The county record. [volume] (Kingstree, S.C.) 1885-1975, 1920-01-15

J tor his wool at the county station on
! November 1st, 1913 He had to sell
l61 pounds to get money to pay for a
$500 suit of clothes. On November
1st, 1919, the average price paid to
the producers for wool was 50.6e a
pound. He only had to sell 118.h
pounds of wool to get enough money
to buy a $4,000 suit of clothes.
"On November 1st, 1914, while all
Europe was at war and we were not,
the farmer received on an average Of
52.8t a bushel for his potatoes. Fifty
bushels left him very narrow mar
gin over the price of $500 suit.
On November 1st, 1919, he was get
ting an average of $1.53 per bushel
for his potatoes. The price of fifty
bushels bought him $4,000 suit of
clothes and a fine pair of shoes, and
left him a few dollars for sundries.
"But how about the working man :?
Let's start with the man who husks
corn for the Iowa farmer. In 1914 he
got 2e bushel for the work and the
crop was of such character that he
did well if he husked one hundred
bushels a day. He had to work twelve
and a half days to pay for a $500
suit of clothes. Last fall he demand
ed and, in most instances, got Sc a
bushel for huskin corn. The ears were
so big and plentiful that it was no
trick at all for him to husk one hun
dred and twenty-five bushels, earning
$1,000 day. 1t took him just six
days to earn enough to pay for a
$4,000 suit.
"The government tells us that the
average pay for farm laborers hired
by the month in 1914 was S21.05 and
board. In 1919 wages went up to q
minimum of $4,000 and ran to even
$4,000 or S65.00 in many instances.
The going day wage for harvest hands
in 1914 was $1.55, in 1919 they were
hard to get at $500 day.
workers in the cities do almost as
we'll. The Baltimore bricklayer, who
in 1913 got as cents an hour, had to
work ffty-fve and one-half hours to
earn money for a $500 suit of cloth
es. Now he gets s1.00 an hour and
works sixty hours for $4,000 suit of
clothes. However, he gets in lot more
overtime and is not idle nearly so
many days, SO he is relatively better
off than he was in 1913.
"The New Orleans blacksmith in
1913 received 35t for an hours work
when he could get work. 1t took him
10 hours to earn his $500 suit. Now
he earns his $4,000 suit by working
seventy-five hours at soc an hour and
has all the work he wants, regular
and overtime.
"The Buffalo boilermaker got 36.lt
an hour in 1918; he gets 72.5e now.
The unskilled laborer in the building
trades at St. Louis got 25t an hour,
six years ago; he now gets 62.5t, In
Chicago, San Francisco and some 9TH
er cities he gets S1.00 an hour, with
$500 an hour for overtime; and so
great is the demand for workers that
he won't work unless the contractor
permits him to get in a good many
hours of overtime week.
"The Philadelphia hod-carrier was
content to work for 35t an hour six
years ago, but zoe is his wage now.
The Detroit mechinists' scale was 39e
but it is now S5t.
"Its this way all over the country.
The Dallas plasterer and the Birming-
ham plumber get s1.12& an hour,
with plenty of overtime at double pay;
the Boston sheet metal worker earns
his 9Oe an hour regularly; the aver
age hourly pay of the rollers OF the
sheet steel mills of the whole country
is s.57k, and they work ten hours
day.
"The prosperity of the worker is no
longer adequately measured by his
wage rate per hour. Five years ago
work was scarce; large percentage
of workers expected to be idle many
days in the year. Now there is demand
for the service of every available man
in practically every trade, not only
for "A or 48 hours week at regular
pay, but for many hours of overtime
at double pay.
"Is it any wonder that the demand
for clothes is enormous? Producer
and worker alike haze more money, in
proportion, to spend for clothes than