The Palatka daily news. (Palatka, Fla.) 1884-1888, 1888-01-08
AN INTERESTING INVESTIGATION.
Why Distress Increases coincidsni with Abun.
dance.
New York Hcrnl0.

New York Herald.
Mr.. David A. Wells is concluding in
the Popular Science Monthly, series OF
papers which are the fruit Of most in
teresting and important investigation.
into the causes of the widespread indus
trial depression from which all civilized
nations have suffered for the last twenty
years.
The fundamental problem may bs
thus stated; Given unprecedented abun.
dance and cheapness Of all the necessa-
ries of life, why is il that, coincident
with this, we find all over Christendom
constant and increasing complaint of
want and low living by "A considerable
part of the population Mr.. Atkinson
showed not long ago, In some instructive
papers, that in Italy, in parts of Ger
many and France and In Austria, wages
in many industries are at starvation
point. In Italy, even, n distinct disease
called pellogra Is declared by physicians
Ia have its origin in long continued in
sufficient or unfit food. Mr.. Wells
brings out i'm his last paper the startling
fact that i'm parts OF Germany the fac
tory operatives are compelled To labor
,even days In the week. In one of his
previous numbers he brought OUT an
other fact-tbat there are towns I'm New
England called "she towns" because al
most the entire population consists Of
women. From all parts Of the civilized
world come the groans Of discontented
and suffering laborers. Only q few
years ago a procession Of workmen and
women in German city paraded the
streets with "A flag, on which was the
motto: give us bread and comfort I'm
this life-we do not care about future
life"
Why is IL, then, that coincident with
an unprecedented abundance aud cheap
ness Of the necessarie@ Of life we find
seemingly increasing distress and discon-
tent; a large proportion Of women
drawn into the labor market; masses of
work people In European States living
at starvation wages; factory operatives
laboring seven days in the week--all the
signs, ono would suppose, not OF over
abundance but of scarcity.
Mr.. Wells has not yet published his
conclusions So far he has stated the VA.
rious elements OF the problem, and the
multitude of facts he has brought To
light form the most absorbing interesting
chapters of industrial history we re-
member to have read. No economical
writer has ATTEMPTED TO grasp in No large
a way What may be called the great
problem of this last quarter OF our CEN
tury; nowhere has there been gathered
cation Of factS bearing upon n problem
which interests not only producers and
consumers, but statesmen and rulers.
What Mr.. Wells conclusions will be
we do not know. One theory, however.
seems plainly To he denoted by the facts
he has brought together NO admirably:
Civilized society has become 90 compli-
Gated a machine that, 10 make IL work
at all smoothly, all possible distractions
must be removed. The wheels and cogs
Of the machine are 30 numerous, 80 deli
cate and so closely interactiDg that even
hair will throw II out OF gear. Great
armaments, millions OF men made sol
diers and removed from production,
laws interfering with free commercial
exchange between nations-these, and
even lesser interferences TO the free ac-
ton and interaction Of industrial forces
under the present system, all tend to de-
structive stoppages or irregularities In
the. operation OF the great machine.
They cause what Mr.. Hyndman, In a re-
cent discussion, well called an anarchy
Of production" in which labor Ii forced,
by bad laws, into unproductive channels,
and thus helps 10 create want and mis-
cry in the midst OF abundance.