The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1902-01-21

value for the supplies of food which they
afford The late Spencer f. Baird re-
garded an acre Of ocean equal to six
acres of land in ability to produce food
for man. Inland waters are equally vail
liable, acre for acre, and, contrary to the
usual order, more and more prolific, many
or most Of them year by year.
Machinery makes possible much pro-
duction which would not be possible
without it. This occurs partly by the
ftneDess and the regularity Of machine
work, as in the case of mowers, reapers
and steam plows, and partly by sheer
power, as in heavy hauling, lifting and
pumping. Sometimes the power furnish
ell by machinery is not beyond what
has to be applied in some place, like
mine WHARF, men enough could not
get hold. But the whole earth's popula-
ton would be insufficient to do a titha
of the work which machinery performs.
According to NIulhall the worlds steam
euergy alone aggregated in 1880 rs, 952 600
horse power. Figuring each horse power
as equal to twelve mems power, steam
w3s doing the work of 3474240OO meE.
But engines, furnishing power alone, per-
form but a small part of the work done
by machinery. Competent. estimates re-
gard machinery as doing in Great Brit
air alone the work of 700,000000 men, a
number probably in excess Of the entire
laboring population of the globe. 1t
should be observed that machinery like
labor, gains in efficiency by organization,
piece standing in rightly complimentary
relations with piece.
In forms of production iAtrinsicalIy
possible without them machines enor-
mously spare the health, strength and
morals of laborers. A sewing machine
does the work Of twelve women. A o
Boston bootmalSer with one man to run
1t makes 300 pairs Of boots day. In
1880 300 Of these machines were at work
in various countries and turned out $780,
OOO GOO pairs. Glenn's. California reaper
Will in tWenty-four hours cut, thresh,
wlnnow and bag wheat from sixty acres
The Hercules ditcher removes 720 cubic
yards OF clay per hour. The Darlington
borer enables one man to do the work
OF seven in tunneling, and reduces the
cost to two-thlrds." (Mullhau) A sim
gle boy with knitting machine does as
much knitting as 100 persons could per-
form 100 years ago.
Last among the means for securing the
greatest results from a given quantity
Of labor comes the organization Of la
Dor, either by composition or when sew
erai persons advantageously unite their
EFFORTS, e. e., in lifting heavy weight
or in proof reading, or by division, where
different portions of a task are advan-
tageouSIy parceled out to the persons or
groups best qualified and best situated
to perform them. This distribution Of
labor is exhibited by nations and dis
tricts. each of which, as g rule, engages
III the industry or line Of industries for
which it Is best fitted by its climate, nat
Gral products and relation to markets.
Within. each community, too, each sort
RI O0uOOAS w III usually D6 ODS0INeu 20
busy itself with the sort Of work best
adapted to its powers. The advantages
arising from the proper division Of labor
are. however, most strilkingly apparent
when relating to Individuals each doing
the particular thing which he can do
tho most easily and perfectly. Laborers
thus vastly improve in dexterity. A good
blacksmith, not specially used to MAX
Ing nails, turns out from 200 to 300 a
day; one used to this. but with his hand
out through other work. makes 800 to
1000 a day; a boy, even, who has never
dGre anything else, makes 300 day.
This illustration Is from Adam Smith
Another from the same author relates
to the manufacture of pins This work
involved in Smiths day some eighteen
distinct operations, each usually per-
formed by distinct hands. Smith estimates
that by this. distribution the production
was from 240 to 1880 times as great az
if each workman did all the parts, be-
ginning and finishing each pin. At pres
ent, when complicated machines play so
great part in all manufacturing pro-
cesses, wise division Of labor has be-
Come more important than ever before.
Copyright, 1900