The enterprise. [volume] (Harlem, Mont.) 1899-1926, 1910-09-29

figures, and makes it his business to
find out what they mean. They are,
of course, blueprints containing spec1-
flcations of the work Of that particular
job. There is maze of other figures
naming the sizes Of wire to be used
in various phases of the work; for the
more electric current required the
larger must be the wire, and this Is all
figured out automatically. Even the
most minute attachments are itemized,
All this must be known to the con-
tractor, even more in detail than to
the architect who made the plans; for
the latter does not bother himself with
more of such things than he has to,
and, after all, generally, 1t is the con-
tractor that Is financially interested In
the details. The boy finds out before
long that these things can be and have
been learned, and is promoted again,
this time as an assistant to the
superintendent on the job, at, say, fif-
teen dollars a week.
The latter is the man who directly
overlooks all the work, carrying out
the installation, according to the plans
and supplying the men and material.
AS his assistant the boy is thrown
right into all details of the business
He will find himself learning the cost
of the different materials, where they
can be got the cheapest, and soon
will be making estimates on trifiing
phases of the work. Of course, this
is leading pretty definitely ahead, both
in the technical side and in handling
payrolls, overseeing employees, etc.,
and within three years Of the time
when he began as apprentice, if he is
a good, bright boy, he will be an cleo
trical estimator and earning eighteen
dollars week.
The electrical engineer is merely an
outgrowth of an estimator, and by the
time he can consider himself one,
which will be in two or three years
more, your boy will be getting twenty
| five to forty dollars week, and will
be pretty we'll qualified to attend to
any phase of ordinary contracting
work.
| The man that succeeds as an esti
mator is the one on whose basis bids
are submitted for practically all work
and if he, through his superior knowl
edge and skill. can show how to save
here and there, it will enable his firm
to make the offer that gets the con
tract. He is the most important mar
in the company, for he has the knowl
edge and skill, can show how to save
and in many instances those al the
head of this department of firTa o.
electrical engineers get as high ss 1f
teen thousand dollars a year.
But not simply in estimating nAoult
your boy strive to equip himself as al
expert. From the time he begius al
an apprentice until he becomes one O
the big men of the firm, he will: b.
brought more and more into relations
with architects. Now, architects ar
the first, outside of the actual owners
to know that building is to be erect
!! ed. Consequently, they are in a pc
sition to extend this knowledge t.
contracting firms they favor; and 1
is distinctly up to young man VIII
wants to get to the top to do ak b.
can when brought in contact witt
architects to cause them to favor hi
firm.
Especially will the cultivation Q
this executive faculty prove valuabl
when our now trained electrician
your boy-decides to have a firm,
business of his own. This he will b
able to do, with all the financial bacl
ing he needs, the minute capital see
him tower above his fellows. And cap
tai, more than once already, has see
young electrical engineer tower, as
looked out upon him from the poke
book of an architect or of one Of tn
latter's moneyed friends.
Who has gone through this line an
reached the top? Virtually ever
electrical contractor In the countr.
large and small; for it is a bushes
where practical experience count
more than schooling, and nearly ever
one, therefore, began just as your DO
| Will IL lie ucCluCS " JdhC w SAAo Ce|A
ing tomorrow. In fact, almost ever
man who is anything at all In an
form of electrical endeavor began
the bottom-even Thomas A. Ediso7
though he did not begin III the hous
wiring end.
One of the greatest superintendent
: of electrical construction in the wcrl
is a man who had no technical schoc
ing at all. He learned the rudimen
of house wiring as here described, ar
today he is known throughout h
portion of the electrical world as tt
man who was superintendent of ele
trical installation in the worlds lar
est Office building. the Hudson TIE
minal, in New York; who held tt
same position on the worlds large
apartment house, and who has dor
the electrical installation in numero,
! other huge structures.
Another case in point is that of tt