Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1906-12-17

VI lAS OAiICu o&dSSo IA0S wv 49, -
lieve that it can possibly continue at
quite Its present average.
Care Of Employees.
Next in Importance to the problem
of sanitation, and indeed now Of equal
Importance, is the problem OF securing
aud caring for the mechanics, laborers
and other employees who actually do
the work on the canal and the rail-
road. This great .-slz has been under
the control OF Mr.. Jackson Smith,
and on the whole has been well done.
AT present there are some 5000 white
employees and some $4,000 colored
employees on the isth1nus. l went over
the different places where the differ
ent kinds of employees were working;
/ think / saw representatives OF every
type, both at their work and In their
homes, and conversed with probably
couple Of hundred OF them all told,
choosing them at random from every
class and including those who came
especially to present certain grievan.
ces. | found that those who did not
come specifically to present grievan-
ces almost invariably expressed far
greater content and satisfaction with
the conditions than did those who
called to make complaint.
Nearly 5000 of the white employees
had come from the United States. No
man can see these young, vigorous
men energetically dong their duty
without a thrill of pride in them as
Americans. They represent on the
average high class. Doubtless to
congress the wages paid them will
seem high, but as matter Of fact the
only general complaint which found
had any real basis among the COM
plants made to me upon the isthmus
was that, owing to the peculiar sur.
roundings, the cost OF living, and the
distance from home, the wages were
really not as high as they should be.
In fact, almost every man spoke
to felt that he ought to be receiving
more money! view, however, which
the average man who stays at home
in the United States probably like.
wise holds as regards himself. Later I
shall confer on the subject with Ger.
tain representative labor men here in
the United States, as well as going
over with Mr.. Stevens, the compare.
tive wages paid in the zone and at
home; and may then communicate
my findings to the canal committees
of the two houses.
Food Supplies.
The housewives purchase their sup
plies from the commissary stores OF
the commission. All to whom spoke
agreed that the supplies were excel
lent, and all but two stated that there
was no complaint to be made; these
two complained that the prices were
excessive as compared to the prices
in the states. On investigation I did
not feel that this complaint was well
founded. The married men ate at
home. The unmarried men sometimes
at private boarding houses, or private
messes, but more often, Judging by the
answers Of those whom / questioned,
at the government canteens or hotels,
where the meal costs 80 cents to each
employe. This 30-cent meal struck me
as being as good a meal as we get In
the United States at the ordinary
hotel in which 30-cent meal is pro-
yided. came to the conclusion that.
speaking generally, there was no war.
rant for complaint about the food.
I was tsruck by the superior comfort
and responsibility of the lives OF the
married men. It would, in my oponion,
be most admirable thing If much
larger number Of the men had their
wives, for with their advent all COM
plants about the food and cooking are
almost sure to cease.
Chinese and other Labor.
OF the nineteen or twenty thousand
day laborers employed on the canal. a
few hundred are Spaniards. These do
excellent work. Their foreman told
me that they did twice as we'll as the
West India laborers. A steady effort
is being made to secure Italians, and
especially to procure more Spaniards,
because of the very satisfactory re-
suits that have come from their en-
ployment. It has not proved possible,
however, to get them in anything like
the numbers needed for the work,
and from present appearances we
shall in the main have to rely. for the
ordinary unskilled work, partly upon
colored laborers from the West In
dies and partly upon Chinese labor.
It certainly ought not to be unneces-
sary to point out that the American
in the United States has
no concern whatever in the question
as to whether the rough work on the
tsthmus. which is performed by aliens
in any event, is done by aliens from
one country with a black skin or by
aliens from another country with
yellow skin. Our business is to dig
the canal as efficiently and as quickly
as possible; provided always that
nothing interferes with the wages OF
or lowers the standard of living OF our
own workmen. Having in view this
principle. I have arranged to try sew
eral thousand Chinese 1aborers. This
is desirable both because we must try
to find out what laborers are most
efficient. and, furthermore, because we
should not leave ourselves at the mer-
cy Of any one type Of foreign labor.
have now dealt with the hygienic
which make it possible to
employ great force Of laborers, and
with the task Of gathering, housing
and feeding these laborers. There re-