Waterbury evening Democrat., 1891-09-19
WESTERN WORKINGMEN.
Interesting Facts Developed by
Investigation.
Statistics Showing the Prosperous Con-
ditIon of tho Laboring Glasses
in Certain In
dustries.

The report of the Michigan bureau
of labor and industrial statistics be-
speaks careful attention. 1t may be
said, says the Providence Or. ~ Jour
nal, that industrial conditions in the
west differ from those at the east, and
that we in this portion of the country
must take exception now and again,
for this reason, to the finding of the
bureau as detailed in this report, but
certainly a painstalzing investigation
over so wide a field as the state of
Michigan cannot but prove of general
| interest and value. Moreover, the
| Michigan bureau has conducted similar
| Investigations for eight years, and in
that time has acquired much expert
ence in collating facts like those now
| presented
1t would not be fair to say that the
daily life Of the workingman is
pictured with absolute correctness, for
all such canvasses as the Michigan
| bureau has made from home to home
must be incomplete. But we may be
sure that an approximately correct idea
| Of that status of workingmen, at least
in certain industries, may be gained
from a study of the bureaus statistics.
No attempt to secure figures for all
varieties of industry was made, the
labors of investigators being confined
chiefly to the agricultural implement
and iron working laborers, although a
| few establishments of other character
were visited The two industries
named are among the best known and
longest established in the state, and it
was considered that an inquiry among
these would be valuable as affording an
idea of how the better paid classes of
worlzmen live. It is said that in these
two branches of manufacture working
men receive relatively high wages, and
that they may be taken to represent
the more prosperous grade of employees.
For the purposes of this report s, S39
worlzmen were visited and confronted
with long list of questions on many
interesting subjects pertaining to their
home life. They were asked whether
| or not they 2owned the houses in which
they lived; if there were encumbrances
on their property; if they carried life
insurance and to what amount how
. much wages they received and how
much they saved; whether or not they
owned pianos or sewing machines, and
a variety of other questions. 1t was
| found that out of the S,93S to whom
these queries were put one earned $40
a week and 1875 from $40 to $50, while
at the other end of the pay roll were a
dozen boys who received but So week
and 322 moro with So or less About Is
per cent. received $15 or over, and more
than II per cent. less than 81, while
the average for the whole number,
married and single men, was SIC. 06, and
that for the married men $11.5O. The
average total amount for the year was
S467, the married men averaging $525, a
small annual income on which to sup
port family, in the estimation of
good many more favored people. But,
with this amount, it is evident that the
families of these Michigan working
men have been prosperous, at least in
many cases.
AS many as 2,92s of the employees
who were visited owned their houses
and nearly half this number were up-
burdened with mortgages. Almost all
the householders were married men,
moreover, and 46 per cent. of the fam
lilies concerning whom the state bureau
made inquiries were therefore installed
in their own homes. It is worth while
20 note, in passing, that of these house
owners the largest proportion were
Germans, Hollanders. and Irish, with
the Scotchmen and Poles not far be-
hind The Scotchman's house cost
81, OPS, however, and that of the Poles
$3.50, the average among all nationali-
ties reaching $1,312.
Nor are the com forts of everyday life
forbidden, although the average wages
would not seem, at first thought, to af-
ford much margin for these. The
American laborer looks upon certain
luXuries as necessities, and the Mich
igan figures seem to show that he is
able to possess some of them. Sixty
nine per cent. of the families visited
owned sewing machines, and it is fair
to assume that these are positive lux
uries in many a home, where in less
prosperous days there was an inordi-
nate amount of sewing by hand. Sixty
seven per cent. of all the employees in
terviewed took newspapers and maya
zines, and half of them daily papers,
and more than one-fifth of the S,23S
possessed musical instruments of one
kind or another, while there were
found 700 organs and 314 pianos.
fourth of the whole number of men
were insured, the average amount be-
ing nearly 81, 500, and 40 per cent. saved
money last year. In all, $175,470 was
paid out in that time for homes and i'm
provcments upon them, and 1929, $50 in
cash was saved. This is good general
showing, and may be taken to Indicate
fairly the financial status of large
body of workingmen in representa-
tive state of the west.
An Aluminium Steamboat.
Soma novel and inf ox,,>ou;