South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1917-04-27
The Tide Of Labor
From the Farm to the Factory-When VIII 1t Swing
Back Again.

town. now marked $500 a pair;
and thought of Sunday meeting. the
only amusement of the countryside,
and Mary Harper.
Demand i'm City
The weekly Banner reported a
big demand for workers in the new
automobile plant in the city. So
Dan quite one Saturday night, and
Monday found him in the line of ap-
plicants at the factory door And
Dan wasn't the only country boy
there. Sixteen out of every hundred
farm laborers did as Dan did, this
year, John" said Uncle Charlie, in
terrupting himself. That's bad,
Charlie. VIII the farmers be able
TO plant as much ground with so
many leaving?' Il am afraid not,
John The reports indicate two per
cent less cultivation this year. But
let me go on with my Interpretation
OF this table. Dan took his sister
with him to the city, and another
country boy went along. Della got
a job in a cotton manufacturing
plant. and Sam landed in a shoe
factory. They took those jobs be-
cause they could soon learn the
work. while Dan, being ambitious
and having a turn for machinery,
stuck to his plan and was hired by
the automobile company. That was
a year ago. Now, Dan, Della and
sam are city people. They are pale
and not so strong. Their evenings
are filled with amusements, movies,
walks in the bright lights, visits with
other young workers, sometimes a
bit of beer or some other relaxation
Even ambitious Dan has lost his
first determination TO work for the
future. The spirit Of resignation or
the poor is eating their vitality. And
here are some of their experiences
written in this report:
Della is one among 53.242 who
were working February last. The
pay roll is bigger than when she
started in. The average was $500 q
week then, it is 5000 now.
Sam gets a little more pay now.
S14.37, against S12.98 year ago.
There are 60,226 in the factories re-
porting; a year before there were
56,499. The shoe business is looking
up.
Dan gets S21.72 a week, and a
year ago it was 1881 There are
111,971 in those factories now,
where 1856 worked a year ago.
The Real Situation.
But how much better of are
Dan. Della and sam, really?
The factories pay more to their
workers; the payroll increase runs
from 10 to So percent. More work.
ers are busy, as many as one in five
more in some kinds Of industry, and
many of them came from the farm.
which works TO reduce the supply Of
food for us all. and 20 increase the
cost OF living. And listen 10 Della
Dan, she is saying, i think we had
better stayed on the farm. You get
the biggest pay Of the three Of u.s.
almost $50 a month. Your pay would
be only $3.50 on the farm, but look
what il costs Us to eat a s. bill just
melts down when ii meets the gro
Gerry man. Back home you got your
meals with the job, and so did Sam
and I. There are four men in tina;
automobile factory where three
worked last year and nine in my
mill where eight worked when I
came in, but none Of us are as well
/ of Dan, let's go home.
But Dan won't go. He doesn't
want 20 let Mary Harper think he
/ failed.
Now. John. look at those tables
| again.
Boots and shoes. s. establish
ments were asked for reports; IS re-
piled. They pay every week. 56.49s
worked for them in February. 1915;
60.226 in February, 1917. That
means that Sc per cent more were
working in 1917 than IN 1916 and