Omaha daily bee., 1886-11-28

iDuuiVNNlu iAof'Attti anu luC uO iNNNiiANs
Want of space makes it impracticable
to reproduce all these conversations. l will
consequently state summariy the questions
that asked and the answers received, which
seldom differed from each other in important
parts and the facts and figures contained in
which have verified by comparison with
those of the Chambre Syndicate Des Oun.
riers Charpentiers, No. 8 rue De Lutece,
and No. 55 rue De La Nerrerie.
What is the pay of a carpenter per day.
work."
The required rate is o francs"
| How many hours work per day?'
| Ten hours in summer and eight hours in
WINTER
"What percentage of carpenters are mar
ried?'
About one-half. The carpenters wives
are mostly cooks and bonneS When they
have no children they work outside the
| houses, otherwise they stay at home, look
| after the children and keep the house. The
children are educated at the public schools.
| There is probably not single carpenter in
| Paris that cannot read or write.
docs the average carpenter manage to put
| aside any savings"'
"The unmarried ones can. with great econ
omy, put aside about a franc or a franc and a
half day. They invest this in the Caisse
d'Epargnes in the fraternity of the Devoir or
the Liberte, or of the syndicat chamber of the
trade. Married carpenters, especially if they
have children, cannot save anything unless
the wives also work at some calling, such as
that of cooks or bonnes. The average
total daily expenses of an unmarried car
penter is francs day. The total daily ex-
penses of n carpenter and his wife are )
francs day, and of the family s. or 6 francs
day. The rent is usually about 800 or $50
francs for a carpenter and his family. The
unmarried carpenter lives in a boarding
house and pays out 30 francs a month for his
bed, soup, salad, cheese and bread.'
What time do carpenters get up in the
morning?'
AT o'clock in summer and in winter.
They usually go to bed about o.
What are the relations between the car
penterS and their bosses?"
There are no engagements between them
and the BOSSES The patron can dismiss his
workmen at any time he pleases without any
notice whatever, and the workman can put
his tools on his back and knock off work also
at any time without giving notice. How
ever, when the patron dismisses the workman
he must pay the latter the entire days wages
of the day of dismissal"
IoN Oltcu uOeS pay udy come aTOuDu!'
Once month, the first Saturday of each
month. During the successful strike of 1876
one of the points gained by the carpenters
was to be paid once fortnight, but this has
now fallen ont Of use and pay day comes
monthly as before"
Are strikes frequent?''
"There have been strikes in 1S45, 1852, 1876
1879 and 1881. The strike of 1S45 was the
most important one and it was then that
the carpenters first made them
selves felt as a power. They
demanded that their pay should be increased
from francs to. 5 francs per day, and al
though Louis Philippe provided the patrons
with soldiers to do the carpenter work, they
succeeded in their demand. In 1876 the car
penters, by striking, got an increase of 10
centimes per hour, and fOrtnightly instead of
monthly payments. In 1879 they obtained 10
centimes inole per hour. The strike of 1881
was disastrous for the carpenters. They de-
manded | franc per hour and after a long
and painful strike were unable to obtain it,"
What is the present state of trade?
About a sixth of the carpenters of Paris
are now out of work. The future is dismal
and hopeless. Wood has become so dear in
France that patrons to-day can buy window
frames, door slls and similar constructions
IloH NcIulduy anu Norway AT the same
price that the same quality of wood alone
would cost in France, and, moreover, iron,
steel and bronze are constantly replaced by
wood as materials for construction
To sum up, the Parisian carpenter is sober
and industrious. The secret societies watch
over his morals and welfare, care for him if
sick and bury him when he dies The
Partisan carpenter is bright and intelligent.
His principal recreation is to take his wife
and children to the circus or to walk about
Sundays in the Bors de Bolonge or Buttes
Chaumont. His dress is simple and neat.
lie wears black cloth cap, usually
pushed off the forehead to the
extreme back of the head,
short corduroy waist coat and jacket and
enormously wide corduroy trousers, with
huge pockets at the sides. in which he car
ries his tools. The size of these pockets en-
abes him to carry in them n plane, a level,
numerous chisels, augurS, screwdrivers, ham
mers and gmlets that jingle with pleasant
ring as he walks to his work. On Sundays
he wears gold earrings representing.
in miniature, the tools of his profession.
lie also on gala occasions wears the colors of
his brotherhood, red and green for the De-
voir and blue and yellow for the Liberte.
Earrings in the form of a chisel, with the
sharp end to the 'front.' indicates the Devon
with the sharp end to the rear indicates the
Liberte.