Daily Kennebec journal., 1914-02-02
Monday, February 2, 1914.
EHee. Of "12 Months of Wilson"


In replv to an editorial in the BOS-
TON JOURNAL, Thomas Q. Marvin
secretary of the Home Market Club,
Boston, has written the following re-
markabIe letter, that should be read
by every thinking man in the land;
The United States government at
the expense of much time and labor,
gathers statistics of the number OF
wage-earners employed in our indus
tries, It would require an effort some
what approximating that OF the CEN
sus Bureau in magnitude to gather
complete statistics of the unemployed,
and when the Boston Journal asks
"Where Is the evidence that there are
millions, or one million, out OF en-
ployment," it knows that in the ma
ture of the case official statistics or
unemployment for the entire country
are not obtainable and that only an
estimate is possible.
Undoubtedly, The Boston Journal
will prefer to make its own estimate,
and I trust that as 1t considered my
guess a poor one, its guess may prove
q. "rich" one. In arriving at its con-
clusion as to whether or not million
or more men are out of employment,
the following testimony should receive
consideration:
The Daily Iron Trade, a non-paru-
zan trade paper, in an article on "A
Million Idle Mill Men," said: THE as
founding depth to which the business
depression of the United States, and
! especially the iron and steel business,
has sunk in the past six months makes
one of the stupendous business stories
of the past fifty years" AS result Of
investigations by it's staff representa-
tives, it reports that over 100000 men
identified with the iron, steel and
metal trades were idle, whereas six
months earlier all of the men were
! busily employed. It would appear as
though The Boston Journal is some
what remiss in failing to note "one
of the stupendous business stories OF
the past fifty years"
d Reports from the Pacific coast show
an alarming number of unemployed.
In Washington 227 lumber and shingle
mills were closed. The largest ium-
ber mill in the State of Washington
= closed month ago for the first time
In f1fty-f1ve years. In Oregon the un-
employed are marching to the capitol
to demand work. In San Francisco 1t
is reported that 10000 are unemployed
and in Los Angeles $4,000. 1t is esti-
mated by the Daily Iron Trade that
100000 miners are out of work with a
loss in wages of s12,o0o,000 month.
The unemployed in the steel and iron
trades are losing 100000 day in
wages, s50,000000 a month, or at the
rate of $500, 1000 a year.
No wonder business is depressed,
bank earnings are reduced, failures
exceed a year ago and 215,000 freight
cars are idle Take sixty millions and
more out of the pay envelopes in a
month and evidently much less will be
spent for food, shoes, clothing and
pleasure.
The president Of the association for
relieving the poor in New York reports
shat "the association is having twice
as many applications for relief as
usual" The director of the associated
charities, New York, says: Last year
at this time there were practically no
wage-earners out CT work who wonted
to work. This year there are many"
Under date of Jan. the United
charities of Chicago sent out an emer-
gency appeal in which it is stated,
"The present is 4 period of almost un-
precedented business depression in
many circles. 1t has resulted in more
unemployment among small wage
earners than Chicago has ever expert
enced We believe fully $4,000 families
Cor over 100000 individually will suffer
the cruel sting of poverty here this
winter. Two weeks ago in one section
of Chicago over 5000 men out of $4,000
normally employed were reported laid
off, while one-half of the remainder
were working on half time with half
pay. We have statements to this ef-
feet from superintendents of the plants
over their own signatures. The cold
sact is that thousands more have been
hid off in Chicago since then, and
employers unite in saying that not
man will be re-instated for three
months. Appeals for aid from home
less men and hoys have increased
nearly 40e per cent. over last year.
This is not what you call poor
guess" These are compelling facts
about present poverty conditions in
Chlcago-4ou per cent. worse than d
year ago-as presented over the sig
nature of Charles w. Folds, chairman
Of the finance committee, United Char
ties of Chicago.
AT this critical period where does
The Boston Journal stand for the low
Underwood tariff, which has taken
millions out Of the pay envelope, or
does il stand for q protective tariff
which shall equalize conditions Of
competition and maintain for labor an
adequate standard of living? If it in
vestigates this stupendous business
story" it will find that the tariff plank
Of its party told the truth when it said
that a tariff for revenue only would
inevitably produce widespread indus
trial and commercial disaster"