Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1897-01-25

The article on the iron ship building
is a comprehensive one, and is illustra.
ted by cuts of some of the government
vessels. and machinery.
One of the most interesting and i'm
rortant table of statistics is that or
the employees of railroads in the State
On this subject, the report says:
A careful examination of the returns
made to the board of railroad commits
sioners of the different railroad COM
panies doing business in this State. SO
far as relates to the employment of
labor n wages paid. clearly indi-
Gates a return to a more prosperous
condition of things in our State. Rail-
reads are among the first great bust
ness interests thai feel the effect of
prosperous or adverse conditions of
business. When the railroads increase
their volume of traffic. the hands of
labor are busy in conducting the in
dustries of the country. When labor
becomes idle the resources which keen
up the business of the common carriers
rapidly decrease.
The foregoing table gives the num-
Der of men employed by all the steam
railroads doing business in Maine,
general officers eXcluded), for the
years 1895 and 1896. In u report of
1895, attention was called to the fall
ing off of the number of laborers
employed in the different kinds of rail-
road work in 1894 as compared with
that Of 1893, Ghe great railroad year,,
and the further fact hat in 1895. so
far as the employment of labor was
concerned, the roads had recovered
very largely and were employing 9S
per cen as many men in 1895 as in
1898.
AS will be seen by the table men
toned. there We're 1888 employees, Tex
GLIDING general officers), in 1895 and
wages amounting to 81, 26S. :357 Sc. The
returns for 1886. give 5792 as the num-
Der of employees and the wages paid
81, 763 1888. an increase of 1101 men
employed and $504, 99S.07 increase in
wages paid over 1895. This is a very
encouraging condition of things. an in
of more than a thousand labor
ers and more than half a million of
dollars additional-paid out in wages.
1t is evident from these facts that
between $4,000 and $4,000 of our people
are supported by means of employment
upon the steam railroads in the State.
Not only did the number of laborers
increase but it will be seen that there
has been a restoration of wages in
many places where they We're reduced
in 1894.
These are some of the direct improve
ments in our Industrial field, but be-
You'd this, and closely allied. come the
many thousands of persons whose en-
ployment depends upon the construc-
ton and operation Of railroads. in ar
rying the products of labor to the MARI
kets of the world.
The increase of the pay roll of the
Bangor & Aroostook Il. X. shows a
gain of 252 employees over that of 1896.
If we consider the many enterprises
which the building of hat road has de-
veloped. rendering necessary the en-
of a small army of workmen,
we can more fully realize the import
ance of the benefit Of a healthy and
prosperous condition of railroad traf-
fic.
The Maine Central r. II. not only in
creased it's number of workmen, but
considerably increased the pay, ~restor-
ing in a considerable measure the re-
required by the loss of busi-
ness in 1894.
The street railways have made a
considerable gain over the number
employed in 1895, and. so far as can be
determined, have about six hundred
upon their pay rolls. This means an
additional number of persons receiv-
ing their support from railroad bust
ness. 1t is safe to say that on June
80, 1896, there were $4,000 persons re-
ceiving their entire support directly
from railroad employment in this
State, or nearly one in Is of the entire
population of the State.