The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1898-01-09

1--WE 01LLLDu0LUNNLr Vh INV oNHMN hAAA1 -
handicapped by tho shortest hours Of labor and
extremely restricted legislation compared with
other and competing States. Mills must run
and earn dividends for stockholders. or thore IL
no inducement for capital to invest in Mnssa-
chusetts or in Fall River. Fall River mills arc
as we'll equipped with modern appliances and
machinery as her competitors. and with the
Same advantages OF hours and pay OF labor
would he able TO compete with any section Of
the country.
ut must DO evident 10 you, rs IL is 10 this
committee, that there is no money for stock
holders or employees eithor when tho mills are
idle or running short time. and 1t Is useless for
the Fall River mills to do all the curtailiuR OF
production. When we stop our mills every one
else runs full time. and il tho curtailmcnt Of
production here brings about bettor price, 1t is
only temporary and simply offers an inducement
for capital to build moro mills-not in Fall
River, but outside of Massachusetts, We work
against ourselves every time We stop our mills
without the cooperation Of the rest OF the spin
dies of the country. and in our opinion our com
pctitors will BIO willing to join with us in cur
failing production only when Fall River is en-.
abled to manufacture cotton goods at as low q
cost rs is possible elsewhere.
Tho facts are that the Massachusetts mills
work fifty-eight hours q week. Tho other States
in New England have sixty hours for labor.
The Southern mills run from ~sixty-siS TO
sevcnty.two hours weekly. and in some cases
run day and night. Tho cost of labor in the
Southern mills is very much lower than in New
England, and they claim advantages in water
power, wages, taxes. cheap transportation. and
cheap cotton. us well as in longer hours. Their
mills are as good rs but no better than ours, but
the fact starcs us in tho face that they can UNI
dcrsell us in the Northern markets on account
OF their lower cost OF production.
DIFFERENT Laws NEEDED.
But reducing labor is not all. Some concerted
action should be taken to see II legislation in
this State can be made moro friendly to its in.
dustries. so that capital may be induced to stay
here rather than go outside. The employee
and the employer ought to work together and
not clash through Observation-Disclosures and jeal-
ousies. Their interests arc identical. They each
want a living out of the business. and whatever
works to the disadvantage Of one hurts the in
terest Of the other. When it Is considered that
mills in Fall River and Massachusetts run less
hours than in other States, and that it Is neces.
sary for us to meet such a close competition in
business undor such adverse conditions. 1t seems
to us that nothing is to be gained by putting or
for two months more tho date at which the re-
duction in wages should go into effect. And. in
as the mills Of Fall River havo run
during the past year or more under conditions
very discouraging and unremunerative. during
which time we have tried the experiment OF cur
tHilment extensively. the manufacturers feel
that the situation is such that they must adhere
to their decision-that 1t is absolutely necessary
that they reduce the wages in Fall River IL 1-9
per cent"
OTHER bIscoURAGING
Competition and overproduction have been
the things considered SO far in bringing about
the present situation. There are other things
to be considered, though they are not talked
about at all by the Fall River manufacturers.
Unquestionably. the hard times Of the last two
or three years figure considerably in the mat
ter of overproduction. The people have been
economizing everywhere. The demand for
every kind of manufactured product has been
Retail store keepers all over the
country have reduced the amount Of stock they
are accustomed to carry. The economy has ex-
tended all the way down the line. This has been
true In the cotton goods bust.
ness. because Of the constant aud persistent
fall in the price OF cotton. Cotton has
been going down, down, down. The fact that
1t has been going down has been printed from
one end to the other of the land. and dealers in
cotton goods everywhereh have held of buying
their goods until cotton struck bottom. With
the constant fall In the price Of cotton they
have. OF course. expected q corresponding fall in
the price OF cotton goods. To n lesser degree
this has extended to the consumer. People who
use the most cotton goods are poor people. II
there Is II prospect of their being able to save a
cents on this article or that article, or per-
haps as much as rs or SO cents on q dress,
they wait until the opportunity comes. So the
demand for cotton goods has been below normal.
n-N 10Th tht-- - 10 T. 4.
Cotton goods are not worn to-day to the extent
that they were worn some years ago. and not
many years ago AZ that. 1t is within the memory
Of most sur readers when women were proud of
a new calico dress. The women in the East and
the North demand a better grade OF goods now.
They don't want TO VICAR calico. The cheap
ening of woollen goods has brought woollen
within their reach, or II not woollen. then the
better grade OF cotton goods. For instance, tho
In tho mills Mt Fall River will not
wear the cloth they weave themselves. Calico
Is still a tavorite with the women of the West
and the South: IL is no longer worn here. The
great mills at Fall River in their manufacture OF
this cheap grade Of cotton goods have kept pace
the growth OF the country. but the demand
for the goods has not kept pace proportionately
with their growth. While just as much calico
is worn in this country to-day and more than
ever worn before. the proportion Of wearers
to the whole is not nearly so great as 1t was only
few years ago. Fall River has met this change
OF demand by varying the style OF its manufac-
lures: so that to-day almost so per cent. OF the
goods made there are other than plain calico.
the price OF calico or print cloths fixes the
price OF all goods made in Fall River. Where
the competition OF the South catches Fall River
mills on the calicoos the competition of the
neighhoring States catches them on the other
goods. Where the South has tn advantage in
making the cheaper grade the neighboring
States. by reason OF their longer hours. have tho
In making tho other goods.
FALL RIVER PROBLEM.
So while the depression in the cotton business
may be said TO be general and to extend all over
New England, yet this situation is peculiarly
a Fall River situation. The other cotton manu-
facturers in New England are not affected TO
anything like the same degree. Other towns in
Massachusetts,, where the work hours are the
same as they are in Fall River, are not affected
to anything like tho degree Fall River is