The herald., 1897-10-03
WHERE LABOR and CAPITAL Live N HARMONY

IN Dayton Ohio, there u q large fac
toey devoted to the manufacture Of q
high-clase speciality. where the effort to
remove the antagonism between the en-
ployer and the employed. and to bring
u 1 practical realization some plan of
co-operation. or profit sharing. has been
entirely successful.
In this factory the contributors to the
formation Of the product are united In
one harmonious whole, and each worker
oliers the highest efficiency Of service
and receives the highest rate Of return.
And yet the success OF this enterprise
10 due to the fact that the owners en-
tjEely disregard the tme-worn tradi-
tons Of factory management. and sub
otitute In their places methods which are
IN direct opposition to the established
line OF business rules.
It IL q factory which should be visited
At the earliest opportunity by the stu
dent Of business economics. It Is fac
tory which should be visited by the
philanthropist. It Is q factory which
should be visited by the capitalist who
- contemplating . start into business
lie. and the foundation Of a manufac-
turing plant. And while all the theories
or socialism are exemplified through
out the factory at Dayton. yet its man.
agement is far from processing social
istic principles as they are generally
known.
No strikes! No favoritism! No dis
satisfaction! No incenddary fires! No
unjust decisions! are astounding leg
ends to the monopolist whose business
Is stopped at least once a year by the
revolt Of his employees and opposition on
their part. Yet such is the history of
this manufacturing enterprise. Their
life, though but short, has been one Of
pacific and peaceful relations with their
employees.
While a great many Of the unusual
departures from the regular line Of fac
tory business methods may be pro-
nounced by the casual observer to be
luxuries granted which are without any
definite aim, yet it has been the expert
ence of the company that the expense Of
all these privileges has been repaid
them fourfold by the good will and good
work on the part Of the employees; and
far from claiming the right to be called
philanthropists they say that all they do
for their employ es is done from. purely
business standpoint, and that it is far
better to be able to depend upon the
loyalty of your people than to gain profit
at the price of causing them discomfort.
The factory buildings Of the National
Cash Register company cover a floor
space Of five acres. They are situated in
the pretty suburb Of South Park Of Day
ton Ohio. This region Is one Of the
garden spots Of the valley Of the great
Miami.
Surrounded ON all sides by the neat
little cottages of the workingmen, the
factory buildings stand in the center Of
an immense lawn of green grass and
flower beds.
In the summer time from every win
dow Of the factory may be seen pleas
ing and restful view. The exterior Of
the buildings is painted colonial yel-
low. The walls and finishing Of the in
terror are painted the same color. In
selecting this color the idea was to get
the best light and a color best adapted
to the eye.
The apartments in the factory are
commodious, we'll lighted, heated and
ventilated. AS much care is taken in
the arrangement of the brass foundry IS
Of the office Of the president Of the COM
pany himself The brass foundry, al
though one Of the largest in the world
Is entirely free from the excessive heat
usually found in such places.
One Of the most astonishing features
In the factory is the fact that it is con-
Quoted without superintendent. At
the head Of the vast organization are
Messrs. J. H. and F. ]. Patterson, who,
although the owners, have practically
nothing whatever to do with the me-
chanical conduct Of the factory, but de-
vote their entire time to the extension
OF the business. Directly under them
In authority is the executive committee,
which consists of eight officers OF the
company, and which decides all mat
ters which 1t is necessary to refer to
them, and in no case do they refer them
to the Messrs. Patterson, unless the
questions are of great import or In
volve the expenditure Of considera BILE
sum OF money.
Branching off in either direction from
the executive committee are, first, the
factory committee, which has charge of
the mechanical working of the factory;
second, the office committee, which has
charge of the matters referring to the
office departments; third, the selling
committee, which decides all matters re-
lating to the selling division. Below
these committees are others Of minor
Importance, such as the machinery COM
mittee and committee for each princi-
pie of registers manufactured by the
company, the advertising committee,
systems committee, window display
committee.
The work in. the factory has been rem
dered as nearly automatic as possible.
and 1t is claimed that so thorough and
systematic are the records that if the
whole force were to die in one night a
new one could come on the next day
and continue the work without stopping
the factory a day.
Without a superintend and with
the factory in charge of five men, whose
decisions cannot help but be just,
the superintendent's habitual favoritism
does not exist in this factory
Posted at convenient places through
out the plant are placards which read:
Suggestions ard Com pla ipts" Below
these placards are placed automatic
registers, and the company offers $3.50
In gold every six months in prizes for
the best suggestions made by factory
employees who are not foremen or assist
ant foremen. Some Of the most valua BILE
improvements which have ever been
put on registers of the National Cash
Register company have origin ated from
suggestions written on these autogra ph
registers.
Nearly every employe has fair hear