Omaha daily bee., 1921-11-03
In
Nebraska Is Not
Serious Problem
Reports Of Mayors in Middle
West to Jobless Conference
Show Few Men Unable
To Work.
BY z. c. SNYDER.
Washington Correspondents Of the omshs

lee.
Washington, Nov. There are
comparatively few men who need
work and cannot find it in Kansas,
Missouri and Nebraska. according TO
the reports sent by the mayors OF
the largest cities to the presidents
conference on unemployment. Col.
Arthur Woods, former police COM
missioner OF New York City, is chair
man of the committee on community.
civic and permanent measures, and
at the request of Secretary Hoover,
chairman OF the conference, is in
correspondence with mayors OF cities
of more than $4,000 inhabitants, to
learn the status Of their unemploy-
ment, and to inform them Of some
emergency measures that are being
applied in certain municipalities.
Some OF these relief measures,
Colonel Woods stated today, are
"Spruce-up campaigns"--as applied
to the home, the office and the mu-
nicipality-additional work on the
street-cleaning departments and the
hastened construction OF necessary
public works.
Drive Gains Important.
Reports gathered by the committee,
from many cities, indicate that in.
dividuals, organizations and mu-
nicipal bodies are waking up to the
national emergency and that the un-
employment drive is gaining impetus,
it was stated. Mayors fr, all cities
state that they can care for their
own unemployed. but cannot take
care of fioaters from other cities.
Nebraska is not suffering seriously
from unemployment, Governor SAM
uel r. McKelvie has informed the
conference. There seems to be
work for almost everyone who cares
to work at living wage he says
Some building is being done in the
state and limited amount of public
improvements will be carried ON this
winter. ~
This is Nebraska's plan to pro-
vide winter employment for agricul-
tural labor. Governor McKelvie re-
ports as follows: "We have a very
large corn crop in this state and
through the various agencies we are
directing as many as care for this
kind of work to places where they
may find employment. 49,.
Lincoln Unemployed Few.
Lincoln, Neb., has one of the
smallest percentages of unemploy-
ment OF any city in the country.
The United States Department OF
Labor statistics for September l
gave only AIS without work in the
city of s4,o48--a percentage of only
CO unemployment. Frank c. Zeh-
rung, mayor OF Lincoln, reports that
there is no urgent need for relief at
present, and in his opinion, there. is
not likely to be. Many laborers may
have to submit to wage cuts, he said,
which will necessitate the proper
tionate cutting of llixuries in the
homes, but unless there is change
in conditions, he does not foresee
any actual suffering.
Lincoln has no slums, and no very
poor people, and not many factory
workers, he asserts, and all the resi-
dents are considered rather prosper
ous." The Chamber Of Commerce,
with its membership of 1000, has
held a meeting to discuss the gen.
eral unemployment situation, and is
ready to take any steps that may be
necessary if an emergency arises in
Lincoln.
Does Much Building,
An extensive building program,
both of public structures and private,
is one OF the contributing causes to
Lincoln's high status of employment,
Mayor Zehrung reports. These build