The Minneapolis journal., 1905-10-15
Man WITH TRADE
BEST PROVIDED
CAN EASILY FIND SATISFACTORY
WORK, SAYS LEVY.
superintendent Of State Free Employ
ment Bureau Declares Skilled Labor
er Has More Valuable Asset Than
Professional Man-Unskiued, Never
Satisfied Organized Labor in
Minneapolis Is Doing.

Since assuming control of the Mime
apolis end OF the state free employment
bureau, which is conducted by him as an
attache of the state labor department.,
Louis Levy has become student Of
conditions affecting the various
branches of the working people. His
position affords fine vantage point
for, a person to judge of the qualif-
cations and fitness of the average appli-
cant for employment. and Mr.. Levy
Asked whether or not the poor people
are really responsible for their condi-
tlon, Mr.. Levy said:
Is the poor man or woman RESPONSE
BILE for his or her own condition9 In
many cases I should feel inclined to say
yes. In my short experience as super
lntendent of the state employment bu-
reau have had many peculiar cases
to, deal with-men will come in and
ask for work and when we inquire as
to. their particular ability we find them
without any trade or experience in or
dlnary building labor or farm work.
When asked: What kind Of work do
yariablv say, Anything When we Of
Ter this class of men such work as we
nave for them, their first question is:
How many hours do they work?' and
A man ought to have more money than
$l.75. or 50 a day. X
This is the condition of the com
mon laborer who says he wants work
and will do anything honest.
lake for example now, the skilled
laDorer, such as carpenter, mason, cabi-
netmaker, moulder, printer, cigarmaker.
harnessmaker and the trades that re-,
qulre an actual apprenticeship and we
find that at any time such man has
aPphed for work we could generally
pace MN with little or no trouble. Still
you frequently hear some of these
same men, in speaking Of their children,
say they shall not be tradesmen, and
speak OF professional career for them.
we have had no less than ten collage
men who have taken law and medical |
courses, who had to retire and work
outside of their profession, because of
the lack of funds to tide them over un.
I'll they could establish themselves. So
much for the professional career of
children when furnished by hard-worly-
ing parents, who have gotten together
enough to educate the children but
not enough to put them on competi-
tive basis.
Would it not be better for the son
TO have learned the trade that furnish
ed the capital for his education and
then to take course on his own saw
1ngs, such as some of our professional
men, men, who are at present successful
There are many of these men thruout
the country, and I venture to say that
not one of them feels one-half as com
PORTABLE and satisfied that he could oct
on IN this world, without his trade. even
tho he does not use it as a means of
earning livelihood. 1t is an asset more
valuable than money.- 1sfs9 Z. -. - : -
The skilled ira desman without =
cent is by far richer man fhan .sst The q
man with no trade, worth $5 900 in
money, with no practical wovTof =,
vesting it.
Ss'''There are hundreds of young intelli
gent men walking the streets Of this
city, and, I suppose, every other large
CITY In the world. with business educa
t1on I1 such @I as boolek keepers, office men
a an opportunity to find places to. work
Have you ever stopped to consider how W
+ 1eW bookkeepers and office men are re-
CURED to operate the commercial enc
OF large plant, employing hundreds Oh
skilled mechanicss : And, when yo1
come come to consider the apprenticeship ani
the e, commercial course, has not: tht
skilled , mechanic a shade the best of it
Whlle 1t is a fact that bank appear.
nicer place to work than on the out
side OF a building laying brick, f vii
venture to say that the bricklayer get
more money for his work than AM
clerk IN the bank, and has less troubi,
providing himself with work when b,
has finished in his last place. - :
I With the working woman we fnt
nearly the same conditions around here
The offime woman will not work out 8
her class, and even tho she would. AM
couid make a more comfortable living
at times as factory hand; and thei1
again the factory girl will not work N a
housework even tho her wages in som n
instances barely pay her living ex
penses., Now the question Of the work
ing girl feeling herself above housewor]
IS subject too deep for me my persona
opinion, of a homeless girl in this worl,
would be that housework would be he
apprenn!lceshlp to ,wifehood, which i
should be the crowning glory Of WON
an IS career - -..i5e..Io - = = 1890 Wotn