The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1902-09-24
This: he argued.

all other departing This, he argued.
deprived the government enploye of a
stimulus for his ambition, and tended to
make him mere machine, DESTROYS only
of transacting the duties, allotted to him
in the manner prescribed by regulation. +
In civil life. he said, the capable en-
ploye was promoted as 1T is necessary to
have capable men in important positions,
while the head of a government depart
ment usually knows nothing Of that de-
partment's workings until after his ap-s
pointme nt. Ess
He charged the government with keeping
too close a surveillance over it's employees
outside of working hours, and said that
offenses which would pass unnoticed by
an employer in civil life would, if com
mitted by man In government employ,
be the cause of an instant Investigation.
Admitting that this produced a good moral
effect. he argued at the same time that it
was unwise to restrict individual freedom.
What One Company Has Done.
What the National Cash Register COM
pany has done for the Improvement of
conditions under which it's EMPLOYEES work
was told interestingly by Julian ". Wright,
assistant manager of the labor bureau of
the company, under the head, advance
Work. His story was an Industrial fairy
tale, all the better for being true. Sum
married. the story he told was this:
pany, had a factory to built. and built
1t in one of the worst sections of Dayton,
Ohio His employees would not move their
families into the section, there were so
many obnoxious surroundings. Out of
pure wantonness, the windows Of the fac
tory were broken by idle boys. + Gardens
were laid out, acres of them, and their
use, with tools. water supply, seed and
other things, were given to boys who
you'd apply. Soon all the boys in the
neighborhood were too busy to throw
stones at factory windows The gardens
blossomed,s dismal surroundings dtsap-
peared. Residents in the neighborhood
caught the fever of improvement, flower
gardens blossomed out everywhere. and
the grounds around and among its fac
tory buildings
The buildings contained innovations
quite as remarkable as those outside. They
were of steel frames and brick construc-
ton, admitting Of ample light and air.
Artificial Yentilating systems were put In
for winter use, when windows could not
be kept open; suction pipes. were put IN
| those departments where the work created
! dust. Lavatories and bathrooms, for the
use Of which the company, headed by Mr..
Patterson, allowed its time, time for which
| 1t paid, to be taken. A dining-room for
! women was established, in which warm
meals were served daily at a nominal cost.
A rest room for women was also estab-
1shed and two rest periods each day
| one In the middle Of the morning and one
| in the afternoon-were allowed women
for the use of the rooms, these periods
| being, again, at the expense of the com
pany. A library was also added, being
| open as a reading-room from IL m. tc
1880 p. m. each day, and having cir
culating department.
| With all these attractive surroundings
work would seem to be play; but the com
pany would not tax it's employees too heav-
| lily; the hours of work were reduced
for men from sixty to flfty-sx and fol-
women to forty -four, and wages have re-
manned where they were on the sixty hour
schedule. Even the street car accommo-
dations of the women are matter of at
tention on the part of the company.
That Is only a part of the wonderful
tale told. Its system of business organ
ization by committees and boards Of
heads of departn ents, is another Ions
chapter quite as wonderful and pregnant
with reasons for the success of the com
pany. The comparatively small COST a.
which 1t has all been done and the re
wards are other things to make the eye!
stick out.
Yet, in spite of it all, Mr.. Wright sale
no did not regard the labor question a!
settled. The settlement of that would
depend, however, upon a belief in the in
tegrity of each others purposes by EN-
ployer and employee. and a more genera
recognition of the interdependence of tn
one upon the other.