Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1889-02-07
TALKS ON THE TARIFF.
THE LOW WAGES PAID IN THE COAL
MINES OF BELGIUM.

THE Low WAGES PAID IN THE COAL
MINES OF BELGIUM.
New York Press.
Here are some fresh facts about the
low price of labor in Europe, taken from
Ryland's Iron Trade Circular:
The recent strike in the Belgian coal
fields lends particular interest to the re-
port recently published by the Central
Administration of Mines, from VI.
HarZe, the head of that office. Mr..
Harze says that the number of workmen
employed in the mines during the past
year was 100, ,739, of whom 75,445 were
below and only 1924 above ground.
The number of male adults was g.
292 below and 1911 above ground; of
female adults, 3,201 below and 1852
above ground; of boys under Is years of
age, 1920 below and 1881 above
ground; of girls under 16 years of age,
l,032 below and 1880 above ground
Clause 90 of the code of rules, put in
force in April, 1884, makes it illegal for
boys under II or girls under IA years of
age to be employed under ground, so
that out of every thousand. persons
working below ground last year 839
were men, 42 were women, los were
lads under 16 years, and IA were girls
under 16 years, this being very different
from 1888, when the proportion of boys
and girls was much larger
The 100, ,739 workmen put out during
the year 1878, ,624 tons of coal, repre-
senting a total value of ,e5,907, 900, the
average price being 6 shillings pence a
ton. The total amount of wages paid
was e3, ,324, 900, thus giving each work
man an average salary of e32 u shill-
ingS, or about 30 shillings more than in
the previous year. N. Harze calculates
the daily wages at about 2 shillings 6
pence for men, shilling 6 pence for fe-
male adults, shilling pence for boys
and l shilling Tor girls. The number of
days during which work was provided
was 269, leaving 76 without employ
ment.
Think of 5000 women and 1000 girls
under Is years of age working under
ground at 81 cents day for the former
and "A cents for the latter
THE COMING TIN PLATE INDUSTRY.
Here is a tariff talk, and a good one,
too, in the shape of conversation over
heard by the Detroit Tribune:
Free Trader-What are you building
here?
Manufacture tin plate industry.
1t will require millions of capital and
give employment to thousands of labor
ing men.
Free Trader Yes, but you can't make
tin plate here as eheaply as they do in
other countries where
Manufacturer-Wh labor is cheap
eF, you mean. Then according to your
theories we must stop all manufaetur-
ing in this country or reduce the price of
labor here to the foreign standard. Eh?
Free Trader-You are a millionaire
a protection blood sucker,
heartleSS fat fryer, and I'll never buy an
American tin pail as long as l can get
an English one-you vile oppreSSOr.
ON SAMOAN TROUBLES.
81 can say in word almost all have
10 Say III icStIU W lllC cduiOoh OAiASuAN.f
which is that the consideration for the
rights we acquired in the Samoan islands
must be fulfilled. In the second place,
our flag and the rights of citizens must
be respected everywhere and by every
body. no matter what may be the
cost. The whole difficulty, in my mind,
has grown out of the fact that the pres
ent administration has been weak, yacil-
lating ond generally incapable in look
ing after our foreign relations. The
next administration will not be so, and
Germany and other nations of the
world will speedily find that out if they
do not already know as much have
no idea that there will be any war"
WHILE Mr.. Blaine was being enter
tanned at luncheon in the Naval Com
mittee rooms at the Capitol on Monday
Of last week, Senator Edmunds had
experience with page whom
he met in an elevator. "Don't you
want to see Mr.. Blaine?' asked the boy,
The Vermont iceberg an
swered not Didn't you know he is in
the Naval Committee rooml Aren't
yon going in to see him." persisted the
unterritied page. "NawT finally ex-
claimed the annoyed Senator The page
has since discovered that he put his foot
in his mouth in this instance,