Workmen's advocate. (New Haven, Conn.) 1883-1891, 1890-08-30

still fewer hours many past youth will
still be able to do "a full share of labor
and so retain place in the world
Their presence in the wage-workers'
army will not be grudged them and life
will be something more than a Joyless
word.
Another cantlng expression used as
argument in these days concerning the
unequal distribution of wealth is this:
"Well, men have different faculties Of
higher and lower orders. One man will
get rich under the same circumstances
in ~hich another man starves.' | have
answered this in what seemed the only
way possible: True, workers have
different powers of accommodating wealth,
| but there is not the difference of $780,
600, 900 to one man and S3 to another,
which is about the difference between the
wealth of which the original Vanderbilt
| died seized and that which it costs to
| dig a grove IN the cemetery of this city
| to cover the remains OF IA wage w orker-
the SO being often paid by some surviv-
| ing member or friend of the family of
the deceased"
A few details of the management of
| the American Watch Co., of Waltham,
show, however, that the gain which a
man or woman may make by means of
superior faculties and efficiency in their
use is systematically denied him. These
| details are nothing new denote no
superior faculties in the management
over that of the cotton mills of this
| city which has been in vogue for the
| past seventy-five years.
1t is the same old method of all manu-.
factories, viz, to incite the employees,
especially women, who are more sus
cepuble to influence, to accomplish
their utmost on their machines. When
it is once plainly shown what the best
| workers can do, what amount of wages
| they can earn, then comes a cut in
prices. The workers recover from the
| blow, and gather up their energies and
| ambition to make up the loss and keep
| their wages even to their expenditures.
| gain comes another cut and the
| process is repeated again and again and
| will continue to be until the workers are
manly enough and womanly enough to
rise for justice and organize themselves
| in their own behalf; of which as yet
there seems no sign. There may be
reasons for it. At one time, years ago,
stock of the company was placed with
the workers. All holding this will see
to it that there is no change. Then the
employees generally having larger wages
than other wageworkers of this city
have adopted very extravagant style
of living. The best French dressmaking
is aspired to by the women, and snowy,
costly houses, lands, ETC., are taken
by the men, and both are good patrons
of all the expensive fashions and plea
sures of the day. To pass through the
part of the city where the watch work
ers live surprises most visitors. Every
thing appears fully up to the style of
the best suburban residences near any of
our large cities. Many of the workers
who live in these snowy houses don't
own them, They rent, or are in the
hands of some Building Loan Company,
and the houses are frequently furnished
on the instalment plan and present an
appearance inside quite equal to or
beyond that maintained by people who
are beyond the need of labor. The result
is there are many empty pockets and a
general fear of coming to want.
The women earn at best $3.50 per day
of ten hours. If they should work every
day through the year, without vacation,
they would earn $3.50 per annum, Men
doing the same work receive $500 per
day, and they are being displaced by
women.
When any body Of workers are in a
condition like that of the striking cloak
makers of New York, their misery
makes them desperate and it is COM
paratively easy to take step that can
not at worst greatly augment their
want
But the watch-workers of this city
have accustomed themselves to a style
of living that they cannot easily depart
from voluntarily, and hence they bear
the grinding and cuts of the bosses in a
slavish manner.
In addition to this there is no doubt a
considerable body of employees, over
seers, ETC., of the company interested
in keeping things as they are. 1t keeps
them in favor at headquarters, and they
get their food and drink regularly, and
apparently think of no higher mouve.
| But Watham corporations are no
doubt keeping an eye well to windward,
in spite of the apparently death-like
Iethargy shown here on all questions of
present moment. The "still hunt" will
do for a season, but sooner or later the
force Of events around will control the
situation here as elsewhere.
Another example in my mind of the
fallacy that the reason why one acquires
more wealth than another is because of
! his superior faculties and efficiency, is
the Fairbanks family of st. Johnsbury
st. scale makers. Far removed from the
centers of industry little is known of
their methods. A summer visitor in st.
Johnsbury not accustomed to look
through appearances would be delighted
at the show of generosity from the firm