New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1892-08-31
FREE. TRADE CRITICISMS ABOUf WAGES

FREE TRADE CRITICISMS ABOUT WAGES.
In the estimation of the Free Traders, Com
missioner Pecks record of the advance in wages
in this State is worthless. 1t was TO be ex-
pected that they would entertain that opinion.
A pretty good definition of Free Trader is
ga man who will not believe fact when he
sees it," "The Evening POST endeavors to
offer excuses, not to call them reasons, for
thinking the statements OF the Labor Bureau
valueless the first because Mr.. Peck's prev-
Gus work has not been Of the highest character {;
second, that he. like every other competent
statistician, declines to make public the names
of infOrmants from whom reports are obtained.
and third. that his figures prove too much, be-
cause they show a greater advance in wages
than was reported by the Senate Finance Com
mittee. To these points reply may be made
as follows:
l. The reports of Commissioner Peck for
years past have been quoted with great solem-
nifty and qualification by Free Traders. His
work is worth quite as much now as it was
when they treated his evidence as conclusive.
.. No Labor Commissioner has yet been dis
covered who can get information of value I'M
less he faithfully promises that the names of
uIIiS Sndu uOV NC ulSClOSVu' ho >""''"N'"
setts Labor Bureau has always treated state
ments made to it as confidential, and the United
States Census of Wages in 1850 was obtained
only in that way.
g. The Senate Committees report covered all
the States, but gave an average of returns for
all. some doubtless having shown a decrease
and others an increase. 1t has not the least
tendency, therefore, to contradict report
which shows q considerable increase in single
State. But further the Senate report quoted,
which showed an increase of only three-quar-
tiers of per cent for the whole country, coy
cred only fifteen general occupations while the
report of Commissioner Peck for New-Iork
covered sixty eight occupations. Other state
ments obtained by the Senate Committee re-
lating TO fourteen special industries were not
included in the summary quote1, but in all
less than half as many occupations were COW
cred by that report as were covered by the
State investigation.
There is no occasion 10 compare two state
ments so widely differing in scope and method.
When wages actually paid to 2s5, 900 hands in
a single State are reported by those who paid
those wages, that mass OF information is en-
titled to credit until good reason has been
shown for doubling its fidelity. In this case
the reports were forwarded by employers TO
well known Democratic State official. whose
leanings toward Free Trade were not con-
cealed, and employers of the same party would
not have been at all likely to twist statistic
against his and their own opinions. When the
facts were collected. and while they were being
compiled, Mr.. Peck mquestiOnably expected
that they would be used with gladness
valuable to the Democratic cause. But having
expended his years appropriation in collecting
them, he would have been without material
for the regular report if he had refused TO print
the information gathered
The figures given by the State Bureau are
not by any means intrinsically improbable. The
average yearly wages Of all the employees.
285 900 in number, were S45l SO in 1890, so
that the average increase reported was about
) per cent. In seventeen occupations more or
less important declines occurred, which is natu
raj. Tt, greatest increase was in woOllen
goods and it is well known that the change in
the condition of that industry had been great,
for more than third of the works were said
to be idle in 1890, while within the last year
all have been well employed. The Adrich Re-
port also found greater increase in the wages
paid in the woOlen manufacture than in others,
averaging for the whole country over per
cent In view of the well known and great i'm
pr0vement in few such branches Of the larg
est Importance, it is not at all incredible that
a general advance In this State of per cent
has been established.