The Cook County herald. [volume] (Grand Marais, Minn.) 1893-1909, 1903-07-25
FARM LABOR POORLY PAID.


"
J. According to the census of 1900 there
are 5,321,Os7 daily wage earners in the
United States, and of that number:
there were ,522, 100 who were regularly
employed as farm hands working by
the day or month, exclusive Of farmers
who own and operate their own farms.
Of late years farming has been yield.
ing large profits, yet the farm "hands''
have received the poorestwages OF any
class of labor in the land.
The scale of wages paid them is from
80 cents to $1.25 per day, or $40 or $25
per month and board The wages for
helpers, extra and regular, amounted
to 1865, sos 1921, while the value of farm
products was over $4,7OO, 100000. The
average expense for each farm so far
as the labor is concerned, was $64 in
1899, while the average value of the
products per acre was SAT-. White
farmers paid more for their help, on
the average for each farm, principally
because their farms were larger.
Approximately each white farmer paid
$71 for his hired help throughout the
year. Of course, some Of these farm
ers did not hire>any help at all, har-
vesting their grain in midsummer
alone. But, on the other hand, some
of the "big" farmers of the corn and
wheat belts paid out from S10Q to $500
daily for helpers during the garner
ing seasons. It costs more to run
sugar farms, 81, 1856 being paid for each
plantation Of this kind which harvest
ed crop in 1899. In 1889 the'price paid
for the running of various cereal and
produce farms is given by the census
bureau as fellows: Per farm, wheat
and grain farms, $76; cotton, 1925; to-
bacco, $51; nurseries,, $1,136; vege-
table, $1O6; dairy, $1O5.
Besides the regular number of farm
helpers about 100000 are employed in
addition during the wheat-cutting sea-
son in the grain belts. These are
known as harvest hands and are paid
from $1.50 to SO per day. These har-
vest hands are low forming themselves
into unions for their own protection
from overwork and low wages. Many
labor unions for regular farm hands
are being organized in Indiana, Ohio,
Kansas and the southwest. The young
man who has made his home on the
farm year after year is paid less than
any other class of workers. He has
had longer hours and no vacations. He
has brought to his employer larger
returns for the work than the coal
miner, the steel worker or the mechan-
ic of ordinary skill. The total ex-
pense, for instance, on an acre of wheat
is Sc. OF this $4.10 goes for horse hire,
Irvine, seed, etc.. while the remainder
is paid to the two men who gather it
and the one who plows the soil and
sows the grain seeds. The profits upon
their $1oo worth of labor yield from
SIS to So to their employer. Corn is pro-
duced for $685. per acre, of which
$2.25 goes to the man and his team.
Generally the horses are owned by
Ethe farmer and the man is getting $40
per month. The duties and wages of
the farm hand of to-day, it may be
seen, are not commensurate with the
profits of his employer.
Quick-Witted Pastor.
In Germany, recently, a country
preacher was preaching a sermon,
when suddenly he lost the thread OF
his discourse and, do what he would
he could not find it again.
The congregation was greatly en-
barrassed and was wondering what
the matter was when he startled it by
exclaiming suddenly:
pardon me, my brethren, for paus.
ing in my sermon, but it seems to me
that smell fire somewhere-and-an
it might be as we'll to see that it has not
broken out in the church or in any
of the nearby houses"
Before the words were all uttered
the congregation was pouring out OF
the church, each family being anxious
to make sure that it's home was not on
fire. 1t need hardly be said that the
fire existed only in the pastors imagi
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