The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-02-19


siOner Is Working Hard to Get
Order Out of the Chaos Powers
Left.
Some of the idiosyncraSies of the ad-
ministration of L. G. Powers for the
last ten years as labor commissioner
are just coming to light under the re-
form administration in the labor bu-
reau.
Since the change in the heads of the
department was effected complaints
have been received from many indus
tries all over the state, saying that
their plants had not been inspected
for number Of years. From the con-
sensus of these complaints and the
incomplete returns made by Mr.. Pow
ers to his successor for 1898, it is evil
dent that the system of factory In
spection has in the past been little bet
ter than farce.
Nothing proves this better than the
table of last years factory inspections,
which was completed by Commissioner
McHale yesterday. Several of the de-
partment have been working. on the
table since the first of the month. The
figures which went to make it up were
taken from the reports of inspections
made under Mr. Powers.
OF the $50 industries coming under
separate clasSifcations, scarcely one Of
them shows that even a reasonable
percentage of the factories were in
spected by the department. The in
spections have evidently been made at
Mr.. Powers pleasure, without any sys-
tenn whatever
For instance, the total number of
people employed in the creameries in
the state, which were inspected by the
department, was less than three score.
The last dairy commissioners report
gives the total number of creamerieS
in the state as $40, with several hun
dred skimming stations and cheese fac
tories. There are easily $500 butter
makers and other employees at work in
these factories, yet the departments
inspection record shows the total num-
Der 81.
Another large discrepancy is noticea-
bic in the table giving the number of
people employed in jobbing houses. In
spections were made of wholesale
houses at Duluth alone, while the Twin
Cities are left out of the table entirely
st. PauPs biggest business interests are
the jobbing trade, but Mr. Powers
pursued his usual policy in this case
of making an inspection here and an
other there, without any attempt to
make it systematic and thorough
The total number of people employed
IN the manufa curing and nonmanu-
featuring establishments. which were
inspected by the bureau of labor, is
$1,000. This includes hotels, factories
Of all kinds, iobbing houses and de-
partment stores. In short it includes
nearly every branch of industry and
business except banks and retail es-
adjustments, but the aggregate total
is less than sixty thousand people.
no foil frr.
those in the table which are cred
tied with the greatest number of en-
ployes:
Bakery 80 49, 62S
Boot and shoe factory ....:..............1.50 s
Cigars and tobacco . 1.254
Clothing factories. ..............1,9 1884
Electric light and power. .''.'. ......... a4 AZ
TiouT Iuiiis.... 49,. 3,292
Iron mines... -. q 24a
Printing and binding. -. -. :. 1910
Railroad Shops. 49, 1856
State institutions. -. ............ Us
Telephone and telegr aph... .............. 525
This will give a little idea of the in
adequacy of the factory inspection con-
Quoted by the bureau of labor in the
past. The total number of men en,-
ployed in confectionery factories in
spected by the department is given at
754. we'll known ST. Paul confection-
er told The G O b e yesterday that
there were fully 1000 men employed IN
the confectionery industry in ST. Paul
alone, irrespective Of bakers, of whom
there are about the same number IN
ST. Paul.
The records in the office of the bureau
are in piles, and laid away without any
system whatever. SO when figures are
wanted on any subject it takes three
times as long to get the desired infor-
nation as 1t should. For these records
the state has paid out a great deal of
money every year, but they are of but
little use until they can be sorted out
and filed in convenient places, which
will require about six months to COM
plete.
Labor Commissioner McHale has
adopted an entirely new policy in his
department which will be a great i'm
provement over Mr.. Powers unsatis-
factory system in the matter of fac
tory inspections, as well as all other
branches of the departments work All
child labor permits will be recorded
under system that will give each day
the names and numbers of the per-
mlts which expire. In this way none
will lapse, and no children will be al
lowed to work in factory or depart
ment store unless it can be shown that
1t is a necessity, and the department
has issued it's permit
A complete change in the policy of
the department In all matters is being
made by Commissioner McHale: