Evening journal., 1919-03-01

the forty-nine and one-half hours to
thirty-eight, and late-, under the inhu-
ence Of speeding up, they reduced the
time to twenty-three and tWenty-ono
and one-haH hours.
A boy OF A. however, who had been
well educated, but was not yet old
enough for military service, and quite
unskllled with tools, demonstrated what
a skilled workman is worth by making
a propeller of this pattern In eighteen
and one-half hours, after only three
weeks practice. So much for trade
union proficiency.
To belong to a trade union should
be a guarantee Of proficiency. Today it
is only a guarantee Of slow worker.
Making certain flying boats in an
other factory. we offered the men the
whole value OF the machines irrespec-
tive OF the amount Of time they saved
with the result that they exactly dou-
bled their wages at the first attempt
by making the machines in half the
time. Asked "where we came in" it
was not difficult to explain that we
had the plant, factory, and machinery
and their own labor available for more
work during the time saved, and the
profit thereon, while the extra mater
ials used would bear us another profit,
and so they were fully entitled to the
value of the time they saved. There
was no need to share profits.
After few weeks the trade union,
stepped in and forced them back to
double the time and half the wages,
much to their disgust. These things
will tell before long and undo the
unions.
A wounded boy. with a stiffened and
bent elbow acting as porter in th9
works, came TO me in the factory and
asked that he might learn the trade.
answered certainly" To this ne re-
piled that, because he was y and had
not spent his youth in a workshop,
they had declined to allow him to PICK
up tools. He pointed out that these
were the men his pals had died for and
he had been crippled for-he having
always been a soldier, having served
his youth in the army and having TAX
en- part in the lighting at Mons. So
much for trade unions sympathy for
men and their sense Of equity.
In England the government has done
incredible injury to labor as a result OF
lack Of flrmness and knowledge. If they
had been half as frightened of GerA
many as they are of labor, we should
never have entered the war.
Pander!ng to the demands Of labor
leaders, the so-called eXcess-p-01ts tax
Of 80 per cent, inauagurated in the
early stages Of the war was retained,
long after it had performed It's function
and became a tax upon profits whether
excessive or not-and, worse, it cost
the country at least 20 per cent. more'
on every contract than it need have
done.
Its effect was that a contract which
would have been made up as follows:
a. Materials ....,. -. ...... 30
B. Labor ...... -. -. ........ 90
C. Overhead charges .... ..... 20
Profit required -. -. ...... 6
Total ...... -. -. ..........ftO6
had to be made by the contractor in
consequence Of the government still
exacting 80 per cent. Of the profits up
on industry, whether such profit was
great or not, as follows;
A. Materials ...... -. ........ 80 L
B. Labor ...... -, -. ........ 90
C. Overhead charges -. ....,... 20
Profit necessary to provide the
Government with four-hfths
of profit and the contractor
his above 6 per cent ......... 30
Total $3.50. 49,. ............f13O
Thus the country had TO pay fi30 for
the value Of fi06 in order to satisfy
labor, and the general cost Of living
was automatically and unnecessarily
increased. Labor never gets a good
bargain from government because +
cannot be reasoned with, 1t has to be
fooled with a bait, for il cannot face,
under any conditions, a payment for
value received. It's medicine in conceal
ed in sugar. and yet it swallows its
own poison daily.
An election was won on the dishOn-
est cry Of the cheap loaf. Had the
workman paid the minute tax required
on corn, his loaf today would cost him
half what it does. Today the English
government is embarrassed owing to
Mr. Asquith's Cabinet having promised
labor that il should return to pre-war
privileges. No one knows that labor
had any pre-war privileges except that
Of organization, yet labsr must be re-
stored TO its antediluvian and barbar-
Gus habits for fear Of rOusing its anger. !
A great and prolonged strike was
once ended by the representative law
yers agreeing that the needs Of both
sides should be proposed by the labor
sides advocate. The employers pretend
ed TO object and left the conference
Labor Immediately accepted, thinking it .
was unfavorable to employers. Thus
labor hes to have It's leaders fooled
for lack of brains. n
No one yet has prevailed upon tho
of abor to rouse UP and
become civilized, and no one has the
pluck In politics TO tell 1t the truth.
Labor is represented in the government
by men of high ideals, but they are
practically outside trade unionism, La
Dor is gradually becoming aware Of the
folly Of its leaders and will yet be turn
ed. But it is paying bitter price
Freed from the tyranny Of trade >
unions, workmen showed themselves
heroes at the front. Let them decline
10 go back to the servitude and debas-
ing influence Of their present unions
5ysteml Ordinary robbery is dealt
with in the courts of law. Why not
try the leaders OF this, the greatest
robbery in the world. and let the sys-
tenn stand or fall upon It's merits?
Unless a League Of Nations provides
rs with industrial peace. let us finish
he war Foch is good enough 10 set
lie 1t. The present situation is a dis
a. a.