The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1882-01-21
wages in England and America.

We are constantly told that the manufac-
turers Of the United States can not hope to vie
IN foreign markets with those Of Great Britain,
so long rs skilled labor can be procured more
cheaply in the latter country. Two wears ago
we pointed out that there was by no means so
great difference in the wages earned by Eng
llsh and American operatives ~ was general
ly supposed II is now maintained 10y Man.
chester mill.owners that their workmen are
actually receiving higher pay IN proportion
to the time they work than they could obtain
in Massachusetts; and 1t must be owned that
the data collected by Consul Shaw, and tor
wardcd to the state department, 90 far to con.
firm this assertion.
IL appears that in the great manufacturing
districts Of East Lancashire the pay of weav.
ers IN the year 1880 ranged from So "a to So.
O., subject, for part OF the twelvemOnth, to a
reduction of 10 per cent. The average earn.
ings of wcavcrs in the mills of Massachusetts
during the same period varied, according TO
the skull of the employe, from S4S2 to 1878
In Lancashire the weekly earnings of ordin.
AIRY spinnrrs we're from S72o 10 IS 40, while
what are known rs master spinners obtained
rs much as Sl2. At The same date III Massa
chusetts spnnerS of oil grades received from
81 to $40 80. The average wages of the men
employed IN the Massachusetts factories is
$3.50 week, while in Lancashire the average
earnings of full grown male operatives is So
The pay of women and girls is from S4OS to
50 go IN Massachusetts, and from So 40 70 81.
30 in Lancashire.
At the first glance these figures seem TO in
dictate that the American operative Is slightly
better off than his fellow workman in Great
Britain. But we have not yet considered the
difference in the hours OF labor and in the
purchasing power of money In the Lanca.
shire mills An operative works but htiy'siX
hours Il week, whereas he must work sixty IN
the Massachusetts factories. We must bear
in mind, too that the hours of labor eXacted
Of factory hands IN the other New England
states are usually from sixty SIX TO siXtynineI
per week, although at the same time wages
are generally less than they are in Massachu-l
sets \ liltle calculation Will demonstrated
that, in proportion to the time eXactcd, the
wages of skilled laUor IN cotton.mllls at all
events, are not even nominally greater IN the
United States than they are in England.
When we investigate the purchasing power of
money we find that while bread Is cheaper in
Massachusetts, than III Lancashire, and meat
not much dcarer yet that the cost OF WOoIlen|
clothing, of coffee, tea, and sugar, ~ well AS
the rent of lodgings, are much higher IN the
manufacturing districts Oi tins country than
tn Great Britain We can not well escape the
conclusion from these statistics, that at the
present time skilled labor does really cost
more in Great Britain than in our eastern
states. When VIC weigh the practical bearings
OF this fact, and remember, too, that ar regards
cotton manufactures, at all events, we should
be able to procure the raw material more
cheaply than it can be sold in England It
does certainly appear that our manufactures
will bc al no distant day IN position where
they can undersel their British rivals. We
observe, however, that last year. according toI
reports Of consus from all parts Of the world,
a higher prlce WAS everywhere demanded for
American than for British cotton goods
of low grade. 1t is said that English
fabrics can be sold at a lower rate, simply be
cause they are adulteraed, and that in some
foreign markets, as IN China for example theI
quality of cloth IS matter of much less i'm.
porlance than the prlce.-Neo York SIN.