The Lincoln County leader. [volume] (White Oaks, Lincoln County, N.M.) 1882-189?, 1888-06-02
HEREyAND THERE.

pIOhCCt1 anu lhaJ lllC ICoo'i why
wages for mechanics and laboring
men are higher in the United
States than in free trade countries
is founded on the fact that our pop
ulation is less dense, and our land
being Sc cheap. We have but to
step over the border into Canada
to demonstrate the falsity of the
proposition. The Dominion lays
claim, andIwith some show of rea-
son, to being the garden spot" OF
the continent. We have before us
the report OF Mr.. Blue, the Cana.
dian Commissioner, in which he
says
4" Within its limits, as now set
tied. the Province extends over 10
degrees of latitude and 20 degrees
OF longitude. Il is larger than the
state of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and
Michigan by 10000 square miles.
1t is a country large enough to be
the seat of a mighty nation. and its
situation on the great lakes is one
that any state or empire OF the
world would envy. 1t has fertile
soil, an invigorating climate, and
extensive areas which grow bet
ter sample and a larger average
yield of staple cereals than any 9th
er portion of the continent; and it
has more extensive areas not yet
brought under cultivation, which
may be converted INTO grazing
fields of unsurpassed richness, SUIT
able torathe production OF the best
qualities of butter and cheese.
Highways and railways have been
opened in all directions; mills, fac
tories, and markets are being es-
tablished wherever settlements eX
tend; and the beat OF the pulse OF
commerce is being felt in the re
motest township" All this is in a
great measure no doubt true, yet
will some of our tariff for revenue
only" retormers explain to us why
it is that you will find out here in
Kansas, (the whilom great desert
of the American continenD fifty
former citizens of this paradise de-
pendency Of free trade England, to
one Kansan, who migrates to these
tempting fields of the Dominion!
Perhaps a table of the recent an
nual report OF the Kansas Bureau
of Labor Statistics will help to ex-
plain it. In his Introductory to the
table the KansaN commissioner
says: " Among the latest reports
received by this bureau is one from
the Province Of Ontario, and as
this is from the nearest neighbor
ing government seems to me that
it furnishes fit subject for compar.
isOn, and l have prepared. the fol
lowing table, selecting similar
trades, for the purpose of present
ing in as concise form as possible
the rate of the wages, the time en-
ployed, and the annual earning:
prevailing, as compared with these
paid in Kansas" We will omit the
J details of the table simply stating
it is made up from the budgets o
about 1900 Kansas workmen anC
1854 of Ontario, representatives o
twenty trades and employment
> ranging from ordinary unskille'
4 labor to locomotive engineers, ston
s cutters and bricklayers and res
e dents of "A of the principal town
; and cities of that province. TIL
D average daily wages of these On
d tario workmen during the pas
years was S1.76, and that of thos
: OF the same calling duringthe sam
i time IN Kansas 81. 81, or 25. SO pc
d cent greater, while it cost the Or
tario workman 80 per cent of hi
wages to support his family an
the Kansas workman $50 per cent
the Kansas workman saving $5S
c 45 Of his own earnings over tn
= support Of his family ami the On