Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1894-10-09

high wages paid to the journeyman bakers.
The majority OF the journeyman bakers
receive SIS per week, and 1 ask the public
OF Washington IL such wage is unreascn-
able for sixty-two hours work per week?
i receive S14 per week and support a family
of five. and i can testify that it is a hard
matter sometimes to save $ a month. The
real cause of the action of this certain
baker boss in making the statement which
he did Yesterday Is to prejudice the public
OF Washington against the union and to
destroy the Bakers Labor Assembly of
this ciEy.
There is a difficulty in existence between
Labor Assembly No. ESQ and MIR. Charles
Schneider. The jOurneymen bakers estab-
nshed May I, 1894. a labor bureau at an
expeLse OF SO per month. in order to secure
work for the bakers in Washington Mr..
Schneider las always artagonized the bak-
ers by getting his workmen from other
cities. Through the aid of our local bu-
reau he has been compelled to get his
10arneymen bakers here. This did not suit
him. and he requested New York firm to
send a few bakers to Washington. The
bakers in this city objected to those men,
and requested Mr.. Schneider to fill vacancies
in his bakery with workingmen from the
District He replied he would get his men
from other cities. Notwithstanding. After
this decision was made the men employed
in his bakery refused last Sunday to work
any longer with the imported men, and Mr.
Schneider was compelled to discharge those
men and take residents of this city,
No Recent Increase I'm Wages
Mr.. j. G. Schmidt, ex-master workman of
local Assembly No. %, requests The Star
to permit him to correct some of the state
ments made by the employing baker in the
Interview published yesterday. Mr.. Schmidt
says that the last general increase in the
scale Of prices was made in June, 1885;
therefore the bakers have received no reg
uiar raise in wages during the time that the
price of Hour has declined. There have been
individual cases of a raise in wages due to
the worth OF the men themselves but the
union scale has not been touched. In 1850
the hours of labor were reduced from
twelve to ten MIR. Schmidt thinks that the
price of bread could be reduced but not 10
the extent of 1 cent per loaf
The Bakery Industry Here.
As stated in The Star yesterday. there Is
great deal of bread and other bakery pro-
ducts sold in Washington. As long ago as
1889. when the census was taken, returns
showed that there were lightweight bakery
establishments in this city, representing an
investment OF S765.219. The average num-
Der Of employees was JS9. and the total
wages paid per year amounted to $50 500
The cost OF the materials used was SSr,-
o.2, while the total annual output of the
products amounted to $l,l09,5f5. Since 1870
the business has materially increased AMI
many of the bakery establishments have
made extensive additions to their plants
woman's Reckoning.
housekeepar, woman who ia Ynucb
interested in the bread Question. and road
will. interest what was printed in The
star yesterday. saw a fallacy IN the rea-
sonins OF bakers to why the price of
bread has not been reduced in some pre-
portion to the decline in the price of fio..r
SAID she to Star reporter today: Even
II II Is true as the bakers represent that
they cannot afford to make a reduction of
whole cent on a loaf, and il they reduce
only half a cent the retailers will still
charge five cents. and make the addit onal
profit. the public not gaining by such a
transaction, u seems to NE there is a way
TO give the consumer the benefit Why
cannot the bakers if they insist on present
prices make up the difference to the con-
sumner by making larger loaves? l do not
believe there is any good reason why. the
price should not be reduced. but il the
bakers are acting in good faith with the
the consumers the worth of their money
without adding to the profits of the middle
men,"
a Very Poor Plea.
To the Editor Of The Evening Star:
I am glad to notice The Star has taken
up the question of cheap bread, and hope
1t will not let it rest until the bakers are
compelled to be satisfied with a reasonable
profit. A bakers plea, high wages, is the
usual excuse. but in this case a very poor
one.
If Hour has fallen 40 per cent from 81, and
one man works up fifteen barrels per week,
that represents saving to the baker of
$50 per man per week
However, IL Is so plainly an extortion on
nearly every person in the city that feel
certain thousands like myself would be
glad and thankful for The Stars further
Investigation of this matter
A SUBSCRIBER