The New York herald., 1878-08-17
MASSACHUSETTS, UNEMPLOYED.
Abstract from the Tenth Annua Report Of th
State Bureau Of Statistics.
FACTS AND FIGURES
Exaggerated Statements Flatly
COntr addicted.

|
The Massachusetts ursau Of Statistics OF Labor has
issued It's tenth annual report containing an abstract
OF q chapter upon "rhc Unemployed IN Nassachu.
sc,ts" The reason assigned tor scnaing out this ab-
srnct at this time Is the present value OF the sals'
tics prescntea; and the remarks accom- panying the
figures have been made that they might bs ques-
toned, as they probably would be If made without
necessary explanation Of methods employed sceur.
ing tho returns. Tho following Is the abstract 70.
ierred to:-
In November and December last QS77) this Bureau
instituted an extended inyestiRation mo the ''com
paratve dition OF manufactures and labor, 1875
ana m h 'S renor. rom aSs
February. 1878, We used tho following ianguses:-
In all the TACT: reported were given BY the
aid into the condition Of indussri.
poye. aid not bring out any csasrsdicory
verified the .S' M .s ss o s'd By ns
w"smsn employed n n as Of .ss' no
The investigation OF 1877 demonstrated the fact
that The number oil hands employed IN That yoar had
actually Increased Id all the leading branches. TO
1875, the last isus year o ihe State. while tho
average increase for all bad been TWO and onshali
Tho Investigation reicrred conducted durIn q
tho hardest season OF the year, from an industrial
arc not aware that truth OF Tho sa'sments then
made has been calico IN question by any one IN tho
That relative 10 tho unemployed might be
known aud the people OF tho state bs able 70 judge
scrtions mado "a the forced idencss 10 the
State and COUNTRY the Bursau bsgsn. Juue a. 1878.
closed Aug ass l3 and was eompistc vr,aaIiy nsua.
ing every cisy aud town In The Com wealth.
Ixsrxucrivx STATISTICS
Returns were received from 81, out nfy one towns;
all the cities have been caavsssed The nfty-one
Shey have unemployed; but, that tho public may
able to juage In tho matter Us .hoy hal not replied
S s' Out ss"sS isss
the population Of the Stats, or 4.7 per ccut; aud
spy f;ee. Ss os Of and
s5,6s9.9s3 worth o! agricultural products out OF
:. a. that
have IN reality reported that they have no unem-
pos play but sa p par ns IN ;ns and
festIy agricultural communities, In which iaborers
Tho popu.ation Of tho State is ,os1 oI2 OF which
54 900 belong 10 tho skilled aud unskiiIcd labosers-
447 1874 males and l37, 5O6 females. The total unem
poyed related, as the circular indicated, TO males.
1t is therefore just tho total unemployed
males and icmars. This IS done by adding 80 per
cent the proportion OF females 10 males employed Of
nSmosr Of ski,lsd and anskilled Isborsrs, male and
female, out OF employment N Massachusetts, June !,
| 1873
| KxAGGxRArRp REPORTS ooSYurED.
Tho public place the utmost cenudence IN this
stat tenen aud we have Of successful reiuta.
ton Against II can only be placed the Wild guess OF
and who has not the slightest iouodaton bis fig.
ures. II has been reported aud tne report has been
iodSs,roS'y c,roulasd that there are from % 2ooo
10000 IN Inc city OF Boston; 30000O0 in tho United
States &c. This last figure has bssn quoted in papers
WORKS political economy, speechcs In Congress,
| political resolutions, &c, tll Il has come 70 bs
believed evcrywnsre and yet this is tho nrst attempt
officially, in any other way, to asosrtain the facts
We say tho figures reported hersin are reliable We
have given tho oroAker the benens OF every doubt
Whom the Board OF assessors OF any town or tho
thorites OF any city have differed among themselves
as 10 the number OF unemployed, we have, without
/ Inn nrUho hA mt
been content ev.r 10 nsIvs the d,nsrsncs; for iu-
stance, tho Ch,et OF poiice OF salem, aod his men.
s' sSs Mayor W wrote tho Bureau ihs. no believed
the number much larger, and stated what he
Mayors figures. W. havo done this Invariably. And
whenever the assessors Of any town, or the author
mako a report, representatives, ol the bureau have
given the place thorough canvass. ny interviewing
or labor, road men, aud ali position 10 give 10.
formation, aud obtained q lair estimate. With faie
respondoJ cheeriuy TO the request OF tho STATE bu,
have In most insIancesspcnt great deal OF time Ia
obtaining the actual numoer Of persons out of en-
| ployment.
| II may DO claimed that June was the wrong month
In which 10 take the account Of the unemployed be.
cause In agricultural districts laborers were busy
then. True, but Il should be remembered that then
mills OF the State still shut down
and the shoe factories du, while nov very many of
these mills are in operation aud tho shoe factories
busy every where IL the account related TO August
instead Of June the total would not be one haf as
large as that gwen AS this investgnt,on relating TO
June 1875 corroboraies the rosuits or tue invests
CATION OF November and Decsmbsr 1877, the latter
| criticism tails.
In juno, in Fall River, beside the skilled andt uu.
skilled w0rkmen accounted for In tho tnbio, there
were 5000 women and children Of both sexes under
OF which humber were out on account OF The ransac
| tons OF two men, Most Of thcm nov have some en-.
Fan River has seen moro absolute suffering than
all the rest OF tho State. but IL was the result Of
| Tho oversecrs OF the poor 10 various cities and
| towns report less demand for assistance tnan for
some years pa.t This evidence Is iacon.roveriibe.
that We do not mink the people arc poor. rncy are
poor indeed bu, they are not starvngi and wo ven:
TO the extent the popular estimate would lead TO
imscine snd iha, the number ou, Of employment
| 10 not much larger than IN ordinary nmeS
| CUTTING 'DowS ExPESsEs.
Tho testimony OF oficias1n very many cases was
would work II thoy coald. or would not WORK Tor
lass tsa tho wages OF i've yo.Ss ago. Tho people are
Their means aud trying to adsps their wants 70 tho
| circumstances 10 which they nnd themselves; the
%sS'as % every efs 70 Keep bis So cmpioyo5 At o work
| They have been SICK, botn employer and employs;
how sck they are-csr,ninIy no, Sy maxn nc them be-
cve they are sck tnan they really We have had
enough OF Industrial hypochondris, ana n 70 time
sccordngly 1he industrih stagnation anu doprcs-
non has been aud is severe enough; ou! every sigu
indicates sure recapcrsttou. rbe people are grow.
| ing stronger every month; and. while This
country VIII not jump into prosperity. 1t Will nnd
itself farther along during tho next six or twovs
| months than u would have believed possible SIX
months ago; Tor the assurance comes from every
hand, by reports to this ONCE IRON all paris OF tho
Commsnweslth, that employers OF labor src starting
up, or preparing TO start ~, this fall Occasionally
sli hear works closing; but these reports grow
| less aud loss frequent
| GOOD TiMEs COMING tst.
Whom through business fAiiuros which foroe read
justmsns OF values, the Individuals Of our nation, 10
largo extent, have extricatcd themselves from tho
busincss chaos which their inhation has carried
thcm then Will come general prosperity THIS state ~
Affairs coming and the asscrtion Is made not alone
upon Inc recent In this STATE out ne tns
result OF personal inquiries and oDservstoos made W
tho writer during the homo canvass IN nearly oil the
New England ststcs, all the Middle states the South
crn Atlantic States except Florida, and In the great
! States Of Ohio Indiana, Kcniuoky, Tennessee and
Georgia, and from extensive inquiries OF travellers
| IRON the West and the southwest No region but