Daily Kennebec journal., 1919-07-18
Friday, July 10, 1919.
How to Reduce the High Cost Of Liv
inc,


You may think 1t takes consun-
mate nerve Or colossal assininity to
write this editorial and perhaps you
won't read il for that reason, but the
chances are that you will, because the
h. C. Of !. hits you. too.
There are two ole and wise sayings
which have Of late years fallen into
disrepute. but which have 4 direc.
bearing on this bothersome matter uf
high prices. The first is: There Is
reason in all things" And the sec
ond is: You can't get something on.
OF nothing
The first old saw bears on the
length Of the working day which has
as much to do with the cost Of COM
Modities as any one factor. Long
years ago public opinion decided that
there was no reason in making a man
or woman work Is or IS hours a day.
II was inhumane and with the adop-
tion Of machine processes it became
wholly unnecessary. 1t has been SCI
entihcaily demonstrated that the last
hours Of long working day are a
positive loss no, only on the frst day
but in the long run shorten the life
OF the worker and his capacity for
work is constantly being diminished
So the length of the working day has
been brought down to ten hours, then
to nine, and now eight hours is the
general rule. II it had stopped there
all would have been well. There is
just SO much work to be done in the
world. and while no man living can
figure it all out on the basis of man
power-hours or foot-pounds. it is
fairly safe to assume that the u,-
partite division Of the "a hours with
eight for work, eight for sleep and the
remaining eight for meals, rest,
recreation and study is as equable a
one as can be made. The eight hour
schedule cannot be applied in every
occupation. as the professions of law
or medicine, literary work or scientific
Investigations. But we are speaking
OF the great productive industries
that furnish our daily bread and raj
ment and cover our heads from wind
and weather. If men could be satis-
fed to work eight hours and do eight
hours worth Of work the necessary
amount Of goods could probably be
put out and the old law of supply and
demand would again come into it's
own.
But directly the eight hour schedule
goes into operation comes a demand
for Saturday half holiday. reducing
the 4s hours to a.; then the demand
for the FIVE day week which means 20
hours: then comes the six hour dag
and the output dwindIes to what can
be produced in 80 hours: here is a Gu:
Of more than one quarter of each en-
ployee's time per week. not to men,
ton holidays, strikes and sick leave
The effect Of this on production. and
consequently on prices is obvious.
Here Is where the other old saw
comes in. You can't get something
out Of nothing" Some day labor
must realize that it gets out of what
1t produces just what it puts into it.
II labor insists on an absurdly short
day and spends part Of the working
time in loafng it must expect to find
less for its own return. Every able
bodied person is created to do a rea.
sonable part Of the worlds work and
II every able bodied person declines
to do just that, the work is not done
and the world suffers. The pity of |.
it that it is not alone the slackers who
suffer. but their innocent families and
also those who are dependent on their
labor in general way.
Just now the devastation Of war
has reduced the stock of the world
goods dangerously near the vanishing
point and it is up to America to make
good a great part Of the loss. 1t Is a
fallacy to believe that prices viii
come down now that the peace treaty
is signed. The treaty has no sucn
talismanic or automatic powers over
economic law. whatever its other vir-
tues may be. No decrease in the cost
Of living nor any increase in the pur-
chasing power Of the high wages now
paid can be brought about by cur
failing production. 1t has the same
deadening effect as the withdrawal Of
capital which is the food of business.
The secret Of success Is IN
CREASED PRODUCTION which
means perhaps even a nine hour day
OF work for q few years until part cf
the war waste IL repaired This se-
cret does not carry with it any de.
crease In the wages paid to labor,
however. The war has brought a
new and higher standard Of living for
the lAborer which should and win be
permanent It II equally fallacious
policy 70 wait for wages to drop. |
They won't do It. In fact, II the
working day should be Heightened |