The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1894-05-02
WHO AI,l, THE UNEMPLOYED?

WHO ARE THE tNt6tbbt bb
We referred yesterday to the remark
able proposltion Of Or. colt, Of New York,
in the May Forum, that the city Of New
York shall Immediately commence the
construction Of fifty millions Of dollars
| worth Of public improvements to give en-
nlovment 10 the unemployed, and shall
borrow ten millions and pay it out with
| IN the next six months. Before ms aru-
Gle was printed the proprietors OF Inc
| Forum submitted It to a Mr.. d. NJ. G.
| Means. for critical remarks, ana his CRUZ
| cism of it appears along with H. III inc
same number Of The Forum MI Means
has made some very remarkable STATE
meDts I'm these remarks. lie claims tha'
| the greater part Of the unempioyeI u
New York city is either from the tallor-
inc trade and is composed, he says OF
inferior human beings brought here
within few years, principally from east
tern Europe. and dumped into this city
and this industry" or from the building
trades. lie finds this to be the fact
from an examination Of the complaints Of
want Of work that have been made.
MIR. Means then says that the principal
cause that men In the building trades are
ont Of employment is the action Of the
trades unions, and he proceeds thus:
When a business depression comes on
! ornlovers must either contract their bust
| ness or reduce their expenses. 1t Is the
policv Of these unions to refuse to per
! nit reductions Of wages, and the cessa-
ton Of employment necessarily follows.
! Let IL be rem lbered that, when prices
fall. a reduct / Of wages 10 cores
ponding degreo s not a reduction IN real
| wages. Hence to insist that the same
money wages shall continue 20 be PAID
! when their releasing power has IN
| creased is 10 insist upon an advance
of WAGES 4 number Of builders of New
Yorl, have made overtures to the unions.
I'm the hope Of resuming operations with
a scale Of wages which would MAKE
profits possible. or at least make the fisk
of loss not excessive. But the unions
have ignored these propositions, and the
time for planning buildings for the cur
rent year has passed away. The park
commissioners are reported 10 have re-
Gently offered to pay brick1ayers 500
for eight hours work, but the latter re-
fused to permit any one to work for
less than 81.
Mr.. Means then goes on to say that
the power of the unions in New York is
absolute; that when the demand Of one is
not conceded they require the cooperation
OF all to compel the concession, and that
they have now issued a circular directing
that all unions shall, after June /, 1894.
in consequence Of the ga, that certain
wealthy citizens Of New York have re
peatedly awarded contracts 10 European
firms for decorating their residences,
refuse to handle any imported decorative
or other building material"
1t IS this action Of the trades unions,
Mr.. Means says. which has paralysed all
building in New York city, and has filled
the streets of that city with idle anG
unemployed men.
The laboring man has no more sincere
well-wisher and friend than The Times,
and it is with the deepest interest in
him that The Times most earnestly hopes
that the authorities of the unions will
look at this case on all its sides. We
learn from the journal of Commerce that
there was a strike in a Rhode Island
wooden mill recently because the pro-
prietor wanted each weaver 10 attend
an increased amount Of machinery. The
weavers followed the example Of the
| Belgian cotton weavers who, few years
back, struck against being required TO
tend more than one or two looms. though
| the English cotton weayers did twice that
and the American weaVers four times as
much. Now wages have gone up for
thirty years. while prices have gone
| down, because better and faster machin-
cry was introduced from time to time.
and the laborers. by tending more pieces
Of machinery have steadily increased their
WAGES. The logic of the Rhode Island
strike closes the door to this great sd
vance in wages, which industrious arti-
sans have been securing to themselves.
| Remarking on the Rhode Island case (and
the reasoning equally applied to the
restrictive action Of the New York
unions). the Journal of Commerce says:
II operatives are sincere in Directing on
| the ground that the more machinery each
one tends the fewer will be the number
! OF employees. II may reflect some credit
on their kindly feeling for each other, but
none whatever on their intelligence.
| American wOrkmen have been getting
better wages than European workmen
because, with the help of machinery. they
| have turned ont more goods. IL they are
going to refuse 20 make full use Of
machinery in the business of production
Il viii be no longer possible to pay them
so wei. If they are going to pursue
/ these methods. they will only earn the
wages of European working people. II
| they are afraid to accept a reduction OF
wages lest they should not be able 10 re-
| cover the OLD rate. they are equally obtuse
| If the condition OF business which COM
| pels a reduction Of wages continues the
| reduction will come any way, and the
| strike is simply a waste. If the condition
| OF business is only temporary the opera
tives will not have much difficulty in get
ting wages restored. 1t is striking on a
falling market that keeps the workingmen