The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1889-01-29

| famllles numbering from four to
twelve, who were unable to obtain
employment during much of their
time the past year. Some report sixty
| days lost and others one hundred, and
as high as two hundred days lost
These facts call for serious consid-
Grafton. A State cannot be prosperous
except as her producing classes pros
per-. Idle hands bring neither wealth
nor contentment. The question may
be asked, why do not these men leave
| the over crowded trades and go to the
farms, where there is abundant room
for all They do not for two reasons:
First, they have" large families and no
money; they are tradesmen and not
farmers. Second, they see large num-
bers of farmers leaving their farms
every year unable longer to continue
farming with the odds so fearfully
against them as is the case in these
latter days. What encouragement
have they to 60 to the farm?
The report points out as one reason
why so many of our mechanics are not
able to find regular employment, the
i'll effects of our inefficient apprentice
system, the result of which is to turn
out a great number of poor mechanics.
The Bureau offers a remedy for this
which is worthy of careful considera-
ton. The Commissioner thinks the
law should provide for the grading
and licensing of mechanics as is now
done with teachers, doctors, lawyers,
&C., and he suggests that this could be
done by the county superintendent of
public schools, and should be so
arranged as to work to the protection
of mechanics and employers as well.
To this subject of apprentices the
Bureau has devoted much space, and
the information presented is most
valuable. Opinions and suggestions
are given from many public and private
citizens, representing nearly all the
counties; the testimony is almost
unanimous against our present appren-
tice law.
The report also gives extracts from
the apprentice laws of sixteen States
which have in operation apprentice
systems both compulsory and volun-
tary, from which law could doubt
less be framed that would be great
improvement upon the present law.
It is due to the mechanics and the
children of the State that this should
be done.
Chapter Ii of the report gives re-
turns from the proprietors of 42l fac
tories, mills, workshops, &C., giving
amount of capital invested and product
of each, amount of wages paid and
general condition of hands employed
by them The Commissioner says:
1t will be seen that those report
ing make very creditable showing as
to capital invested and the amount of
business done. 1t may be safely
assumed from the figures given that
the manufacturing and mechanical
pursuits of the State have trebled and
even quadrupled since the census Of
1890"
Chapter " is devoted to manual
and technical training, and remarks of
some of the leading thinkers along
that line are given. AS is stated in
the report "while this subject has
not received the attention in our State
which its Importance would seem to
demand, yet it has received some at
enough to cause the estab-
lishment of the College of Agriculture
and Mechanic Arts at Raleigh"
The subject of public roads is
recognized by the Bureau as one of
leading Importance in this State at
present. Much attention has there
fore been given to this subject. In
formation on the road question has
been sought and obtained from every
county in the State, the replies to the
questions sent out by the Bureau are
full of interest, the large majority of
them condemn the present system, and |
most of them favor the system known |
as a combination of tax upon prop
erty and assessments upon labor. " |
Manyare strongly in favor of working
the roads by taxation entirely, and
declare that we can never have good
roads until this is done. ,0-- /
Many of these letters are from men
of experience and wisdom-men who
have given much thought to this sub! |