The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1912-10-17
THOUSANDS OF
men SIAND IDLE
REFUSE WORK, WHILE FARMERS
PLEAD FOR HELP in
THE FIELDS.

Minneapolis, MIMI, Oct, i7.-Seyeral
nundred men, the exact number esti-
mated at from 500 to 1000, n one of
whom has the choice of 1000 jobs, are
Idle In Minneapolis with freezing
weather but a month away. These men
spend their days standing In front of
employment offices refusing Jobs. They
40 not dodge Work-they meet it
squarely and shove 1t to side.
Enough energy has been expended by
these men in walking from one en-
ployment agency to another nearly to
finish threshing the northwestern crop,
according to an estimate by John
O'Connor, secretary of the Associated
Charities. The men have been idle
two months and every man could have
mad o $50 clear money for the
winter.
The coming winter makes q problem
for the city and the employers. EN-
ployers say it apparently is no prob
lem at all to the idle men. Both sides
have their explanations, but the ex-
plantations do not clear the situation.
Employers say the men will not
work because:
Street orators tell them thew should
not work unless they wish to when
they do not get a greater share of the
worlds wealth,
The orators keep repeating to them
that there will be a change soon, when
the men in the streets will get their
share of the rich mems money.
Some of them worked early in the
summer, earning enough to pay their
way until fall.
Many of them make it a practice Of
following the weather and will go
south when the sno flies.
Many are too lazy and won't work
unless thew have TO
The idle men have their side Of the
story and they say:
They won't work in the harvest
fields becaus farmers work them until
dark at small pay and discharge them
When bad weather comes.
The harvest season will soon be
over.
The pay of $2.25 to SO a day is not
enough for a nan to live on.
They won't work inside factories
until winter comes, because they want
to be in the open air.
Contractors are too exacting, work
them too hard and offer too little.
The winter problem is vexing en-
ployers and charitable workers al
ready.
"We are working to learn names of
men who refuse to work now" said
Secretary O'Connor Of the Associated
Charities.
IF they come to us homeless and
hungry in January / can't say that
we will refuse them aid, but / can say
that we will try to see that they earn
what they gRRSes h&annot yet see what
causes quits nIa 4 Euch idleness.''
I have woS4a 400 men and about
fifty men a daSSare taking jobs, but
they are not taking the steady jobs"
said Hugh Jennings, superintendent of
the state free employment bureau.
Some of the men in the city are
vicious. They are not like the laboring
men Minneapolis usually has. About
twice a week 1 call the police to clear
the place of men who will not work.
Our patrons pay Rbout $250 a day.
Blames Street Orators.
1.-THE street speakers who are telling
men in this district every night they
ought not to work, are partly to
blame" said X. %. Boo of the Ameri-
car employment office, These men
who are refusing work now viii loaf
around our places al winter when
there are no jobs for them. They
won't look at a job at SO a day."
II go out on the street and beg men
to take jobs, but they won't take them
at any price" said Carl Mattson of
the Northern Pacific agency. "They
" 4 r"dlAL w WOIh anu LAEy WOn -
l IA place 500 men today"
After a crew Of men had been taken
to a restaurant dinner before they
were to have gone to work in an auto
mobile, the men ran away from r. A.
Steckbauer, contractor, 929 Plymouth
building, Mr.. Steckbauher said:
They are just lazy buns and there
isn't anything else back of it, he
said. They walk around from one
place to another, because they are tir-
ed of sitting down."
Other contractors are having the
same trouble. Men agree to go to work
and they disappear while on the way
TO the jobs, even if the contractors
send rigs for them, they say.
Idle men last winter filled the muni-
cipal lodging house to overlooking,
compelled the opening of the old
basement lodging room at the patrol
barn and filled the mission lodging
quarters and to relieve the situation
the Lynnhurst Congregational church
opened it's doors and gave meals and
beds free to the unemployed. For this
DR.. James Cool, the pastor, was criti-
cized by charitable experts and city Of
iciaIs.