The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1907-01-13

but to-day the cry OF help wanted" is
so strong IN many quarters that they are
/ responding to IL in great numbers.
You probably didn't read the report of
the New York civil service commissioner.
Il indicated a similar state OF things.
when IL told about lists OF candidates for
! city places who had passed the examina-
tons. but were already employed when
/ the places were ready for them. This
situation has caused a good deal of COM
ment. So has the fact, as reported re-
| Gently by che Of she district superlnten-
dents in New York. that the metropoli-
tan available supply Of school teachers
is no longer equal to the demand The
relative number Of young men and wo-
men sufficiently educated for teaching
does not seem to have fallen of, but
there is SO much greater demand for
them now than formerly in other callings
that they go into them instead of teach
/ ing
Nobody heard the cry for the help OF
trained young men more clearly than the
authorities OF the colleges and technical
/ schools previous to graduation time last
| year. The call was not delayed until
! just before commencement season. It he
gan IN the winter months and was voiced
! by the agents Of all sorts Of big employ
| ers. The secretary OF one of the largest
and best known universities in the coun-
try told the writer last March that Jobs
were then waiting for every member Of
/ the graduating class that he could recon-
mend as likely 10 do good work
Situations were offered IN big railroad
Offices and in the Offices of great mining.
commercial, and manufacturing corpo-
ratious. Civil engineers, electrical enBi-
neers. and mechanical engineers were
wanted. Suitable jobs for graduates were
offered by the pT0prietors of department
stores, by trolley companies, and by great
! financial institutions There was an es-
/ pecially strong demand for young men
/ who knew enough of chemistry 20 help
/ push along the work that has 10 be done
| I'm the laboratories which are such i'm
/ pOrtant features Of the smelling works
The steel works. and half 2 hundred Of
! the cOuntTy's other great industries.
Must De Competent and willing.
But-and this is something which( must
/ not be lost sight of-the cry fo- help
wanted in this country is one not 20 be
/ satisfied by any except the thoroughly
competent. The employers OF the United
! States have Job for every one. but 20
get one OF these jobs you must give signs
/ Of competence and 10 hold it you must
make good. The work 90 be done is i'm
/ portant. and would better not be done
than done poorly
That is one Of the reasons why, despite
! the real shortage Of workers. there often
/ seems 10 be q surplus. especially among
I those who believe themselves 10 be wen
trained. You could find a good many
/ last years Scientific" graduates vho
/ have not yet found themselves, while any
man well versed as % the need for ex-
/ perts in electricity, chemistry, and sani-
/ tary, mechanical. and civil engineering
( can tell YOU OF employers who are at their
wits end TO find competent youngsters TO
/ enter these callings.
The writer was present at q recent
meeting Of skilled and employing chem
I lists. when the chief question discussed
/ was, Where are We 10 find enough ex-
! perts 20 man our laboratories?' At the
same time IL was freely stated that ap-
/ plicants for laboratory situations. who
/ had gone through the prescribed course
/ Of preparation at famous scientific
schools. were constantly being turned
/ away. because brief practical examina-
/ tons showed them unit Tor the work
/ they aspired 10 DO. This condition is not
/ peculiar 10 the chemical industries II
/ exists in every one Of the great indus
/ tries mentioned above
For those who cannot find work in pTaC-
teal science because they are not thor
oughly prepared there are only two
/ courses open; they must either prepare
/ themselves all over again or they must
/ take what they can get and be ready to
/ work with all their might and strength
/ The cry is help wanted" and there are
/ few jobs worth while for those who are
/ not able and willing TO help in the full
/ est sense OF the word. This America
/ which has more work 20 give TO her sons,
/ both native and adopted, than there are
/ sons 70 do H., Will not tolerate the lazy
/ any more than the incompetent.
! Speaking about this feature Of the sit
/ Uation a famous architect said the other
day that there IS a heartbreaking short
\ age Of competent and industrious young
/ men with the necessary artistic sense to
/ do the minor work in every big archi-
! tect's establishment in the country. yet
/ there are more applicants than there are
/ places, constantly.
Many of the applicants who do not get
places or, getting them. fail to keep
I them" he said, are young Europeans
/ trained in European schools of the first
/ grade Some Of these young men have
| all the artistic taste and perception re-
{ CURED, but few are willing to work as ey-
/ cry one must work in this country
I have in mind at this moment" he
! continued. "a young man, the son of a
/ prominent Partisan. The father wrote
/ 10 me asking that / allow his son to
| come TO me and work with me in Ameri-
/ ca, where he was sure the boy could rise
rapidly to distinction and accumulate
more wealth in a few years than he could
/ in a lifetime spent In France. l wrote.
l him al long s r-yfIf apd 7 will
/ give him the chance YOU ask for. But
/ / advise you to keep i'm In France; he
/ will not be able to maintain the Ameri-
can pace
/ The father sent him along however
and | put the yOUngster at work l paid
/ him twice as much as he could have got
| in Paris after two or three years OF prac-
/ teal work. although not big wages. of
course, and gave him every opportunity
/ But do you suppose he made good? No.
/ a bit Of it, He seemed willing enough,
+ but the hard work and persistent appiica-
/ ton necessary IN my Office 10 keep pace
with the other young chaps employed
+ there Knocked him out completely
He was positively bewlldered by the
/ American rush. / was beginning to fear
+ that I would have to send him home
/ when | was called away from my Office
| for q few days On my return he was
missing. and / asked for him Gone back
( to France / was told He wanted US
/ to beg your pardon and TO say he could
/ not understand the American way In the
least.
Il could understand him perfectly, and
although he had some good points I was
1 glad he couldn't understand us Which
brings ne to the statement that Ameri-
/ can workers are paid more than others
mainly because they earn more"
Manual Workers Earring Best.
Undoubtedly manual workers in this