The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-07-24
PUNISHING CAPITAL.
The Stuffed Pay Roll and Hostile
Legislation Denounced.

To THE EDITOR OF THE SUN-Sir: II
Is to he presumed that labor and its
La Follettes take much satisfaction in
noting that capital is being punished"
that there were 1870 failures in the
first half of 1915, n high record for all
time; that the banks in New York
alone, prior to July disbursements, had
about 5000, 900. 600 idle money which
nobody seemed to val to use and that
one-eighth Of the railway mileage OF
the United states Is In tho hands or
receivers, with as much more headed in
that direction.
While optimistic views predominant
as to the general course of future de-
velopment. and with many encouraging
indications, IL yet remains true that
American trade and industry are n Ions
way from doing their best. There are
thousands of men and millions of dol
lars idle or but partly employed. This
double unemployment" Is likely to
continue. and 1t may be accented in the
course of n few months.
The first cause for this is the atti-
tude of labor and its leaders. also its
representatives in legislative halls. The
La Toilette law has driven two big
shipping companies to foreign registra-
ton and bids fair to sweep tho last
vestige Of our American fleet from the
seas. The Boston street railways re.
curities make new low records In price.
the company having had forced upon
It a wage scale the general adoption
OF which would bankrupt half the cleo
trio railways in the United states. The
largest concern operating in the Hook
ing Valley coal region in Ohio is clos
ing its mines because of the exactlons
and restrictions Of a law which admi-
rably illustrates u cardinal labor union
principle, that of rewarding the poor
workman equally with the good work.
man. 1t forces the mining companies
to pay as much for poorly mined coal,
battered to slack, as for carefully
mined lump coal. Ohio Is reaching
toward rank with Kansas and Wiscon-
sin as an incubating ground for legis-
latlve monstrosities and follles.
In Chicago tho building trades. which
with railroad men now constitute the
worlds aristocracy OF labor. have
brought about an economic loss Of more
than a million dollars a day, by their
efforts to cNtort "A rate OF pay enor-
muuslv above even the high averages
of this country. and fabulous when
compared with the rates prevailing any
where else on earth. With thousands
Of men out of work entirely and mill
ions in other countries glad TO get work
at 20 cents "A day. these hich stomached
patriots want 30 cents an hour. The
average c1rnincs OF the nearly -
600. 900 workers in factories rs reported
by the last census were 20 cents an
hour. Is a Chicago carpenter worth
three and a half factory hands
Is there no way OF getting into the
minds of the 20 cent an noun workers
the truth that the exorbi;aut wages de-
.--- -. a.. - 49,.
building trades are a tax upon them
Is there no way OF securing some sem
sible recognition Of the tremendous adj
nta wage workers have In this
country as compared with any other
portion Of the earth? Every little while
some professor arises to tell US what
"A minimum living wage Is. and to
announce the correct lowest rates which
society "owcs" the manual worker.
They have much to say regarding other
peoples pay roll obligations, but never
by any chance do they show any intelli-
gent idea of what the worlds work
is being lone for in other lands, nor
ever any intelligent comparison OF
wages IN this country
The railroad men and the building
trade workers are getting more than
double the earnings Of the most favored
OF the workers In the manufacturing
trades. some 1000, 900 IN all. and are
sky high beside the earnings Of the more
than 1900, 900 farmers, who besides
their labor ave previous earnings in
| vested as necessary working capital,
They are getting more than their share
already. yet they are Hcrccly demanding
more. and are deinorallziug other in
dustries.
Chicago has started in to settle the
question Of utter dominance by the
building trade workers. The question
might as well be fought out. there and
elsewhere. The easiest way, of weakly
yielding to demands, no matter how
unreasonable, and then passing 1t on
to the public Is no longer workable,
Managers rave been compelled instead
to pass the loss To- the owners OF rail-
roads and other Industries.
"Equallze labor" In all the i'm
mense amount of liquidation We have
undergone labor has not contributed a
dollar toward a sane readtustmeut. such
as would help to put enterprise on It's
feet with new courage to undertake
new development of u great natural
resources. The two things which
daunt enterprise to-day u check the
starting of new Industries are the
stuffed pay roll and hostile law max
ing. two greedy, unfair. stupid, dis
honestly conceived entities, which need
to be forced aside II prosperity Is &c
be with us. w. G.. TAYLOR.
Boston, July 20.