The Washington herald., 1906-12-18

I saw there were a number Of white sec
ond-class passengers. and on TWO Of them
there were cOlored hrst-cIass passengers
Care Of Employees.
Next in importance to the problem OF
sanitation. and indeed, now Of equal i'm
portance, is the problem Of securing and
caring for the mechanics, Iaborers. and
other employees who actually do the work
on the canal and the railroad This great
task has been under the control Of Mr.
Jackson smith and on the whole has
been well done. At present there are
some 5000 white employees and some 300
col0red employees on the isthmus. ] went
over the different places where the differ
/ ent kinds Of employees were working; 1
( think 1 saw representatives Of every type
1 both al thir work and in their homes; and
I c0nVersed with probably q couple OF
( hundred Of them all told. choosing them
at random from every class, and including
I those vino came especially TO present Ger
/ tain grievances. / found that those who
I did not come specifically 20 present griev-
/ ances almost invariably expressed far
/ greater content and satisfaction with the
/ conditions than did those who called 70
/ make complaint
/ Nearly 5000 of the white employees had
come from the United States. No man
/ can see these young. vigorous men eneT-
I getiCally doing their duty without a thrill
/ Of pride in them as Americans. They rep
resent on the average a high class Doubt
/ less 20 Congress the wages paid them
/ viii seem high but as a matter Of fact
I the only general complaint which I found
/ had any real basis among the complaints
made 20 me upon the isthmus was that.
/ owing 70 the peculiar surroundings. the
/ cost of living and the distance from
/ home. the wages We're really not as high
as they should be- In fact. almost every
man ] spoke to felt that be ought % be
/ receiving more money! view, however,
which the average man who stays at
home in the United States probably like
/ wise holds as regards himself 1 append
I figures OF the wages paid. so that the
/ Congress can judge the matter for Itself.
/ Later ] shall confer on the subject with
/ certain representative labor men here In
/ the United States, as well as going over
/ with Mr. Stevens the comparative wages
I paid on she zone and AT home; and I may
I then communicate my findings 70 the Ca
nal committees Of the two Houses.
Quarters Good and satisfactory.
The white Americans are employed.
some Of them in Office work. but the ma
! jority in handling the great steam SHOW
els, as engineers and conductors on the
dirt trains. as machinists in the great re-
pair shops, as carpenters and timekeep-
/ ers, superintendents. and f0remen Of d.
/ visions and of gangs. and 50 on and 50
on. Many of them have brought down
/ their wives and families. and the chill
dren when not in school are running
about and behaving precisely as the
/ American small boy and small girl be-
have al home. The bachelors among the
r-~.rr.r Ito.
rate houses. sometimes in large houses:
: quarters being furnished free TO all the
men, married and unmarried. Usually the
bachelors sleep two in a room. as they
would do in this country. I found few
cases where three We're in a room; and I
was told of. although I did not see. large
rooms in which four We're sleeping; for il
is not possible in what is really a vast
system OF construction camps always 10
provide in advance as ample house room
as the commission intend later TO give
In one case where the house was an old
French house with leak in the roof. I
did not think the accommodations were
good But In every other case among the
scores Of houses / entered at random. the
q accommodations We're good. every room
was neat and clean, usually having books.
magazines, and small ornaments; and, in
short, just such a room as a self-respeet-
ing craftsman would be glad % live in al
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 con
/ tented with their house on the isthmus;
: but I never happened To strike such a
, couple The wives OF the steam-shOveI
, men, engineers, macbinists. and carpen-
, / tiers into whose houses ] went all with
one accord expressed their pleasure IN
, their home life and surroundings Indeed.
] do not think they could have done 9th
erwise. The houses themselves were ex-
, cellent-bathroom, sitting room. piazza,
/ and bedrooms being all that could be de-
sired In every house which 1 happened
10 enter the mistress Of the home was
! evidently a good American housewife and
, helpmeet, VINO had given TO the home life
that touch of atracuveness which, OF
course, the bachelor quarters neither had
. nor could have.
, Food SuppIies-A 3O-cent Meal.
d The housewives purchase their supplies
directly. or through their husbands. from
the commissary stores Of the commission.
All TO whom spoke agreed that the sup
plies were excellent, and all but two stated
I that there was no complaint to be made;
these two complained that the prices
were excessive as compared 10 the prices
in the States. On investigation ! did not
feel that this complaint was well found
ed. The married men ate at home. The
: unmarried men sometimes ate at private
1 boarding houses. or private messes. but
q more often, judging by the answers OF
those whom I questioned, at the govern
: ment canteens or hoses, where the meal
= costs 80 cents to each employe. This 30
cent meal struck me as being as good n
cot in frl sk
the ordinary hotel In which 59-cent meal
: is provided. Three-fourths of the men
- whom l questioned stated that the meals
/ furnished at these government hotels were
good the remaining One-fouTth that they
were not good. I myself took dinner at
the La BOca government hotel. no warn
ing whatever having been given of my
coming. There were two rooms. as gen
orally in these hotels. In one the en-
pl0yes were allowed 20 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 po-
tatoes. peas. beets. chilli con 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
quinine tonic, which twO-thirds Of the
guests, as I was informed, used every
day. There were neat tablecloths and
napkins. The men. who were taking the
meal at or about the same time included
railroad men. machinists, saipwrights
and members of the Office force The
rooms were clean. comfortable and airy
with mosquito screens around the outer
piazza I was informed by some of those
present that this hotel. and also the 9TH
er similar hotels, were every Saturday
night turned into clubhOuses, where the