St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1896-01-19
BIRD IS A BIRD.
(
KANSAS, LABOR COMMISSIONER
SAYS OTHER STATE OFFICIALS
ARE "KNOCKINGv HIM.
HIS REPORT, In GOOD PRINT,
NOW. APPEARS IN THE PROCEED
INGS OF THE ELEVENTH La
X Dor CONVENTION.
OTHER STATES NOT PRESENT
At the Convention Also Contribute
Chapters of Value to Eco
nOmic Literature.
HIS REPORT, IN GOOD PRINT,
OTHER STATES NOT PRESENT

the officials of bureaus of labor statis-
tics, which came from the printer yes
terday, are some interesting reports
which came in by mail after the meet
ing at Minneapolis in September.
Probably the most extraordinary is
that from Kansas, where Commissioner
w. G. Bird has voluntarily taken up the
matter of arbitration in the face Of
strong opposition.
l am establishing a new precedent for COM
missioners of labor statistics in this state by
between employer and employee and investigat-
ing the cause leading up to the trouble and
then making recommendations to one side or
the other, depending where the Justice lies.
Usually the justice lies the side of the
employees and try to assist them In every
This does not suit the corporationist, who in
turn goes to the governor and the governor in
turn goes for and asks me to resign, but
1 refuse for the reasons that: First, the
charges against me are false and, second,
because he has no better place to appoint me
to. Well, after l refuse to resign, then they
take me into court. and from that day until
this they have been handicapping this depart
ment. That was the reason they would not
let me come to the annual convention, under
- the pretext that 1t was not legal to pay such
expenses. An attorney general is very
handy in this case with his legal opin-
IONS / have been deprived of stenographer
and the auditor has disallowed a number of
my vouchers for expenses in cases of inves-
legations. My purpose is to make this depart
ment worth something to the working peo-
pie or SO obnoxious to the administration that
they will abolish it. l do not believe in tax
ing people to maintain place for "a good
fellow" which reputation it now bears. My
successor will have more work to do thaa
my predecessor had l will assure him of that
that is, If l have one There is some talk
, In this state of abolishing the Office. l don I
I think they will dare attempt it, though.
The legislature of Kansas at it's last, or
twenty-sixth, regular session made the fol-
lowing annual appropriation for the mainten-
httrn np 1nho
tics Salary of commissioner, s., 600; salary of
e,e tx $500; incidental and travelling expenses,
and eXpressage $780, total 5000.
NO special appropriation is made for print
ing, but this is regulated by a printing COM
acquisitions granted by order upon the state
printer. Regarding current work, our appro-
priation being insufficient for elaborate in
designations into general industrial Conditions r
we VIII this year take up a few special large
n manG1acturil,g interests such as milling,
handicapped, we hope to get out as complete
report as possible under the circumstances
Commissioner Mills, of Montana, covers the
business OF the courts and county officers
revenues, debts, expenditures taxation etc
mineral, agricultural, stock-growing and crop
statistics, in addition to the labor and in
dustria statistics.
In Maine, Commissioner Mathews is in
curing into lime, slate sardnes and other
special lines of business.
Chief S. j. Thompson, of the Indiana
bureau, says it is unlike any other in the
country IL was originally organized
agricultural bureau, the labor part being
added after several years. AS now organ
lied it embraces agriculture, mines, manu-
factures. and the gathering and tabuIation
OF the business of courts, county auditors
sheriffs, superintendent of county asylums
railways, and various other statistical mat
tiers.
Commissioner O'Bleness, Of the Iowa bu-
reau, is pursuing number of different lines
present condition of the wage earners of
Iowa. Circular letters have been sent to
the working people of the state and answers
are being received, showing the nationality,
residence, age, occupation, number in work
er's family, average weekly wages, wages re-
ceived in preceding year, savings in past
year, amount of rent paid by those who are
tenants and facts about ownership for the
s persons who own their own homes, and a
number of like questions. second line of
work is to call general attention to the adj
vantages of different localities of the state
for the establishment of manufacturing indus
tries. The object of this is to foster the
growth of manufactures in Iowa, so that
nearly as possible her people may pro-
duce all the objects needed in her borders.
The officers of the bureau are doing all they
to assist in securing employment for
those out of work, and hope to have estab-
lished in their state a free employment
agency modelled after the plan of the Ohio
bureau.
The Ohio bureau is looking into manu-
featuring industries generally, and also the
lake traffic, and clay.
The Texas department is now known as the
department of agriculture, insurance, sta
tistics and history" covering large scope
In Colorado the commissioner is directed
by law to act as mediator between employer
and employe in of a strike, when there
are fifteen or more employees involved.
The commissioners salary is $500 per year,
and $1,50O per year for clerk hire and ex-
penSeS.
In New Hampshire the bureau of labor is
engaged in making an investigation of the
shoe industry, with view to showing the
extent of the industry, which has greatly
increased during the past few years, and the
progress made in methods of manufacture and
the displacement of shoe labor by improved
machinery The general living conditions
of shoe factory operatives, both in the work
shop and in their homes. will also be looked
into, and facts ascertaned as to rates of
wages paid both by the week and the piece
compared with other states.
The hours of labor and the general working
condition of street railway employees in the
state is also being investigated: the retail
prices of food and fuel in each city and town
in the state in June and December of the
present year is in process of collection: the
strikes and lock-outs of 1886 are receiving
due attention; and Statistics of Manufact-
ure' which has been yearly feature of the
work of the bureau since it's establishment in
1893, are also being procured.
The MARYLAND bureau, A. B. Howard Jr.
chief, will deal with wealth and strikes very
fully.
The chief subject relates to the distribution
2 of wealth. and is called personal property
values This subject was treated in the last
report, but only as to Baltimore city. 1t is
statistical statement showing the number
and value of the personal estates probated in
edcn OF the orphans courts throughout the
state, and taken in connection with the show
Ing made last year to Baltimore city pre-
sents an interesting subject for discussion.
The other special subject is that of build
ing and loan associations and all the data
obtainable on this subject are presented.
The record of strikes, will of course en-
brace all those strikes which come to the
notice of the bureau. 1t will be the aim of
this part of the report to show, chiefly, the
cost OF strikes, not only to the employee, but
TO the employer as well.
The pamphlet also contains, beside
the stenographic proceedings and mar
ratives Of the excursions, an elaborate
article on the iron ore Of Minnesota
and the Lake Superior region which
was especially requested by the visitors
on the occasion Of their visit to the
range.
1t cloes with this optimistic para
graph:
The output of iron ore in Minnesota for
1896 will doubtless exceed 5000 600 tons. This
is half that of Great Britain or GERMANY the
two greatest iron producers of Europe
1t also equals the Bessemer ores produced
in either of those countries at the present
time. Discoveries of new ore bodies are con-
stantly being made on the Mesaba and YER
million ranges, and If the iron business of the
United States continues to grow as it's friends
believe 1t will. the demand for good Bes-
semer and the cheapness of mining in
Minnesota will before the year 1900 make the
iron product of Minnesota greater than that
of any European nation at the present time.