The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1902-01-08
Moving to the Mills.

Reports from all the cotton mills In this sec.
tion are to the effect that there has never be.
fore been such an abundance OF labor. The
movement from the farms 10 the mills Is 80
genera as 70 promise a an 93verdopg Of the
great deal more labor than they can use. The
inevitable tendency of such condition, OF
course, will be TO reduce the price Of labor
Yorkville Enquirer.
While the tendency may be to reduce prices
1t tshould In fact he a stimulus TO the building
OF other mills.
A few of that class Of politicians who have
never took any leading part in building mills
or contributed much In any. way to the mate
rial development of the country are now
seeking to deprive honest and industrious
people Of the privilege of working in the
mills.
II the rush OF operatives to the mills has
the effect OF reducing the wages paid to peo-
pie who operate the machines, should not q
like rush for the offices have q tendency to
lower their wages. There Is as much compe-
tition for the good places as there ia for the
poorest. 1t all sounds very nice for the mills
70 talk Of reducing the wages Of the operative
who receives eighty cents day, but we hear
nothing about reducing the salary Of the Of
f1oers who do less work and who may receive
from i've to ten times as much pay.
The only corporation that we know Of which
acted fairly with its employees was the South.
ern Railway. Several years ago the business
and profits Of the road was small. The an
nouncement was made that the pay OF all
employees receiving more than q specified
small amount should be reduced twenty per
cent. ...
= But we have heard Of no cotton mill MAX
ing reductions where they could be best af.
forded
5 They generally act on the opposite plan
from the Southern, and reduce the pay Of
those who receive least. while the salary of
those who receive most is not touched.
Another inequality and injustice that Is too
often practiced on the poor people at the cot
ton mills is In the matter OF rents. The hum
blest laborer must pay fair rental for his
home, while the officers generally live in
much better houses and very often pay no
rent at all.
To be an officer in cotton mill then must
be o glorious thing. he Is not disturbed by
cuts in salaries, and has no rents TO pay.
If there is one thing that needs regulation
by law 1t is just such discriminatious against
the laboring man in favor OF the officers.
The man who receives ninety cents day
can Ill afford 10 have ten per cent. OF that pay
cut OF. The man who receives several dol
lars q day, and incidental advantages. and no
rent TO pay, could better afford 10 have his
salary cut.
Instead Of depriving the poor mans chill
drep Of the right TO earn bread, let the Legis.
lature see that cuts in salaries shall apply
alike to ail-the oficer as we'll as the aborer.
Let the Legislature see that the rich corpo.
rations do not discriminate against the poor.
either In the matter Of rents or cuts. A man
who receive big salary Is better able TO pay
rent than the poor creature whose income
may be less than q dollar day.
Let the Legislature encourage the building
Of mills, 30 that all the people may get work,
and 30 that the competition for places in
them may not press down the pay Of the
poor. The officers, 1t seems. being close cor.
poration, are not affected by hard times.
The exercise OF comm sense by the Legis-
lature is what the country needs. No good
can come Of depressing the poor.
II 1t has TO come, let the cut go round.