The star. (Reynoldsville, Pa.) 1892-1946, 1903-10-28
GERMAN TOY INDUSTRY.
Home Labor 10 Being supplanted BY
Larue Factories,

The toy industry of the Erzgebirge,
or ore mountains. which has been de-
veloping for centuries has been slow
~ drifting into economic difficulties,
according to a report of Consul Mon
aghan at Chemnitz. With the appli-
cation of steam power and modern
machinery to the production of toys
the house industry has gradual
ly been forced to the wall. With an
increase in the price of wood and a
decrease in the price of finished prod
uct, these people CT the mountains
have been put into position where 1t
is necessary to toll night and day for
meagre existence, which is apparently
becoming more and more severe.
For some years the labor press OF
this part of the country has busted It.
self with a portrayal of the wretched
conditions existing among the peas
ants of the mountains, with the result
that an investigation was recently
made by the industrial commission OF
Freiburg, which largely substantiates
even the strong representations of the
labor organs. The main points of the
report of this commission may be
summarized as follows:
The number of large establish
ments engaged in the manufacture CT
toys is increasing. This might be
considered prima facie as a welcome
sign we're It not for the fact that the
toys are not manufactured upon the
regular factory plan with hired hands,
but are made by men who have rented
space and machines quite independent
ly OF one another, and who form a
sort of voluntary association banded
together only for the sake of economy
in roof and equipment, but carrying
on their own separate businesses. A
disinclinatlon Is said to prevail among
the young men to enter factory on
the basis of wage earners and be sub
jected to the immediate control, super.
vision and direction of an employer.
Rather than earn the higher income af-
forded by the factory wage, the young
| men in the hills prefer a much more
meagre existence in the independence
and freedom of their own homes. Be-
cause Of the fact that the inhabitants
| of the mountains make but few and
simple demands upon life. the real
wretchedness Of their situation is said
to be but rarely fully appreciated.
The wage conditions existing in the
toy industry can be readily observed
from the following figures prepared
by the commission referred. to. The
most remunerative branch of the trade
affords a gross income of from "a to
40 marks (s5.71 TO s9.52) per week.
one-half of which may be considered
as profit. In other branches the net
income is as low as to marks
! ($1.42 to S2.14) per week. It must be
remembered that these incomes are
not the earnings of a single person,
but represent the labor of entire fam
! lilies.
How inconceivably small the price
! paid fer certain kinds Of toys is can be
seen in the case of pencil boxes of the
cheapest quality, for which the maker
gets from rs to SO cents per gross, or
about l 1-3 cents a dozen.
The daily meals OF these people are
reported by the commission to be con-
fined largely to potatoes. linseed oil,
bread and coffee, and, at times, meat
on Sundays.
With the price OF wood rising. toy
factories increasing In numbers in
other parts of the country and the
price of toys falling, it seems that the
people of Erzgebirge must in their
increasing Indebtedness find some
other means of sustenance. Export
ers of toys who operate large factories
in this neighborhood report good
business, and are Of the opinion that
the house industry of the Erzgebirge
is doomed and that the peasants will
be forced to give up their independent
production and enter factories.