The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1892-11-27
OBJECT LESSONS TO IMMeRAxrs.
In This Country. In New York Especially,
Men Learn TO Work and 10 Think.

In This Country. In New York Especially,
Men Learn 70 Work and 20 Think.
An IrIshman long resident In New York. but
recently the inheritor OF estates In Ireland.
found man on his Irish property who re-
| ceived considerably more per week than other
men doing like work. and on asking the work.
man why this difference. received the answer:
I've been to America and learned how to
work." An American contractor who was to
build an important structure In a Scottish
| city found II profitable to tako over
American workmcn. rather than TO employ
native workmen Mt lower wages. An Ameri-
can visiting Oxford found an English me-
chanic passing his holiday with friends In the
| university town. and discovered that he was
we'll read In political economy. Later the
| American visited the EnElishman at his home
in Swinton and found that hc had a library Of
letween 1000 and 5000 volumes. mostly OF
economic works. nearly all OF which he had
read. The Englishman owned that ho had
caught the habit OF reading while Il resi-
dent OF the United States Tho late
Duke of Marlborough explained to an
| American that one secret OF the success Of
American machinists lay in their facility In
taking advantage Of cheapeaing processes.
| He illustrated this by notin that tho machin-
| cry manufactured 10y an English company Of
which he was President made each machine
uHoH speVlai OTuer anu without regard 10 any
other. while American machines we're made In
identical PARTS. nny one Of which could he
replaced 10y reference TO q number or n letter.
Employers Of labor In this country find that
nearly MI kinds Of foreign workmrn save a
America. are interior in skill and strength to
native workmen in tho same trades. This is
Of many mechanics. 1t not nfrcIuentiy hap.
Eens that carpenters. blacksmiths, ami the
like. from abroad make II attempt to pIy their
n in hlf Ia sst.t
wo.kmen. tut hire ont as day laborcrs. Other
mechanics. especially from countries where
men 10 America, handle the heavy
tG9s Fl thu, ca trade hin in here with
iulI days WORK only by long and pain vi *.
perienre. Even stout peasants work $" slowly
and SO awkwardly as dry lanorers upon first
leSs than current wages. Thousands Of Scotch
bricklayers and maSnps work spring; summer.
Scotland Tor the wintr. But they are picked
men Of their crafts: tor no e, others could hold
those trades. The foreign workman. skilled
or killed. commonly comes to this country
nnnic wsn inc ingenious anrsavlng
stranger to the newest and IN ost effective tools
c.an!ickiy seized 1 unon by y Amersans
est st rural mecRancs, Of native birth and train
with men trained in the methods Of this great
and active town; ~, It is delight and reveal:
at wSrs to to Oily town snS
see the skill. alcrtness. and intelligence OF q
Now York mechanic. Sarpenters in New
ingenuity, their economy Of time. and their
Iuickncs- to adort improved tools. Coun:
gangs, and loso time because they can:
not take advantage 81 all that is to he gained
ny ns a4se ri IL ths 5ss T5
or no time from such causes. and the country
Wl Hanr he FIT h
ise's as il he lad fallen in with whiriwind.
VIII! all this. the skilled mechanic in New
mar kindly fellow. and as often as not
Of the New World and its one great town. The
nds that hs dsy WAGES
WITHIN year from his arrival; Contractors in
this town do not care to cmrloy permanently
skilled labor The skiiei foreigners IL learn arm
presently to handle, tho new and the heavy
ingenious labor saving devices Of their New
York brethren One result Of all this school,
and also worse psd ths
ore largely in tie hard- o. he f"reignars that
h "H to at the the un%G States se be e;
greatest numbers; When the Victims Of star ar
walton and English misrple in Ireland were
chiefly irish; Later. when hard, times and and
ulHly tlSClFi!uo dlWpsN ueIDpulhteQ some
Irish in the hardest and least skilled labor to
30 done here. Now all those employments are
largely IN the hands Of newly arrived Italians.
Poles. and Hungarians. Each generation Of
immigrants learns its lesson and finds its
place. usually n higher one than 1t took upon
coming and the next generation takes the
place loft vacant In and about New York un-
skilled laborers native to the United States
are few. and unskil cd laborers who are the
sons Of natives are almost unknown.
Foreigners learn here also the lesson OF lib.
erty amt sturdy sef-respect. The newly ar
rived i'm migrant Is often timid and even trife
crinGing in the presence OF prosperous natives
who may have Employment to give. Now and
then one meets with foreigner who will seize
and kiss the hand OF such person in token Of
feudnl submission to q prosperity" employer
and overload: But the peasant instinct and
attitude seldom last SO much as live years.
and never passes to the second generation.
The Northern people, of Teutonic blood. who
easily learn the English language. soon
est lose the pleasant mark; because they
soonest get ut the spirit Of American inst-
tutions. Many Of these people are more
Orientals. save, perhaps the Japanese. are
lean and to accept American habits OF
thought. Now AMI thcn nm East In Han how.
ever. finds his way here. and. armed with the
English language quickly divines the mean
ing Of what he secs. One such in New York
married n pump American wife. converted her
from Professionalism TO Mohammcaanism.a and
confidently expressed the hone that his little
half breed. Ali. might come to be President
OF the United States