Evening journal., 1920-11-03

local union, where he pays dues every
month. And this is one Of the rea-
sons why workers today are being
influenced and educated to depend on
strikes rather than on personal energy
and efficiency for their jobs and their
wage advances.
But not only is 1t true that there
are many industries which cannot
possibly afford to pay as high wages
as the workers would like 10 get, but
one OF the most sad, yet salutary les
sons brought home by many Of labor's
strike victories" OF last year is that
no industry can so on paying as high
wages as the workers want unless the
workers themselves go ahead and ac-
tually earn them by increased pro-
ductiOn.
Strike after strike early last year
caused tremendous shortage in cloth
ing, shoes, shirts and a wide variety
OF other necessaries or near-neces-
saries. This shortage sent prices
skyrocketing. With these high prices,
and so long as such high prices lasted,
manufacturers could afford TO pay la
Dor almost anything on almost any
terms OF reduced production. They
did, and the workers in these indus
tries went back to work on such easy
hours and high pay that they began
actually to believe their radical lead
ers' assertion that organization and
strikes were all that was necessary 10
get rich quick.
But suddenly great public reaction
set in. People decided they would
not continue TO pay these high prices.
The war had taught them that they
could 90 without a great many things,
and this spring they decided they
would do without even very many Of
the ordinary necssaries OF life till the
prices came down. The public still is
paying high prices for food, coal and
such things that 10 cannot exist with
out. But Il has stopped buying cloth
ing, furniture and a wide variety OF
such products so completely that to-
day there is a tremendous-no over
supply, but over-supply at the price.
As result, factories are closing
down on every hand or materially re-
duclng working time. Labor is still
theoretically enjoying the high wages
which its strike victories" won for
it, but actually IL is getting less and
les benefit from them in its pay en-
VelOpes.
But undoubtedly the biggest loss
that labor has suffered as a result OF
these strike victories" OF last year
is that these victories" have led labor
10 thinking in terms OF big money
for short hours and easy work, that
they have led labor into believing IN
the utterly impossible economic fall
lacy that wages depend on what labor
strikes for instead OF that for which
it labor and produces for. The public
has already declared that II will not
pay the prices to which this fallacy
I.nI~ - L. ~ffrhN hanfnu In ~
10 pay heavily in unemployment for
the false theories last years strike
victories" made popular. How much
more those last years victories" are
going 10 cost labor. as we'll as the rest
OF the country depends on how soon
labor begins to see that the only way
10 get and keep higher wages is TO
work harder OF more efficiently and
produce more for them.
The great coal strike that cost the
| couRtry, including millions OF labor
ers, a billion dollars got IA per cent
increase for the miners. It also
strengthened the power OF the labor
officials and their system-which has
| already been described and empha-
| sized-Of keeping a tremendous excess
lof workers in the industry all work
ing on an average half to two-thirds
OF the time.
But what has been the net result Of
chs TO the average ambitious miner
Joseph Stewart, an unnaturalized
Lithuanian. % years old, with three
in his family. worked in the Jerome
mine. near Fayette City. He is an
| ambitious coal miner, whose case is
reported in the Senate investigation
Of December. 1919. BY working stead
ily, with some overtime. Stewart
earned s307020 for the nine months
for which the Senate had his rec
ord. or at the rate Of $1,000 a year.
Joseph Grandosky, an unnaturalizeC
Austrian, is another average skilled
| miner. He worked seventeen day.
less than full time during the SAINT
nine months and worked no overtime
His record, according TO the SAM
Senate report, shows that his earn
ings for these eight and a half month,
were Si792.67, or at the rate Of owe
s2J0O a year Grandosky paid an in
come tax on s23i5.73 in 1918. All thi
was before the strike and so befor
the. "A per cent raise.