of his numerous farms in Allegheny
county, and accordingly he inserted the
following advertisement IN the same
newspaper:
'WANTED-A good, experienced farm
labOrer. None need apply who are afraid
of work. Apply in person at NO. = 3
street, Pittsburgh, Pa
"Now this advertisement brought just
exactly eight applicants. One hundred
and thirteen men in Pittsburgh anxious
to accept clerkship, and only eight
willing to till the soil. Clearly the Gs-
thetlc prevails to an alarming extent in
Americas Birmingham. But in the
mean time the above facts leaked out,
and the wise men and philosophers began
to "draw conclusions" Some rushed
recklessly into the absLruseneis OF
tie rule of three, and declared
that as nine is to ll3, so is the number
of men in Pittsburgh who want TO work
to those who don't. This is not argu
ment, but the theory, and it is - poor way
to begin our reasoning with q theory, and
argue hence the e1 nee OF acts.
The very men who are the lOudest in
accusing the American youth of wearILg
broadclo.h and trying TO live without
work have done more To bring on this
condition Of affairs than any inherent de-
sire on the part Of Young American u
shirk good, honest, muscular work. One
of the most glsring evils OF the trade I'M
Ions is the restriction placed upon youth.
In sll these great organizations there
is prominent regulation pointing 10 the
exclusion of apprentices. Tie regulation
in most instances says there shall be but
one apprentice to seven iourneymen. But
this rule has been carried to great excess
in Pennsylvania The State Bureau OF
Statistics IN the mechanical and united
mechsn cal and manufacturing branches
show disproportion that has startling
81 .nifcsnce. We learn from this repor.
That but one male minor Is employed
TO every twenty-five men, while
in the stores OF the State there
a-e twice as many clerks rs there are
apprentices TO the mechanic arts, and
the number of female domestic servants
exceeds seven times over that of "
engaged in useful trades. Alter making
every allowance for age wealth, pride,
and other causes calculated TO interfere
with employments, the compilers OF these
satisfies estimate that there is still III
PENNSYLVANIA an army of 10000 boys
and young men awaiting the opportunity
t. acquire useful trades. A lurther ia
vestigatlon shows that out OF S0,76O per-
sons employed in mining operations
g,646 were boys, or only one to nine men.
In the cotsoa and wooden industries the
proportion is no: quite so bad.
"To carry this investigation furt her
we find that this system OF ssmning the
door OF skilled labor in the lace OF our
Young men, Just MS they are ready 10
enter upon the more useful duties OF lle
i, nothing more than a. theft OF youthful
rights" These youths, robbed OF their
rights in the mad belief that it will
benefit this generation of mechanics, 20
TO swell the vast army of clerks, not by
choice but of necessity ,nWorse than this.
They swell also the constantly growing
srmy of tramps paupcrs and criminals.
The report of the statistics of labor
OF Massachusetts, for 1877 shows
that of the LIZ male adult pau
pers Ss7, or 81 per cent mad no
trade, profession, or occupation before
thew became pauperS. The State Grim
lHsl calendar Is worse still. The returns
for 1876 show that out Of total of 4 $40
convic,s 1891, or 6S per cent, had no oc-
cupation and had never been apprentiCed
to n trade. The warden of one OF the
States prisons, in lis last report, says
that of the 220 men sentenced III 1876
AZ were without trade or any regular
means of earning living.
Again, we turn to the report OF the
Warden of the Western Pennsy WANNA
Pententiary Tor 1876, and find of the
%73 prisoners received during the year.
- were never Appended 10 a trade
and never had any fixed occupation.
1t Is so throughout the country. We
may safely say that less than four per
cent. of our conv.cts are men who have
acquired u handIcratt. 1t is said, that
with the present restrictions upon the
trades, in Pennsylvania alone it takes but
five wears to recruit and tram an army
of 100000 idlers, and these are the men
who defy the wisdom OF legislation. A
false system OF labor has made them
what they are, and, it is truly said, they |
are more '.sinned against than shining
The system which has done this, and !
which is al least partially responsible for
the myriads OF clerks out of employ, |
is extending its blight to every State ,
in the Union. Gladstone SAYS the .
best way TO elevate labor Is