The news scimitar. (Memphis, Tenn.) 1907-1926, 1920-02-17

WASHINGTON, D. G., Feb. IL
What are we going to dc for servants?
People who complained about the
servant problem a few years ago now
realize that their troubles in that line
had 'only Just begun. The cost of "a
unit of human power Is going higher
every day. And it seems as though
human power applied to manual tasks
rises in price much faster than human
power applied to intellectual work, Ten
years ago I'm this country a college
professor might be able to hire a cook.
Now a competent cook might well hire
a college professor If she had any use
for him.
It's the same way in many other in
stances that might be cited. The thing
can be stated briefly by saying that
wages are going up SO much more rap,
idly than salaries that the salaried
class can no longer afford to hire the
wage-earning class. You have to be
a capitalist in order to be able to hire
anyone these days, and even some capt.
ialists regard their pay rolls with grow
ing aversion.
This is no doubt due in part TO an
abnormal state of affairs. but there
does seem to be a tendency to equal
ize all human rewards. It Is doubt
less a wrong which will be righted in
due course that a brick layer in this
country can make more than the av-
erage professor Of mathematics. The
ting his trainipg,. his work requires a
higher grade Of ability, and his respon-
sibilities are greater. Alse-rand this
is perhaps the most important part
his actual wants are larger than those
of the average byicklayer. He may
need no more to eat than the brick
layer. but he may well need more in
tbn nav nf bnnEp aud tnphra tipLatS
At any rate the .Utopian socialists,
and other so-called dreamers and IDEAL
lists, have always %contended that the
rewards should be equalized, SO that
We would all get about the same
amount, the difference depending on
our differing needs and capacites for
enjoyment rather than on our differ,
ing luck and ability. Whether you like
to be happening, Of course, The rich,
like the poor, are always with US. Ana
it does seem as If some movie stars,
prize fighters, and barefoot dancers are
getting o little more than their fair
share Of the beodle e. But there is no
denying that for the great mass Of US
a pay envelope OH Saturday night, the
content OF that envelope is coming al.
ways to be more uniform in amount
for all Of us. As the wife Of a young
professional man observes, her chill
dren used TO give candy and apples to
the ~ianitor's children, but now tie Jan.
itor,,s children are giving candy and
those who jeered at the pipe tdream.
ers always said: n rewards become
approximately equal, who Is going to do
the dirty work? Who i, going to shovel
coal and wash dishes?'
And that question does seem to have
a p4-,tN ~ TaGuFnr In d 1 y GCACfA al
by pr. @. r. Hood, who Is chief en-
gireer Of the bureau Of mines. He
says that machinery will do the dirty
Engineering, he admits has already
done . lot for the home; but he says
II can do. 1t has Just begun to in
wade the home. There Is hardly a mo
notonous. disagreeable, mechanical job
that could not he done by machinery
II scientists would put their minds on
the problem Of devising a machine to
do it.
pretty fairly inferred from what he
does say, He points out how much
mechanical power has already done for
the home. 1t began with the introduce
ton Of electricity for lighting. Think
how much time they used TO spend in
fllllg anu lllillll4lIs laillpEt hlp ~
fore that in making candles and rush
lights,
which has reduced the labor Of clean
ing q house by just how many per
cent any agent Tor a vacuum cleaner
company viii tell you. The Washing
machine VAS next, Or. Hood admits
thai he does the washing IN his fam
Iy. He does it all By machinery In a
very short time, and machinery being
his profession he does not consider II
sny loss Of dignity either. He furthee
siiegts that, II the truth were known.
II would be found that thousands of dig
nified fathers and husbands are doing
the family laundry In The same way.
'Tkere Us iut now a great n grow
ing demand for cleaners, washing ma g.
chimes, ironlng-machines and other such
household mechanical a%ppIisnees. 1t
crows out Of the fact that people can
no longer afford to hire servants, And
This demand can not fall 70 result In
4 great develonn en-, Of such appliances,
and IN their application 10 many heuss.
hold tasks now done by hand. Fol- 1t
is the lack ~ demand rather than the
isck of mechs aicsl ingenuity WHICH has
held hack the development Of house.
hold engineering, Inventors had made
perfectly good washing machines, for
example. many years ago. Long be-
fore washing machines came into gen