Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1881-10-01
Forcign Labor.

The following letter was written
by Commissioner Hawkins, in an
swer to All application made to the
Bureau OF Agriculture, Statistics,
Mines and Immigration, and will
serve as q response to a large num-
Der of letters of enquiry on the
same subject
5 NASHVILLE, Sept. 19, 1881. Mr..
Blair PieIson, Ripley, Tenn, -
Your favor of recent date is before
me. I have established an agency
in New York city with the view
of supplying the demand for labor
in this State. To what extent this
arrangement may succeed / cannot
as yet say. The arrangement is
this: Parties wishing laborers file
applications in this Bureau, as you
have done, stating the amount and
kind of labor, wages which they
are willing topay etc. With this APP
plication they deposit with me the
funds necessary to defray the ex-
pense of procuring and forwarding
the laborers desired. / then di-
rect the agent at New York to
secure and forward such laborers
as are required, sending through
him an order to the railroad agent
at New York for transportation,
for which, when furnished. he
draws on me. The immigration
agent secures the laborers required
as soon as he can, using all possible
care to secure only such as will be
satisfactory. 1t may sometimes be
difficult or impossible to procure
such as are wanted, in which case
the money deposited will be re-
funded. In other cases the orders
may be filled after more or less
delay.
I notice in the list you send me
of parties Wishing laborefs, that
all except yourself wish female
labor exclusively. 1t is very diff
cult to get girls to come to Tennes-
see except in company with the
families to which they belong, and
at the wages named By
you. A competent German girl
who arrives at Castle Garden with
out any incumbrance of family
can readily command from ten to
fifteen dollars per month i'll the
city or vicinity. The only way to
secure the girls fer housework in
Tennessee is to secure homes for
the families and employment for
the male members as well as the
females.
The amount necessary to cover
of procuring and forward
ing laborers will be five dollars for
the services of the agent in New /
York for each Iaborer forwarded |
by him. BY an arrangement with
the agent of the Tennessee d Vir-
ginia Air Line they viii be for
Warded to Nashville for $12 80 per |
head. To points east of Nashville |
the cost would be something less, |
while to points west of this city it |
would be something more, say to
your town, about $l5. The cost of
transportation would be refunded |
to you out of the wages earned by
the laborer. This is the cheapest /
rate 1 have been able to secure.
l regard this matter of introdu-
cling foreign labor into our State as
one of importance. To be success
full the effort must be conducted /
with strict regard to integrity and
fair dealing. The German and
people, from whom
these laborers must mostly be
drawn, constitute, both as laborers
and as citizens of the State, a most
class. AS they come
among US, ignorant of our own
language, as we'll as of our laws
and customs, they are comparative
" helpless. 1t, therefore, behOoves
every good citizen to see that no |
advantage be taken of their want
IF information Ishould, therefore,
not feel at liberty to forward an
duplication for laborers without
evidence that the par
lies desiring them would deal fair
y and justly with them.
l will only add that the labOrs of
his Bureau liz this direction are
gratuitous and will be
performed as public
iuty. Respectfully,
A. w. HAWKINS,
Commissioner.