Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1906-08-01

IkE.
There is one magnificent gain to the
country. arising from the universal
scarcity of skilled labor and the
steady advance in the rate OF wages
demanded in manual occupations of
all sorts, in the household as we'll as
in the shop and on the farm That
gain lies in a growing appreciation Of
! the dignity of the handicraft, thinks
! the Pioneer Press. Perhaps we
/ should rather say, the revival of gucn
appreciation; for in the early days OF
our republic no class Of citizens, not
even the lawyers or the doctors.
ranked higher in general esteem than
the master of a good mechanical
trade. The blacksmith, Greene, and
the printer, Franklin, were the chosen
associates of the courtly farmer,
Washington, the merchant prince,
Hancock. and the democratic lawyer,
Jefferson, not merely In the officia and
military affairs of their era, but in the
intimacies of society and home
The factory system and the concen-
tration of almost all mechanical work
in the hands Of large contracting firms
have reduced the numbers of the IN
dependent workmen owning their own
shops. The citizen having work to be
done has of late seldom come in bust
ness contact with the real handi.
craftsmen; his dealings being almost
altogether with men in Offices, to
whom the handicraftsmen are sub
ordinate. The trade unions have
sought the segregation of workingmen
into separate caste, with no ambi-
ton beyond that of wage-earning.
These causes have been mainly respon-
sible for the foolish notion that the pur-
suit of handicraft is somehow lack
ing in dignity as compared. for in
stance, with the business of the clerk,
the merchant or the professional man.
But We are now living in an era
when worldngmen are not seeking en-
ployers, but employers workingmen.
Wages have. attained almost unex-
unprecedented except in cases of
emergency work like that done in the
construction of the spildings for the
st. Louis Worlds Fair. From SO to
IS per day of nine hours is obtainable
by almost every skilled handicrafts-
man. To these figures the contractor
for any and every kind of work adds
about so per cent; so the citizen who
foots the bill has to pay $3.50 to $3.50
per day for every workingman's time.
And that the workingman doesn't
feel obliged TO hustle" for the citi-
zen's benefit there is evidence wher-
ever a job is in progress!
This state OF affairs has brought
about a determination ca the part OF
the citizen, in many case, to cult
vate personal acquaintance with the
use Of tools. The sound Of the saw
and hammer is heard in many a neigh
borhood. welded. and welded with
good results, by unaccustomed hands.
A lawyer has been seen doing job Of
plastering A preacher laid his own
cement walk And not only the
fathers, but the sons. now that the
handicraftsman commands wages dou-
Dle those of the clerk or salesman, are
discovering the dignity of and labor.
Three sons of prominent citizens. two
of throt just out of the high school
auI one a student In the University OF
Minnesota, answering an adversi5e-
ment, have just hired out for the va
cation as carpenters. The work will
give them some valuable experiences,
and tougher their frames for another
seasons study.
The splendid work done by the
manual training department of our
high schools. and by our school of agri-
culture. in fitting their graduates to
take advantage of all sorts Of openings
is shown in the cases OF these young
men; also in that Of another from the
school of agriculture, single days
work by whom consisted, first, of sew
eral hours spent in gardening; second,
of laying in part a hardwood floor in a
kitchen, involving some nice joiner
work; third, of writing short news
paper article. for which last he re-
ceiyed 81.
Let men and women who complain
/ of the high price Of help, and Of the
brazenness Of those who can do things
In asking such extortionate prices for
what they do, consider the compen-
sations which come with those prices,
in restoring the dignity OF the handi-
craft In promoting democracy, and in
drawing out, in all sorts of families,
talents and resources hitherto unsus-
pected Really anything which win
tend to lessen the wages or to restore
conditions under which any han5t-
craftsman must hunt for job instead
Ct being hunted by an employer
would be misfortune to the country.