The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1906-08-03
HARVEST BECKONS /
TO LABORING men
THOUSANDS WANTED IN WHEAT
GROWING STATES.
Railroad Contractors Are Also Olamor-
Ing for Every Man that Can Be In
duced to Weld Pick or Shovel
Many Are Shipped, but Few Care to
Work.

Twenty thousand more men than the
thru the railroad construction work
now in progress, and to harvest the
crops now maturing between Mime
apolis and the Pacific coast. Mime
apolis Is now sending out more than
1000 men every week thru the employ
ment agencies and at least 500 more are
leaving weekly on their own hook; !"
leading employment agents Of Mime
apolis.
The railroad construction laborers
will be distributed as follows: Mon
tana, 1000; Oregon, 5000; Cul de Sac,
Idaho, 5000; Snake River, Wash, 1000.
In addition to this, there are several
lines In North Dakota which must be
finished soon in order to handle the
wheat crop. All these have men now.
timated expenditures for railroad extern
sions this season are more than $780,
000,O05. Sss
How Competition Is Met.
Just now the railroad contractors are
preparing to meet the competition Of
to $2.75 a day and board fcr harvest
ahnds. The hours for harvest hands
are from twelve to sixteen hours day
while railroad hands are working only
ten hours day. The contractors plan
to extend their day to twelve hours and
pay at the rate Of 2811h cents an hour
They hope that this will be suffi
cient inducement to hold the men they
have at present. ~.
The men now going out from Min
neapolis are drawn from the south an6
east. Many Of them are farmers boys
who have come west In the hope OF
picking up little extra money. The
majority, however, are Of the Floating
labor class and are highly unsatis
factory to deal with. Agents and con
tractors are experiencing much diff
Guilty with bumpers" One gang
and reported ten short. The ten de
are living on the country, waiting To-
the harvest to begin. This is cited 81
an example of the difficulties encoun
tered in dealing with, this class O.
labor. 8.
The contractors are shipping men t
the railroad works at the rate Of 200 I
day but they have little hope tho
more than 25 per cent Of them will
ever handle shovel. , :. -,
| LII looks just now as II we Wer
a bunch Of philanthropists running
fresh-air excursion said one contrao
tor. 1.-THE man who rides the bumper
to the harvest fields is either homes
to the point Of imbecility or else ia
behind the times. All he has to do i
to pay the employment agents fee o
90 cents or 81 and get comfortabl
ride to any point In the west he ma.
desire. ~" ~ '1.5.'.-> @@r"
/ One Long Picnic.
"Of course, few Of these men &
to work, but they are only the excer
tions that PROVE the rule, Usually the
skip as soon as they reach their des
tination A few with a. little more cor
science, 20 around to the camp and ca
breakfast before saying good-by. Their
are thousands Of idle men in the d.
kotas today, waiting for the harves
They get together In pot gangs' Q
eight Or ten. A little money goes
long way with them and life is one bi
picnic till the harvest starts. Th
railroads do not lose on these laborer
however. They ride out cheap but the
pay full fare coming back. A fe7
bum their way into the cities, bu
the majority are in too much Of a hurr
to spend their money to travel b
, freight