Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1888-09-21

Island than in Pennsylvania, and we find the
wages in the iron business are high her In
Rhode Island than in Pennsylvania. Why
is that SOL II is not the tariff that does it;
1t is the demand and supply OF the people TO
do the work demanded of them. There are
more cotton operatives in Rhode Island and
the supply Is greater, and therefore the
wages are lower. The same thing Is true
About tbs iron business in Pennsylvania.
The wages Of cotton operatives in PennsYl-
vania ars higher because there are fewer in
, Fennsy lyanla than in the State OF Rhode
Island. 1t is not the tariff that regulates
the wages. Well, what IL 1t that fxes the
high rate OF wages in this countryi
IL Il admitted by all who are well informed
! on TINS subject. that our rate Of wages 10
| hi CHER than anywhere eiss IN the world,
| that England is higher than France, and
| that the rate of wages 10 higher in France
and France both have a protective tariff to
! guard against the free-trade labor OF
| England W mt then Is it that makes higher
| wagesl IL Is coal and steam and machinery.
! II Is these three powerful agents that multi
| ply the product OF labor and make it more
! valuable ana high rate of wages means low
! cost OF product. high rate of wages
means that cheap labor has got to go; and
| the history OF our country in the last fifty
| years demonstrates that ss clearly and AZ
| coucluslvely as any mathematical problem
| can tie uenpnstrated.
| Fifty years ego, Mr.. Edward Atkinson
| shows 1t required five persons, two carders,
| two spInners and one weaver, working by
| the cd methods, 10 make eight yards OF
| cloth IN 4 cay. They got twenty cents
| day; o dollar for the whole five. The labor
cost of the cloth was II "a cents yard, and,
calculating 800 working days in the year.
the whole product OF these five cheap laborers
| was :, so } ards of cloth; but when coal and
| steam and machinery was harnessed to-
| getEer to produce cloth, five persons to-day
In New England produce l4O, GO yards OF
| cloth. he labor cost OF the cloth is .Oo per
| yard. The wages of labor, instead Of being
tlIty dollars year. OF twenty cents q day,
Is s@oi per annum for each.
| The result OF the labor-saving machinery
used was an enormous increase in productive
| capacity. lie result OF that was great in
| crease II the rate OF wages, and the further
result was great decrease In the
| cost of production. The old hand
| wheel and the old methods OF labor
| have had TO depart before the all-conquering
| march of coal and steam and machinery.
| They had to 90 because the small amount OF
| product of the article drove them out of the
| field. 1t Is not the rate OF wages, it is the
| article which the labor makes and the cost at
which that article can be produced-ths
| lower cost-which drives the rival article out
| OF the market. Such is the history which
| has been written IN our country in the last
| half century.
Mr.. Chairman, Mr.. Edward Atkinson, one
| OF the dearest thinkers anu writers on politi.
cal economy Of thu present day, in his little
! book on he Distribution o. Products, lays
| down the principle that high rate OF wages
| means low cost Of product, and low rate of
wages means nigh cost OF product. Ho says
| that the cheapest man is the one who works
the greatest amount OF machinery with the
least stops" read paragraph from his
| book, on page II:
III any given country like the United ststes,
where the people are substantially homogene-
| Gus, where the meaus Of intero Communication are
| ann lie. where there are no h iry class dis
| tiuc.ions. and where there ..IAcial obstruo-
tioD 10 prevent commerce, L..u ates Of wages
IN money viii bs the natural and therefore neces
| sary Result of low cost Of production In labor"
| Again. on page ~, he says:
"bsnce, It follows that although the total pro-
| duction OF any gwen thing many not be concen-
traed at the very best point, will yet DO found
10 be true that where the conditions are the best,
| the cost, measured in terms OF days Of labor, will
| be lowest and the wages measured IN terms Of
money wages being the necessary coussQueDce
| OF the low labor cost. Conversely, low ratss Of
money wages are the natural and necessary rs-
| suit Of high labor cost OF production"
Now. then, 1T follows" he says. on page
| '.That tho nation which has diminished the
| quantity OF human labor in greatest measure BY
| the application OF machinery produces goods at
| tie lowest cost, and by exchange with tho hand.
working nations, who stlll constitute the majority
| Of the people OF the world. Is ~ way OF such ex-
change, enabled to pay the highest rate OF wages
IN money, because their gooas are made II the
| lowest labor cost"
| made an investigation into the coalition Of
two old manufacturing houses IN the State
OF New Hampshire; he compared tvo periods
| -leSO with the year 1854. He found that
In 1880 the wages per annum were tl64 in
| gold to each operative. This increased until
| 1854, when it amounted 10 S200 In gold
| Now - to the efficiency Of the labor en-
| ploysd- In 1880 the total number Of yards
Of cloth produced by each operative was g.
S2l per annum, while in 1884, mainly BY the
aid Of improved machinery. It had bssn in
creased to u, 0S3 yards. The cost Of the la
| Dor per yard was l.p csnts in lb8O, and but
LOT cents in 1884.
| Let Us now reduce these differences 10 per-
| cottages and compare them in that form.
| There was, a. have shown, . great increase
| in the productive capacity OF each operative,
| but there was decrease In operatives per
| thousand apindlcs OF ~ per cent.
the pound Of material turned out BY each
spindle or operative was taken - . unit Of
measurement, and MIR. Atkinson's table
shows that the pounds that each spindle
turned out was increased ~ per cent, and
| the pound that each operative turned out In
that each operative turned out per hour In
creased 240 per cent. The increase Of wages
| of operatives per hour for the number OF
hours were made less increased e4O per cent.
| The wages of the operative per annum had
increased "a per cent. and per hour o. par
cent. while the labor cost per yard had de-
creased Al per cent. The other house showed
the same condition. 1t showed that produc-
tive efficiency had increased in spindlos ere
per cent, in pounds per operative 2lA per
cent, while wages increased ~ per cent, and
labor cost per yard decreased A per cent.
IA. -
and cost is not tho work Of the tariff, but Of
coal, steam and machinery. These three
powerful agents have produced these mar
velous results. Tho effects inevitably follow
the cause-high rate Of wages because 20
much more service is rendered tho employer.
| low cost of product because 20 much more il
done IN gwen time. repeat it, the tariff
has had nothing to do with bringing about
| the great change, and it il impotent utterly
| impotent, to increase the rate Of wagss.
But, Mr.. Chairman, I want to call the At
tention Of the committee to . statement
| found in the report OF the United States
| Census. This is the report in references to
| the wages in the manufacturing industries
| OF the country, and call special attention
| TO a report OF an MISUNDERSTANDING sstab-
lisbmcnt In Connecticut. on page l5S. This
| gentleman who makes the report compares
the operations Of his house from his books in
lS4O with 1880. In steel-fitting, In ax-mak-
ing, each operative turned out 900 pieces Der
day in 1870. In 1850 each operative turned
| out !, 80 pieces per day. Each operative
| received in 1910 "a cents per hundred pieces.
and received in 1851 20 cents per hundred
| pieces. lie earned in 1910 81. "A day, ard
| IN 1850. though he received less for each
| piece, he earned g.. 50 per day.
| And this table includes all the different
| parts OF the Manufacture OF the ax-the poll
making, rough-polishing, tempering, finish
| ing. grinding, painting, backing, etc. and
| in every department OF this manufacture in
making axes the same rule il observed--thnt
is, the increased productive power increases
| the wages and decreases the cost of the prob