The sun., 1919-01-15
PORT LABOR PACT
| WILL BE- DELAYED
Voluminous Testimony Likely
to Prevent Final Settle
ment for Week.
THREE WITNESSES HEARD
Statistical Expert Says 81, 800
Is Needed TO Maintain Five
in Minimum Comfort.

Final settlement of the harbor labor
! situation Is s:ill some days distant
/ despite the extraordinary efforts Of the
National War Labor Board to expedite
IL This was apparent yesterday after
, noon when tho section appointed by
Joint Chairman william Howard Taft
! to take tho testimony in the case ad-
journed until tomorrow morning at 10
o'clock after making q bare beginning
Of their task. A meeting of the full
board. scheduled to take place in WASH
ington this morning, prevents the re-
sumption of tho local hearing to-day.
Indications were that the testimony
to be offered would be voiuminous.
After this is presented It must be
studied by the section and prepared for
the consideration of the full board,
which will review II carefully before
making Its decision. This considerable
work will be subjected to Interruptions
occasioned by tho demands OF other
matters upon the attention of the
board. SO that It may be a week or ten
days before a decision Is made.
Employers Represented.
terday at the request OF the complain
ants. while a dozen appearances entered
In behalf of individual owners showed
that while the private employers. az an
organization. were still arm in their re-
fusal to participate in the proceedings.
their interests will nevertheless be rep
resented. Representativ es OF the several
public interests affected were also on
hand prepared to testify in the issues
nf apI H. E-ht
,, day.
Three witnesses, all called by Frank
p. Walsh counsel for the workers. were
heard yesterday. They were Il. NJ.
Squires. chairman Of the Harbor Wage
Adjustment Board: Capt. William A.
Maher. business manager of the Mas
! tiers, Mates and Pilots Association, and
Prof. William F. Ogburn, a statistical
expert who has been engaged since last
June in investigating for the benefit Of
| the National War Labor Board the cost
| OF living.
The testimony of Mr.. Souiers had to
DO largely with his experiences in con-
| nection with previous undertakings to
| adjust the differences between the boat
owners and their employees. He pro-
duced records designed to show that
the boat owners, In no less than $50 in
stances, had violated agreements to
which. at tho mediation Of tho Haroor
Wage Adjustment Board, they and the
workers had subscribed
Capt. Maher read brief he had
drawn ZIP on the scope OF the work OF
the members Of his association and
their reasons for demanding wage in
creases. At the request OF Mr.. Walsh
| he sketched his own maritime career
from the time when as a boy Of - he
obtained employment as a deck hand to
the day when having reached his ma
| jortty he was made a steamboat cap
! tain.
Under what circumstanc noes did YOU
leave school a. "a to work On a deck
hand?' asked Mr.. Walsh.
| Il preferred work to going TO school
MY father was the boat owner went to
work for" said the witness.
Mr.. Walsh dropped this line of ques-
tioning.
Osburn Explains His Budgets.
Prof Ogdurn, who Is on leave OF
| absence from the chair OF sociology at
the University OF Washington. discussed
a series OF budgets on the cost Of living
which he had drawn up as a result Of
his researches These. he explained
were based on the expenditures OF a
family of Ave and were classified into
! tnree puugetary divisions called the
bare subsistence" the minimum COM
fort and the security and citizen
! ship standards.
| According to tho minimum comfort
standard. he said. family of five could
live on $500. He set the figure FOR the
bare subsistence standard at $1,000
Items in his budget on this standard
were SO yearly for the mans clothes
and s55 for the woman's complete out
At OF wearing apparel. Among other
things this allowed the man, he said
'four-tenths OF an overcoat" and mot
quite one pair OF trousers year. In
his estimate OF the woman's expense for
apparel he allowed $3.50 for two pairs Of
| shoes.
! 4 large audience, composed for the
most part OF harbor workers and their
friends, seemed to find amusement in
these and other details OF Dr. Ogdurn's
testimony.
a cablegram from President Wilson TO
Capt Maher thanking the captain and
his associate leaders for their prompt
submission of their case TO the War
Labor Board was read into the record.