The Greenville times. [volume] (Greenville, Miss.) 1868-1917, 1906-08-18
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|. THE PEOPLES FoRuM. ]
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Editor Times:
The following quotation was clipped
| from the Vicksburg American of last
Saturday, and ! wish to submit i,
/ along with a criticism to your readers.
/ A COOPERATIVE HOLIDAY
Three thousand factory workers
| of Dayton, Ohio, are camped in the
woods on the shore Of Lake Michigan
! where they are having the time o,
/, their lives.
The story IS very pretty one. The
plan originated in the BRAN OF man,
with a hobby-the hobby of making
people happy. He is John H. Patter-
l-son, Dayton's biggest manufacturer.
He .closed down his factories for two
weeks, and IN. cooperation with the
Welfare League OF Dayton workmen,
organized the scheme which has re-
suited SO satisfactorily to all con-
cerned A camp was selected AMI the
tents-I,35o OF them-were pitched
and each assigned to its occupants.
, Many concessions were made by rail
roads, owners OF camp grounds, wa
ter and lights etc. On July 3oth 4i
carloads OF excursIOnlsts lett Dayton
to spend the two weeks near to ma
lures heart and the expense to each
railroad fare, tent, and meals-Was
IS5.75. At the Camp there IS mann
moth dancing platform lighted with
electricity, and a band which gives
two concerts daily. There are also
baseball teams, a hospital tent with
doctors and nurses, and even huge
piles OF sand have been provided for
the very little children to play IN.
I hat the company IS we'll fed Will ap-
pear from the following list OF ar
tlcles required Tor single meal:
Forty bushels Of potatoes, 100
gallons; 1900 pounds Of beef; $50
chickens; 1900 pounds OF fish, I3o
pounds OF butter; 500 pounds OF ham,
S. hams; 400 cans OF corn, peas or
other canned goods; Is bushels OF
beets; one half barrel OF sugar; I,4oo
pounds OF veal, 3e5 dozen eggs; 8
barrels OF Saratoga chips; 20 boxes
Of salt waters; 40 pounds OF cheese.
This is practical Socialism of the
right sort. The story Of the Dayton
" eIfare Camp should be spread
throughout the length and breadth Of
the land. It sets an example which
II generally followed, would do much
TO disperse the clouds that are SO last
gathering and darkenlng with a por-
tent OF coming storm.
Having been both a resident OF
Dayton and e1nploye OF the National
Cash Register Company, OF which
John H. Patterson IS the head
was much amused at the above ar
| tlcie applauding the so-called welfare
work at the model factory Thai
they gave an excursion similar TO the
one mentioned is true; but first OF
all the cost to each excursionist was
$1,000 instead OF $5.z5, and had you
been along you would have agrees
that you paid for all you got. These
"Welfare Excursions have become a
yearly fixture, and on each occasion
some 600 employees out OF total OF
5000 make the trip; the rest of the
% carloads axe s4sssgssers who per
chase their tickets from the 4,4oo
stay homes.
1t is true that some real welfare
features are III vogue IN the factory,
and the two principal ones that | can
recall, are: you can check your blcy-
Gle free, and each employe is allowed
| Is minutes once a week IN which TO
take a bath The rest of the welfare
lis demonstrated only in the choiccc
literature that is mailed out III tons
daily telling you how selfsacrilclng g
they are.
They construct cash register at a
cost of SIS and sell it to you for $500,
which allows them to spend consider
able omney enlightening you as to
the Garden OF Eden they are con-
Quoting. A beautiful place to work,
| will admit; nice lawns, pretty build
ings and f1owery walks-but as you
see your fellow-workmen one by one
receive with their weekly wage red
ticket reading Paid in full and for
no other reason than to carry out the
orders of the president to keep the
men moving, for | believe in making
changes" somehow the scent of the
ferent and the landscape becomes an
the army of dissatisfied N. G. r. en-
ployees. who have precipitated about
| IS strikes in the last 10 years.
Welfare work indeed, when they
spend $4,000 giving luncheon to the
office force at the Officers Club and
then work the Printing Department
night and day for two months that
you may know how good we are
| to our employees The three daily
papers in Dayton are frequently pur-
chased for day at a time; and after
making cuts and writing copy in the
factory, sorf1e 100000 papers Especial
edition) are printed informing you
that Cardinal Satolli or some motel
man was entertained Cat cost prob
ably of $Ioo).
Good advertising, yes! Quite q
! graft, but through many sections OF
i the United States the people are
awakening to the fact, that the N C.
/ r. system of paying cheap wages for
long hours of work is not consistent
with the beautiful half-tone engrav-
! ings they send you of the love feast
between the under-paid workman
and the eccentric president, who does
SO much Tin print) for his men,
| To return to the conclusion OF the
! Americans article, | will say, that il
will take more than basket. picnic
on Lake Michigan to dispel the clouds
on the horizon of the N. c. RS fu-
fure-in other words, better treat
ment Of its employees; living wages;
and some surety of holding pos--
ton; accompanied by an 8-hour day
in all departments, will do more to
make their welfare work genuine
~ h1ofc cor13