The great West. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1889-18??, 1890-12-05

HOW 1nO1ECTION WORKS.
A Systsn tAat Dsstrsys Girls Dsly
and Seul.
Special Correspondence News:
NEW YORK, Oct. 22.-SOme Of the
regular readers of Evening News have
recently written me saying ] had no
business to speak against John Wan
amaker, Harrison's postmaster gem
eral, because, first he is christian
(this from an Indian correspondent,
says it because q man has right to
buy in the cheapest and sell IN the
dearest markets this astounding
anti-refOrm idea came from Cleve-
land, your state), and lastly. one
brother writes that perhaps Wanna
maker pays good wages to his Berlin
workers. had just written to the
United States consul at Berlin for
particulars, when 10! the world sup
piled it's readers with the very infor-
nation that / needed. In the Berlin
city directory for 1889 there appears
the following notice:
"Wanamaker, John, manufacturer
of ladies cloaks, jersey waists and
children's costumes; C. Kurstrasse,
Is; John Wanamaker, Philadelphia
S. Moritz, Manager"
Now, Bro, remember Wanamaker
is no poor democratic free trader, but
a Republican protectionist, q member
of Harrison's cabinet, which is sup
posed tc be the very highest of pro-
lection administrations, or else why
was Cleveland defeated? Was it not
the cry that if the Democrats were re-
turned to power we should have to
compete with the pauper labor of
Europe? Eth, brothers, was not that
the great campaign cry. The mana
ger OF the Berlin factory, Mr.. Moritz,
told the world reporter that business
was conducted on the contract sys-
tenn, and that most of the cloaks
made there was shipped to Philadel-
phia.
In the United States, Herr Moritz
further observed, cloaks cannot be
manufactured to advantage. Skilled
labor is scare there and wages are
high, whereas in Berlin the work can
be done at moderate" wages.
WHAT MODERATE WAGES" MEAN.
"About how much do the girls
earn" Mr.. MOritz was asked.
"Well, he should say anywhere
from 6 to Is marks a week. Ten
marks a week was certainly a fair
average. "a mark is worth about
"a cents in American money! The
busy season usually lasted five
months each year sometimes seven
months. When there was no work
for the girls they were dismissed. Mr..
Moritz did not feel at liberty to say
how much stuff Mr.. Wanamaker had
manufactured in Berlin, but he would
say that in the busy season they en-
ploved several hundred hands.
Think OF that! $2.4O week a fair
average for making
PROTECTION cLoAKs
for sale in the City OF Brotherly Love
by the good Christian Wanamaker,
who, no doubt, in paying such liber-
al wages five months in the year, is
doing to others as he would be done
by. Only five months work say 20
weeks at $3.50, or a total of
$4S A YEAR!
A very intelligent master tailor in
the Greisenaustrasse, who works al
most exclusively for Wanamaker,
said that he received from the firm
from IL marks to 6 marks for each
cloak. The World correspondent
saw one of the marks cloaks. At
the very lowest it would sell for $40
in the great Philadelphia store.
HOW is 1T DONE.
The master tailor who gets one Of
Wanamaker's contracts receives a
piece of cloth from the manager, out
of which he must make fixed mum.
Der OF garments. He cuts them and
gives them to the girls to sew. Each
girl must finish absolutely the gar
ment she takes in hand. There is nc
subdivision of labor. One girl finish
es an entire cloak, button holes, lin
ing and all. For a cloak which he
has paid TX marks to make he gave
the girl who made it SO pfennings-
about II cents! A good worker
could make four cloaks in three days
thus earning four marks (less thar
81 aweek. The skillful girls get bet
ter work and were paid ~ marks fol
. each cloak. In the busy season they
might earn Is marks week. This
was the highest wages paid. These
figures seem increditable but they art
, given by man that has made hun
dreds of cloaks for the firm, cloakf
which have been sent to America, anC
doubtless sold as high-priced product
of protected American industry.
WHAT THE GIRLS SAY.