Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1894-07-23
COTTON AND WOOL
Workers of Maine Seriously
Affected by Tariff Agitation.
Cotton Workers Wages Cut 80 Per
Cent Wool Workers, 43.
Interesting Statistics on Subject Collected and
Compiled by Commissioner Matthews.

The people who look to the cotton ard
woolen industries in this State to furnish
them with employment and consequent live
hhood have good reasons for hoping that
the rival tariff bills before Congress may
devour one another and that the country
may be afforded the certainty that the pres
ent law will not be tampered with for an
other two years. These reasons may be
found in the following striking facts.
Through the kindness of Hon. S. W.
Matthews the JOURNAL is permitted to print
deductions from the statistics which he has
collected and compiled, showing the condi-
ton of the cotton and woolen industries in
Maine on July /:
Returns received at the tfiice of the COM
missioner of the bureau of industrial and
labor statistics cover, substantially, the
cotton industry of the State and show the
condition July l, 1894.
Two small mills are shut down and two
others have reduced working time to 80
hours per week, which, taken together,
amounts to a reduction of about IL per
cent. in working hours, of all the mills.
The reduction in the working force amounts
to per cent. in the mills now running, so
that the total reduction in time and working
output of so per cent. of the full
capacity of production. This does not
include the Lincoln mill in
Lewiston, nor the kennebec River mill in
Hallowell, both of which have been closed
for several years. The number of hands
employed in all the mills when working full
crews, is 10, ,G0i the number now employed
is 1884, or a reduction of 1910.
1he cut in wages seems to be general,
only two mills reporting the old rate of
wages, and amounts to 10 per cent. reduc-
ton on the earning capacity of full crews,
so that the pay rolls show loss in gross
earnings of employees through reduction in
numbers, working hours, and wages, of 80
per cent The production of sheetings,
shirtings, satteens, lawns, twills, drillings,
flannels and print cloth holds up fairly well,
but the depression strikes hard on fancy
and colored cottons, ginghsms, duck, grain
bags and twine. The general causes as
signed by manufacturers for these reduc-
tons, are hard times, Glow sales and low
prices brought about by tariff agitation.
The number of woolen mills in the State
from which returns have been received is
49, There are some half dozen unimpor-
tant mills which have not yet been heard
from, and wht ther these are now running
or not is uncertain. The ~ mills reported,
when running at full capacity, employ 1861
hands. On the first day of July eight of
the Sc mills were idle, throwing 1891 hands
out of employment. Thirteen other mills
are running short crews, throwing out 502
employees, making total of 1898 hands, or
80 per cent of the whole working force,
now idle. The number of hands at work
is 30GS, or G2 per cent. One mill is
running on short time and one is
working overtime on temporary order.
All the others are running on full time,
so that the employees are not materially af-
fected by reduction Of hours.
Thirteen mills, employing ZIG hands,
pay the old rates of wages, and 2l mills,
employing 1852 hands, have made cuts in
wages varying from to % per cent, and
averaging IL l-2 per cent. on the wages of
those so affected.
This i, equal to a ) per cent. reduction
on the full capacity of all the mills which,
added to the 3s per cent. reduction in the
working force, makes AZ per cent. loss in
the working capacity of the employees in the
wooden industry in Maine. Several mills
have shut down with poor prospect of re-
sumirg business at present, and others will
no doubt, start up within few
weeks or months; meanwhile others
anticipate a suspension IS they COM
plete the orders now on hand.
There have been many sbutdoxns during
the past year, varying from few days to
seven months, and the condition of the bus
ness July ,as appears from the returns, is
fair sample of its standing during the year
past.
The AZ mills report "a classes or combin-