The news-democrat. (Providence, R.I.) 1906-1909, 1906-12-17

Z
see these young. vigorous men energeti-
cally doing their duty without a thrill OF
pride I'm them as Americans. They
represent on tne average a high class.
Doubtless 10 congress the wages paid them
will seem high, but as a matter OF fact the
only general complaint which | found had
any real basis among the complaints made
10 me upon the isthmus was that. owing
to the peculiar surroundings, 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--a view, however, which the
average man who stays at him In the
United States probably likewise holds as
regards himself
Quarters Good
The white Americans are employed.
some OF them I'm office work but the ma
jority I'm handling the great steam shov-
els. as engineers and conductors on the
dirt trains, as machinists In the great re-
pair shops as carpenters and timekeep-
| ers superintendents and foremen OF d.
visions and OF gangs. and so on and so on.
Many of them have brought down their
wives and families; and the children
when not in school are running about and
behaving precisely as the American small
boy and small girl behave at home.
The bachelors among the employees live.
sometimes In small separate houses,
sometimes i'm large houses; quarters being
/ furnished free to all the men, married
and unmarried Usually the bachelors
sleep two I'm a room, as they would do In
this country. ! found few cases where
/ three were in a room; and | was told or,
atho | did not see, large rooms In which
! four were sleeping; for IL is not possible
| in what is really a vast system OF con-
struction camps always TO provide in adj
vance as ample house room as the COM
mission intend to later give. In one case,
where the house was old French house
with a leak I'm the roof / did not think
the accommodations were good. But In
every other case among the scores OF
houses I entered at random the accom-
modat ttons were good: every room was
neat and clean. usually having books,
magazines and small ornaments; and In
short JUST such a room as a self-respect-
ing craftsman would be glad TO live in at
home The quarters for the married peo-
pie were even better. Doubtless there
must be here and there a married couple
who. with or without reason, are not
contented with their house on the 18TH
mus: but never happened to strike such
| couple
Food Supplies
The housewives purchase their supplies
directly. or thru their husbands. from the
commissary stores OF the commission. All
: TO whom / spoke agreed that the supplies
were excellent. 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 / did not
| feel that this complaint was well founi-
] cd. The married men ate at home. The
unmarried men sometimes ate at private
/ boarding houses, or private messes. but
often, judging by the answers of those
/ whom I questioned, at the government
7 canteens or hotels where the meal costs
aI .Ts.u.l Ift.l
| meal struck me as being as good a meal
as we get In the United States at the or
! dinary hotel In which a J0-cent meal is
provided
| Three-fourths OF the men whom qucs-
/ toned stated that the meals furnished
/ at these government hotels were good,
the remaining one-fourth that they were
/ not good. | myself took dinner at the
/ La Boca government hotel no warning
whatever having been given OF my com
/ Ing. There were two rooms as generally
! in these hotels. In one the employees were
/ allowed TO dine without their coats, while
in the other they had to put them on.
The 30-cent meal included soup, native
/ beef (Which was good, mashed potatoes,
| peas, beets. chill carne. plum pudding,
| tea. coffee-each man having as much OF
| each dish as he desired On the table
| there was a bottle OF liquid qunine tonic
which two thirds OF the guests. as l was
! Informed, used each day. There were
/ neat tablecloths and napkins. The men,
| who were taking the meal at or about
! the same time included railroad men, ma
| chinists. shipwrights, and members OF the
/ office force. The rooms were clean. COM
! Portable and airy, with mosquito screens
around the outer piazza. ] was Informed
| by some of those present that this hotel,
| and also the similar hotels, were every
| Saturday night turned into clubhouses
| where the American officials the school
4 tau -,
bringing their wives, there being dancing
/ and singing. There was n piano In the
| room, which ! was informed was used
/ for the music on these occasions Ny
| meal was excellent. and two newspaper
| correspondents who had been on the 18TH
| mus several days Informed me that IL
was precisely like the meals they had
been getting elsewhere at other govern
! ment hotels
Chinese md other Labor
| On the nineteen or twenty thousand
! day laborers employed on the canal, a few
| hundred are Spaniards. These do excellent
| work Their foremen told me that they
| did twice well as the West India labor
| ers. They keep healthy and no difficulty
is experienced with them i'm any way.
Some italian laborers are also employed
| In connection with the drilling As might
! be expected with labor as high priced as
| at present in the United States. IL has not
| so tar proved practicable TO get any or
dinary la6orers from the United States
| The American wage-workers on the 18TH
mus are the highly paid skilled mechanics
OF the types mentioned previously.
A steady effort is being made to Sc
| cure italian. and especially 10 procure
| more Spaniards. because Of the very sat
| tisfactory results that have come from
| their employment and their numbers will
be increased as far as possible. II has not
| proved possible. however. TO get them I'm
| 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 coll
| ored laborers from the West Indies, part
| ly upon Chinese labor
II certainly ought 10 be unnecessary 10
| point out that the American workingman
| In the United States has no concern what
| ever In the question as 10 whether the
| rough work on the isthmus. which is per-
| formed by aliens In any event. Is done by
| aliens from one country with a black skin
/ n hy aliens from anofhar couptrx u,ftk a