The labor journal. [volume] (Everett, Wash.) 1909-1976, 1917-06-29
MODELLING HUMAN
RESOURCES
UNITED Mine Workers Journal.)

In America, as In some OF the
countries that first became involved
in the world conflict, the very first
question that has presented itself for
solution is-the shortage of human
resources. man power.
1t resolves itself to this conclu-
sion--the United States. like Great
Britain and France, finds itself in
need Of the most indispensable of
all her resources and is forced to
the realization, even as the govern
ments OF the countries aforemention-
ed, that she has been prodigally
wasteful with her human resources.
Prior TO 1917 France had accepted
the fact that great proportion of
her citizens, children of the indus
trial wol Lers, and of the peasantry
that had been attracted to the great
cities, had deteriorated, physically,
mentally and morally; had become
unfit for labor and constituted a
menace to society as a whole. France
found name for these victims of
wrong environments they were
known, feared and despised, as
Apaches.
In Great Britain like conditions
brought like results. The splendid
rural population one time the back
bone and pride of the country, had
been forced to migrate as England's
agricultural lands were converted into
pleasure parks of the successive bust
ness men of that country and her
colonies; overcrowding resulted in I'M
employment, in casual employment,
in underfeeding, bad housing and the
natural co-evil, indulgence in strong
drink.
1t required only few generations
of such evil environment and there
emerged "The Hooligan," the British
equivalent for the Apache of France;
weak of body and of mind, immoral;
menace to society because Of the
pressing insistence of his needs! I'm
employed most of the time because
the masters of the industries could
choose from many, they soon were
classed as unemployable; and so the
human resources of Great Britain and
of France were wasted in the cutters
Of the cities and industrial towns.
Then came the war. Men were
needed. The best were called to the
front; the unfit were left behind.
And then it was found possible 70
redeem even these, the victims of
the country's heedlessness. Steady
employment brought better food, bet
ter housing. Given the opportunity,
the "Hooligans" and the "Apaches"
became men. All that was wrong
with them, that made for their degra-
dalton, their decentralization, had been
imposed from the outside.
What of the United States? Have
we also developed the Apache, the
great cities; the smaller industrial
towns; the farming towns of the
great west in the harvest times, in
fruit picking and canning times. Scat
tered throughout this country will be
found millions of casual workers, men
who have no home ties, who have had
no opportunity to form home ties.
They live hard, they receive the
equivalent for a bare existence for
a single man while employed; be-
tween jobs they are the "hoboes"
that infest the railroads and soon
they deteriorate until they become
the barrel house buns of the cit
les.
Underfeeding, bad housing even
when employed, and long periods of
precarious existence while idle be-
cause mo man has hired them"
soon depletes their vitality; three
to seven years is the estimated life
of the casual laborer and at least
half of that time he has taken his
place with the unemployable. The
Hooligan, the Apache can find mil
lions of his counterparts in the
United States. And nearly all of
these unfortunate are American born,
The cause-lack of organization,
there were plenty of workers, a seem
ingly endless supply from every
part of the world were coming to
our ports. The employers and the
government apparently realized no
necessity to conserve the human sup
ply. They were allowed to drift,
often many of them inveigled to far
parts of the country where there was
already an oversupply of workers,
with the intent that they might be
used to break down the local stand
ards of wages. Driven out, at the