Chicago eagle. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1889-19??, 1898-12-31
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sA9LETS.


roll ID. Wright. the able Commissioner
of the United States Bureau of Labor.
was directed to investigate all qucs-
tons relating to the effect of machin
cry upon work and labor. His report.
recently published. has attracted wide
attention. and Is likely to be appealed
to as an authority. 1t had long been
known that the introduction of ma
chinery lessons the cost of production.
and thus lowers the price of manufac
,ured articles; but ripple of pleased
surprise runs through the land when
the evidence of facts and figures seems
to demonstrate that the use of ulaclln.
cry also increases the demand for labor
by creating new Industries. and raises
the rate of wages. while reducing the
hours of toll aud lessening much of It's
severity. The use of machinery favors
ovcrproduction; but this evil Is general
ly short.lived and sclf.corrective. 1t
rarely affects many lines of business at
once. There are Irregularities In shop
and market from other causes; but TAX.
ing a long and broad view, 1t must be
our modern populations have found Il
powerful auxiliary In the Harvesting
of natural forces to mechanism. 1t Is
true that the first effect of a labor-sav.
| Ing invention Is hardship through dis
placement of labor. But then follows
| a adjustment under new conditions.
1t soon appears that new occupations
are brought TO light. These call for
new hands. Some necessity of life has
been cheapened by the new invention
| and Is better distributed. ana labor has
found employment In the new cond!.
ton of industry. The Introduction and
| development of railroads Is an obvlou.
illustration. All the earlier methods
of transporting freight and passengers
seemed at first driven to the wall. Soon
| II was found that the construction.
| equipment AMI operation Of the new
| iron roads gave employment to vastly
larger armies OF wOrkmen than the old
method Of transportation. 1t then b..
came possible to carry ton Of coal n
mile for q cent. and the surplus bread.
stuifs and products Of States far inland
were laid down In seabOard cities and
factory villages at u nominal cost. and
the demand for teams. to redlstribute
goods and to take passengers to an,l
from the stations. soon sllenced the
complaints Of horse-breedcrs and
wheelwrlghts. In turn. the Ou;pu, Of
multiplied factories. whose raw mate.
rial now came within easy reach. was
supplied with ready facility to the com.
fort and advantage Of pioneer popula.
tons beyond the lakes aud the Missis.
sippl. The researches conducted by
Col. Wright ARE given In tables cover.
Ing nearly seven hundred articles. and
contrast the results ana cost OF hand.
labor AMI machlne.work. They furnish
a valuable contribution to popular ed,i.
cation along the line Of Industrial eco.
Monies and general progress.
The increase Of German and Ameri.
can exports and corresponding de-.
crease In British foreign trade IL giving
the merchants and manufacturers Of
Great Britain no little anxiety. This
Increase was accounted for In various
ways-by tue scientific ana technical
training OF the German schools and the
enormous advantage the United States
enjoys In manufacturing facilities. duv
to improved machinery, progressive
methods. etc. These factors undOubt.
edly contributed 10 the result. but still
another reason was udduced by the
British merchant and manufacturers
the greater activity. Intelligence AMI
wlde.awakeness OF German and Amer.
lean cOnsuls aud commercial travellers
This also may have something 10 do
with the decrease In exports Of Grea,
Britain FROM flO0.OOO.OOO In 1891 to
f!D4, O0O,OOtb In 1897. while In the SANE
period those OF Germany Increased
from fl7GOOO.OOO TO Ed. 100000 and
those Ut the United States rose from
flS4.OOO.OOO to f?is.OOO.OOO. HUT the
English cOnsuls thus attacked have re-
piled ana In turn have given their nc.
cusers something to think Of. These
avant cOuriers OF commerce say the
trouble arises largely from the meth
DDS employed by the British merchant
Accustomed to monopoly Of trade HI
makes no effort to secure 1t except upon
his own terms. He scatters beautiful
~ Illustrated catalogues. but they ar,
In his own language. the prices are In
his own currency. and rarely include
the cost of freight. duty and delivery
to the purchasers own port or station
Ills cOmmerclal travellers often speak
no language but their own and the mer
chant or manufacturer does not seek
to cater to the tastes or whlms OF his
customers by the fashion of his prod
ucts or the manner Of the packing. III
short, the cOnsuls affirm that It IL tn,
British merchant and not himself tina,
Is to blame and that the manufactures
has gone nlseep. "lulled by the still
potent Oplate Of vanished monopoly
As respects Canadian trade. even with
the great advantage OF preferential du
ties the British exporter Is scarcely
holding his own. American imports of
iron and steel are increasing In Canada
even with a handicap of One-fourth
duty In favor Of his British competitor
Difference OF workmanship and meth
DDS and better adaptation to needs &C
count for this result.
&d
The following extract Ia from let
ter written by Boston man to friend
/ nj ri. a. h..x .t.,n 4