Lincoln County leader. [volume] (Toledo, Lincoln County, Or.) 1893-1987, 1906-08-03
Want to Work 4?

egon and the wnOle NorlnWeSC comes
the cry for harvest hands, railroad la
borers and sawmill men. Never was
the demand so insistent and the re.
sponse SO inadequate. Employers of
labor estimate that from 6000 10 5000
laborers are needed today, but where
they are to come from no one can
answer.
Railroad contractors are short of men,
while the harvest fields are short
handed as we'll. Sawmill men are paw
ing the highest wages in the history of
the industry OH this coast, $3.50 day
for green men who never saw sawmill
in their lives. Wages for common la
Dor in the railroad camps were never
so good as they are now. The common
laborer is paid the general wage of
1925 a day by railroad contractors,
while some camps offer $3.50 for u
| hours, or the men can work II hours if
they like and get SO for the days work
But in spite of these inducements,
men cannot be secured to fill up the
empty railroad camps or round out the
short-handed harvesting crews. But
this is not true because every idle man
is busy, for there are hundreds OF men
to be found in the North End any day,
watching the electric fans spin at Err
ickson's or Blazier's or loafng com
fortably in the City Park or plaza blocks
while the industrial interests of the
state are clamoring for them.
Instead OF making hay while the sun
shines, these men prefer to loiter, Sc
cure in the knowledge that whenever
their last nickel is gone their services
will be in demand and they can go ia
work again at good wages. If all the
idle men would enlist in the army OF
workers and stick with their Jobs as
long as they lasted, the scarcity of la
; Dor that is now keenly felt, would soor
be forgotten.
"No matter what conditions have pre-
s viously existed" said G. r. Hansen
l employment agent, "the situation toda,
e is such that any able-bodied man ma!
secure work at good wages and be pro
9 yided with good, wholesome board ant
\ accommodations Many men are nov
a idle by preference. If these men woulC
y 90 to work it would help the situation
great deal
"The Northern Pacific has shipped il
a great many men from Minnesot
without exacting a nickel from then
for fare. 1t was agreed that these me-
should 60 to work on railroad con
struction, but many of them hav
e drfted into other occupations, such a
d logging and sawmill work. OF the vas
:, army shipped in in this way, few hav
:. remained with railroad work, and th
u movement has done but little good fo
the railroads.
e although these men have been a'
e simulated by the other industries OF tn
e Northwest, they are but as drop i
IS the bucket. However, these men al
'r likely to get back into railroad wor
with the approach of winter, when tn
G logging camps shut down."
n The Hartman lines in the state al
e in need OF 300 men for bettermer
he work, while 800 more could be used
1t good advantage on bridge and concret
work. This number is needed by tf
, maintenance department, exclusive {
- the large amount OF new constructio
. now going on.
- A thousand men are wanted on til
-, Lewiston-Riparia line, which is beir
- - built jointly by the o. R. & n. and tt
Northern Pacific. The contractors c
9 the Elgin branch of the o. f. & N. wal
" from 400 to 600 men, while 500 more a
= needed by the Hartman lines alone b
:, tween Portland and Eastern Oregon
- intermediate points.
1t is estimated conservatively tn
= the North Bank road. now undergoir
;s construction by the Portland and S
GO attic Railway, needs from 1900 to 20
=. men. The Klamath irrigation work
&c also reported to be short handed.
Erickson & Peterson, probably Il
a largest employers OF common labor
~ the state at this time, now have I'll
or construction of 13S miles of railro'
On under way. The Pacific Coast Co
Ell struction Company, OF which H.
IS Huson is president and general ma
en- ager, also has large amount of wo
SO in hand for the o. K. & n. at yario
~ points, and the company is just Col
lg, mencing the rebuilding Of the ma
al line of the 0, X. & N. from Troutda
ng to Bonneville.
Sidney Smith, OF the firm Of Smith