Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1899-11-08
The Days working Hours.
Boston Budget.)


Those who once advocated the reduction
Of the hours of labor for a wOrhngman
TO ten hours per day, and those who now
demand that they shall be further re-
duced by making eight or nine hours the
legal days work, claim to urge it first for
the benefit Of the laborer, who needs more
hours for rest, for study, and for recrea-
ton than he now has. and next that he
may thereby regulate the laws OF supply
and demand. as when less can be pro-
duced in "a given time. the market shall
not be OvcrstOcked at one season, ana
men lie idle for weeks and months, only
10 be forced TO extra eXertion When the
surplus is removed and new demand
arises.
But there are many men-vigorous.
strong. and i'm good health who wou d
parodize the exclamation of Shakespeare
Queen. by saying: Rest, Rest is to me
hard work" They are too active ana en-
crgctic 10 find rest i'm idleness but seek
il in reCreations which give them more
physical eXertiOn than they found in the
shop or factory. They play bail, golt' or
tennis, or range the woods and streams
with gun or rod all the hours of daylight
and dance the hours away in the night
as il WEAKNESS were never known 10
them
There are others who have less super
fuous energy. who can content themselves
az
idle gossip. or AT the theatre and nj least
rest their muscles if they do not the men
tai powers. II may be that neither or
these classes is greatly benefited by the
enforced shortening Of the legal hours OF
labor or would think IL desirable If their
earning capacity were lessened IN proper
ton.
There are men. however. who plod on
at one task, day after day, until theY
work almost as automatically as ma
chimes. They do not think enough 10 ma
easier or quicker methods Of doing their
labor. They retain the power or working
and eating but mentally they are dead
when not sleeping, physically they are
paralyzed. excepting in such muscles as
come into use during the hours Of labor
Possibly a shortening OF those hours
might give them new interests IN liie
and if they aid not find thought awaken
in them they might al least think they
were thinking"
The other argument of making work
more equally divided during the year by
working less hours I'm DAY Tor more
days we think a fallacious one. Since
the primitive ages of mankind there las
been an effort to find a substitute Tor me
labor Of the human race. FIRST lhe
beasts of the field were tanned, that ihey
might 90 more miles I'm day or carry
larger burdens than men could 10 by
their unassisted strength. lhen tne run
ming streams and the winds or the air
were nut at work 10 turn the mill wheels
and spindles WELD the heavy ndnmer7,
and throw the shuttles. Then the power
Of water as expanded into steam "as
revealed and put AT work or n mn go -
carry men and burdens on lana ana seat
Later on the lightning OF the heaNe,is
was tanned and controlled TO De hlaus ''1
servant of man. - 81,
With each new discovery OF power t tI
inventive genius of man was set 10 ul'"
new methods of employing H. ana ih@-
chimes were built whereby one man Iii5nt
do the work of many ana, III u u"u -
heen that the natural and druhcial wants
oil mankind increased so that they kSb'
pace very nearly with the ease anu i',pr..
Nv Of production there would not Itft
been employment for one hour IN the uas
instead of ten. for We may estii,ldtS ~
nine tenths of all the labor OF TO-DAY -
spent in supplying wants when WEI W.
known 10 our ancestors OF a ie" ce"'uii'7
ago. ,.,-,. ....,,.,.,. Of maxine,
new inventions and applying them nor
can We restrict the greed or those Mho
own and use them II the hours or IaDor
were reduced one-half we mlSht hhu lldt
until new wants arose 10 iii"ne i,',t,,,,
demands upon the powers or piouu'.ion
IL would be as easy a. II now II 10 pr
duce I'm "A few months goods when Wvuiu
supply the demands Of the year com
This facility Of production nas us oJiii,
nensation as i'm The late instance Wheh
Ar,oricon roanufacturers were able 10
build I'm a few weeks an iron bridge which
no English firm would under'aht 10 h1rs
ready for delivery IN many MINUS 90 -
gave employment AT good wages loI
short time To American wOrkmen, ana
prospectively may furnish them other
like employment; and IL may De as wen
for the workingmen and the country a.
if fewer men and less machinery "eIe
10 have worked on II for TWO years II
gave work for other men who built the
machinery. and for those who furnished
raw materials or transported them or the
finished products. - =,
hon
minution of the comforts or luxuries OF
life If the hours OF labor per day are
shortened. so long as the laws OF demand
are calling for supplies. nor 90 we see
i'm II a millennium which is likely TO
raise the employee 10 "a social or financial
puualifv with the employer.