Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1883-06-27

out OF a man by paving him well, but Just so 500
as you begin to cheaper his labor you begin to de
, grade him. And if you, gentlemen-I know 70
Will not do it intentionaliy-if you should d. any
thing to bring down the price of labor in this State
| am satisfied that it VIII not only rebound to th
Inconvenience of the aooring classes but it wi
react on all classes l an not here Of course
lecture you as to your duties. | recognize YOU
Official positions and know you will do exactl
what seems to you best. But let no man be de
celved, and think If these fares and freights ar
going to be reduced, that it will be il the interest
OF labor. That is the point wish to make and tn
only point. have been a laboring man ali nv lf
tlme' nave worked at my trade as carpente
torty-two years, the I'd OF the coming August anC
| expect to work until die. have seen enough o
these snap bridges going around pretending Il
speak IN the interests OF workngmen who are eithe
too incompetent or too lazy TO work at Legitimate
business and earn an honest livelihood and, 10
one, want 70 see them put down BY all legitimate
means.
Mr.. Foote-one moment, please. | understand
you to say, and of course do not controvert youl
statement at all, that the signatures TO this bool
were all voluntarily obtainedl
Mr.. Turner-They were sir
hr. FOote Don't you know, as a matter of fact
that where hook of that kind is circulated amonl
class of employees there is a sort OF implied oblipa
tion that they will be compelled to sign it
| Mr.. Turrer-l do not, sir.
Mr. Foote- Don't YOU think there Is ANYTHING O
| the kind existsi
Mr. Turner No there is not
Mr. Foote-D3n't you think book of that kline
tL1I was Circulated among ioG OF men, no mattel
how fair-minded they were with reference to tht
company, that it would create sort OF assumption
| among all the men that ii they did not sign it i
| might initiate aga nst their in,erestsY
| MIR. Turner-There might be- of course men that
| might do it.
Mr. Foote-I believe you are from Sacramento?
| Mr.. Turner / am from Sacramento, and l have
| lived there twelve years.
Sir. Foote-Were you formerly Mayor?
| Mr. Turner was sir.
| Mr.. Foote- Do you reside there now
| Mr.. Turner do, sir.
| Mr.. Foote-You have been perfectly frank with
US, and want to be with you and the gentlemen
| you represent as railroad employees OF course /
| have heard that same argument advanced before,
| that if fares and freights were reduced and by
reason Of that fact the income OF the company
| was diminished, that as consequence the man
| ayers Of the railroad company would reduce the
wages of their laborers That is the assumption
\ upon which you proceed?
| Mr.. Turner-Certainly.
Mr.. Foote-Haye you any assurance from any
body that if these fares and freghts reduced the
| wages Of abOrers will be reduced
| Mr. Turner-No.
| Mr.. Foote-You are assuming tat
| Mr. Turner assume that something must be
| cut There might not be reduction per capita, but
the assumption is that labor must suffer IL is the
first item that stands in the lDei0f reduction al
! ways.
| Mr.. Foote-Suppose, as a matter Of fact that the
effect Of it was not TO rduce the wages OF labor
| but simply the profits OF the few individuals who
own the controlling interest, and who have ac
cumulated fortunes Of at least one hundred millions
all of them, and did not touch labor at ALL but bene
| flied labor, Kept wages at the same price il that
were to be the result.
MIR. Turner-As 1 told you before, you cannot
make think-any amount of reasoning YOU
might bring to bear on that proposition would no;
make me believe il.
Mr.. Foote-I don't know what they are going to
| do; you may.
| MIR. Turner-I do not.
Mr.. Foote-If believed that if these freights and
| faro 70 I,hor
| or rob one poor man out Of cent, that is not my
desire, and do not believe it is the desire of any
member of this Board l do not believe they are
| paid one more dollar than they earn. | know many
OF their employees, and they earn every dollar they
get, and they are pretty smart fellows Mr.. Stubs
has talked to about it and you, the representa-
| tive of those mechanics have made argument on
that si1e which IS entitled to considerable weight
but do mot think your conclusions are Just do
not think the railroad company would dare reduce
the wages of their employees, because do not think
| they getting enough now, and l do not agree
with you that they fix the price of labor. My in
formation on that subject s, that the railroad com
pany employs aborers at just cheap rate as they
possibly an and the wages Of railroad employees are
not higher high as the wages of skilled en-
| poyes in the cities.
Mr.. Turner beg your pardon. Right here in
/ San Francisco boi.ermakeTs, Dacksmiths and mold
ers-I fetch men right out Of the shops Front
and Beae streets to prove that the Of wages in
! the shops at Sacramento higher now-in the
bOilerInskers shop, for instance, if you will excuse
me. Now, in the blacksmith shops there are 3S boys
who range from 10 cents 20 cents per hour. That
| is a very good feature of our shops. We have alto
! gether some lis boys that bringing under
discipline industry, etc. They are learning some
| branch OF business, and becoming useful members
| Of society. Now the helpers, of course, they get
| from 214 to 274 cents hour. These are laborers
| helpers, blaeksmiths' helpers. Now there are
| backsmths whose wages run from 80 to 47I cents
Der hour oi course they graduate according TO
| skill, which is much better than if there was a
| pressure brought to bear on the company by some
trades union, and they were compelled to pay
Uniform rate for good and bad. Better for the
men, and better for the company. All intelligent
mechanics coming to that conclusion. That list
would average s. day for men and boys while
here IN San Francisco, with one or two exceptions
blacksmths' wages are only SO so day That is all
/ it amounts to for the very best OF them.
Mr.. Foote-How much do the wages Of the men
average there? l understand YOU to say from 30
cents an hour up to 40. What 10 they cal days
| work eight hours !!
Mr.. Turner-No; we work nine hours, paid by
| the hour.
Mr. Foote-Then at 40 cents an hour it would be
| So 60 day
Mr. Turner-Yes, sir.
Mr.. Foote-And you say the average wages here
| are s. 50i
Mr. Turner-For ten hours yes, sir.
Mr. Foote-Well, the average wages of the boys
for nine hours is 81 500 cents an hour?
Mr.. Turner-Ies, sir
| Mr. Foote-And 80 cents day at 10 cents an
hour!
| Mr. Foote-Do you think those wages bear out
your statement that the average wages are higher
Mr. Turner-They do.
| MIR Foote-I have not made the calculation, but
| thought perhaps they did not
SIr. Turner-1he wages of carpenters average
| from 278 cents an hour TO 50 a day
Mr. Dougherty- How about hours
Mr. Turner-All paid by the hOur except fore
| men, who are paid by the month.
| Mr. Foote-lf they work half day they only get
half q days pay
Mr. Turuer-Ihat is all.
Mr. Foote-What is it really in the se of shops
big shops-as to the hours of labor? What do they
| call the hours OF work
Mr. Turner-Teh hours is the general custom in
| this State. You that there is a sort OF
obsolete eighthour law but tea hours is the custom
all over the State. In San Francisco it is But
| there have come to the conclusion, great ma
orty OF the mechanics, that it is best for the men
that they lose an hour. We b, leve that the ques
| ton Of wages will ultimately regulate ITSELF
Mr. FOote-I understand you to be proceeding on
| two theories, one Of which is this rather two
propositions. In the first place, if the Board re-
duees the rate of freghts and fare that the natural
result OF that is that the company will reduce the
rate of wages that they now pay to their laborers
Mr.. Turner-I have not stated that. L say that
| they VIII probably employ less men, They NAV
| cut the wages. They may do any of these things
but | stated to you before, am not in their con-
| fidence. / do not know what they will do. l am
only reasoning, Of course.
| Mr.. FoOte-You apprehend, in the first place,
that there will be reduction in the payment of
wages2
sr. Turner do.
Mr. Foo e-And you also appvehend that sone
men may be discharged?
| Mr.. Turner-Yes, Sir.
Mr. Foote And others compelled To do their
work, or the railroad company will get 1t done
cheaper.
Er. T.rner-or let the work go undone, IS 1 told
| yop before. A great deal Of work might be dis
| pensed with.
| Mr.. Eoote Don't you know, as matter of feet,
! thai the equipment Of the Central Pacific Railroad
Company not any better than any OF the railroads
East-in fact not ss good as a great many of them
| Mr. Turner-I don't know of any road Eist rnss
| IS bitter, from men that have been travelling in
| the East.
| Ar. Foote-Have yea Travelled there on their sec
ond class cars on the Eastern roads
Mr.. Turner-I Left there many years ago. | was
a railroad man there for thirty years
two or three trips East lately, Is that the equip
meuts furnished by all Of the 6rstclass Eastern
roads are bette- Than those furnished By the Cen
| trail Pacific Railroad Company.
Mr.. Turner Well, people look at thirgs differ
emily.
| Mr.. Foots-zI want you to understand my position,
Mr.. Turner iii believed that the reducuol of the
rate cf fares and freights this raj road going
to redouad against the lsDorng interests OF this
State was going to make any of the poor peopl.
poorer OF unhappier, | would not be for it, That is
the kind of people think represent in my district
yery largely and you the FIRST gentleman who il
engaged in any sort OF occupation that have heard
who doesn't believe these reductions ought TO be
made Then there is another way to look at il
the Central Pacific Railroad = you hay,
made your illusions to the Glenn ranch tla.
Is only one iso ated instance but great many 500
pie in the farming community, mea who do 5heil