The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1906-12-17

& Wells. v
Plainfield: Elroy F. Lsavitt.
Williamstown: Crescent Drug
Store, Geo /. Edison, Prop.
married men sometimes ate at private
boarding houses or private messes, but
more often. Judging by the answers OF
those whom | questioned. at the gov.
ernment canteens. or hotels, where
the meal costs 60 cents TO each en8
poyee This thirty cent meal struck
me as being as good meal as we get
In the United States at the ordinary
hotel In which fifty cent meal Is pro-
vided | myself took dinner at the la
Boca government hotel. no warning
whatever having been given Of my
coming There We're two rooms, as
generally ia these hotels In one the
employees were allowed to dine with
out their coats, while in the other they
had to put them on The thirty cent
meal included soup, native beef (Which
was good mashed potatoes, peas,
beets, chilli con carne, plum pudding,
tea, coffee. each man having as much Of
each dish as be desired. On the table
there was bottle Of liquid qulnlne
tonic which two-thirds OF the guests,
as was informed, used every day.
There were neat tnblecloths and nap.
klns.
Ny meal was excellent, and two
newspaper correspondents who had
been on the istllmus several days in-
formed me that it was precisely like
the meals they had been getting else
where at other government hotels.
No Cause TOR Complaint About FOOD.
came TO the conclusion that, speak
ing generally, there was no warrant
for complaint shout the food. though
doubtless Il grows rnonotonous after
awhile. Grumbling about food is n
common trait everywhere On this
very trip on one Of the warshlps sea
man came TO complain TO the second
watch officer about the quality OF the
cocoa nt the seamen's mess. saying that
II was not sweet enough. II was point
ed ont TO him that there was sugar on
the table and he could always put It
in to which be responded that that
was the cooks business and not his, /
think That the complaint ms to the food
on the isthnus has but little more
foundation than that OF the sailor In
question.
Chinese and other Labor.
or the 10000 or 10000 day laborers
employed on the canal few hundred
arc spaniards. These do excellent
work Their foremen told me That
they did twice as we'll as the West
India laborers Some Italian labor.
ers are also employed in connection
with the drilling. As might be expect
ed, with labor as high priced as at
present In the United States. II has not
30 far proved practicable to get ordi-
nary laborers from the United States.
The American vageworlers on the
isthmus are Tire highly paid skilled me
chanlcs. A steady effort is being made
to secure Italians and especially to
procure more Spaniards. II has not
proved possible. however to get them
In anything Ike the numbers needed
for the work, and from present ap-
pearnnces we shall In the main have
to rely for the ordinary unskllled work
partly upon colored laborers from the
West Indies, partly upon Chinese la
Dor. II certainly ought to be unneees-
sary to point out that the American
worllingman in the United States has
no concern whatever in the question
as to whether the rough work on the
isthmus, which Is performed by aliens
In any event, is done by aliens with
black skin or by aliens with vel
low skin. Onr business Is 10 dig the
canal as efficiently and as quickly as
possible, provided always that nothing
is done that Is inhumnne to any labor
ers and nothing that intcrteres with
the wages OF or lowers the standard Of
living OF our own workmeu Having
In view this principle. have arranged
to try several thousand Chinese labor
ers. This is desirable both because we
must try to flnd ont what laborers are
most efIlcicpS and. furthermore, be-
cause we should not leave ourselves at
the mercy OF any one type Of foreign
labor.
Ncwro Leborers and Their Quarter.
The West India labofers are fairly,
but only fairly. satisfactory. Some Of
the men do very we'll indeed. The bet
ter class. who nre to be found as fore
men, az skilled mechanics, as police
mon are good men, and many Of the
ordinary day laborers are also good.
But thousands OF those who are
brought over under contract (at our ex.
pense) 20 on into the jungle 20 live
or loaf around Colon or work SO badly
after the first three OF four days as to
canse n serious dlminution OF the
amount of labor performed ON Friday
and Saturday Of each week
Ore Of the greatest needs Is TO pro
vide nnusements both for white men
and black. The Young Mems Christian
association is doing good work and
should be cncolragcl. but tho govern