The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1912-09-04
SIS WEEK ENOUGH
FOR THREE PEOPLE
Is the Ruling Made by Secre-
tary of Commerce and
Labor Nagel.
BY RODERIck CLIFFORD.


WASHINGTON, Sept. 4.-Twenty-
five dollars a week is sufficient to pro-
vide the necessities of life for three
persons, and there is no reason for
three persons depending on this sum
becoming public charges.
This decision has been given by
Secretary of Commerce and Labor Ma
gel in reversing the action of the
immigration officials at New York
They barred from entry into this
country Mary and Cecile Fleming,
aged Sc and SO years respectively, on
the ground that their future support
would depend on the $25 week earn
ed by John F. Byrne, newspaper re-
porter, and their nephew.
There are several thousand govern
ment clerks in Washington who know
that three, and sometimes six and
eight persons, can live on $25 week,
as the average salary in the CLASH
fed service in Washington is $1,079
a year or $2075 per week In fact
there are government clerks who work
for only $240 a year, $40 a month.
They support themselves, though it is
mot known that any of these employees
support families on this wage.
In every department, however, there
are few clerks who show a practical
aversion to race suicide and who, as
"a result, are taking care of large
families on less money than young
Byrne earns
The families who live on less than
$25 week may not have many lux
uries but they are not in want, nor
have they been forced to even low
standard Of living. At the same time
Washington is well up in the front
rank of the cities where it is expens-
i've to live. Outside of Washington the
average salaries paid all employees is
1928 year, $751; less than the average
within the District.
Twenty-Five dollare week totals
1900 year. In the classified service
there is no such salary, the graduation
being from 1900 to $1,400. Accord
ing to the latest figures compiled by
the United States Civil Service Com
mission, there are 13,445~ government
clerks who receive less than 81 400 a
year. A large number of these are in
the $1,000 class, a trifie over $23 a
week. There also are 9,108 clerks
who receive less than 81 200, or from
$40 to $75 month. This accounts for
1858 clerks in this city who receive
less than Byrne is paid in New York.
Various division heads said that
they had no figures to indicate how
many of these men are married or
have families to support. Two of them
who ventured, what they termed a
guess" said that at least twenty-five
per cent of the men have families.
If this guess be near correct, it would
mean that more than 1000 families of
government workers alone are getting
along on less than $25 week.
In the War Department there are
1000 civilian employees. The annual
payroll is $1,984,000. This includes
the $4,000 paid the secretary and the
division heads. But including these
good salaries, the average for the CT
william employee is only $1,240 a year,
Ia trifle less than $25 week.
There are TOT employees in the Navy
Department, not taking into account
any of the men employed at the Navy
Yard, and their average pay is 81, 1872.
This figure also includes the salaries
of the high officials and, owing to the
relatively small number of employees,
the average clerical salary is well be-