The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1912-04-25
Why Steel Workers Are overworked.

Why Steel Workers Are 0verworked.
The firm OF J. Pierpont Morgan was
paid S70,ooo000 for its services in or.
genizing the billion dollar steel trust
the United States Steel corporation in
1901.
As part Of the service for which this
incredible sum was paid, the Morgan
firm agreed to the purchase OF the prop
erty of the Carnegie Steel company for
Si20 100000 about twice the amount
for which Mr. Carnegie had agreed TO
sell the same property one year before.
Ard Mr. Carnegie has never ceased re-
GREETING that he was too modest in
selling his business for S420,000,000. Il
was a fool to sell at the price he
told the Stanley steel committee OF Con-
gress last fall Il might have got a
hundred million more"
No doubt Mr. Carnegie is right. A
hundred million dollars, more or less,
was trife at that particular time.
According TO government estimate,
the total water" in the capital stock
OF the billion dollar trust amounted, all
told. to about $6O0,O00,00O more than
half its total issue of securities.
During the nine years which fol-
lowed its organization, the steel trust
earned profits of more than billion
dollars.
1t is idle and worse than useless to
rail at Morgan and Carnegie. Almost
any one of their most violent critics
would hail with yelps of delight an
to pick fifty or a hundred
million dollars off the corporation plum
tree. Men who know Mr.. Morgan de-
clare that he has a high sense of per-
sonal honor. The little gray Scot has
become benignly persouiied. They sim
ply took the advantage of conditions.
Once the steel trust was organized and
its tidal wave of securities poured into
the public market. the real harm was
done. What follows is inevitable.
Many processes in iron and steel max
ing are necessarily continuous The
mills. cannot be shut down at the end
Of ten hours and opened again the next
They must be operated as
TO many departments for twenty-four |
hours in each day, if economy and or
are to gain the largest profits |
Mills running twenty-four hours each !,
day may be manned by two shifts. work |
ing twelve hours each, or by three shifts, !
working eight hours each With the |
of earning dividends on an |
capitalization always before |
item, the most humane managers can |
be understood when they insist on work
ng their men twelve. rather than eight !
hours a day.
These managers themselves feel the |
stigma which attaches to them and their |
great industry when the twelve hour |
Jay is made continuous for seven days |
n a week Nearly two years ago, w. |
B. Dickson, first vice-president of the |
steel corporation. called attention to this
-erroach and, since that time. the steel |
rust and many of the independent com
oanies have adopted a plan which IS
Intended to give every workman one
lays rest out of each week
The twelve hour day, however. re-
nains practically universal in the steel
Mills. And year by year, as the speed
n" up" process continues process
mder which BY the payment of bonuses
or big production" TO superintende->~s
md other bosses the workmen are more
md more severely driven-the strain on
he rank and file in the mills grows
constantly greater Henry NJ. Hyde in
lay Technical World Mag zinc. !