The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1921-09-14
THIRD OF UNEM-
PLOYED NOT CHIEF
BREAD WINNERS
Secretary of Labor Points Out Also
That Fewer Are Out OF WORK
Now Than in 1914.

WASHINGTON. d. c., Sept. l4.7-Those
who are disturbed over the o,i5o,oVo
UNEMPLOYED of to-day, overlook that IN
1914 there were seven million out OF
work larger percentage of whom
were men and actual bread winners than
in the present unemployed, Secretary
Davis said to-day in statement
Declaring that the country has just
passed through period when every
effort was made to induce women ana
others who had not worked tor wages
or salaries before to work and save
starving Europe" Mr.. Davis said pres
ent unemployment figures include
great numbers of persons upon whose
earnings no one actually is dependent
while we have our unemployed, let
us not forget the l2,00o,000 who are
still at work" the statement said. A
further encouraging fact is that 5000
ooo ooO is now available about the
country in the form of bonds already
issued or appropriated by the state,
county and municipal governments 10,
public welfare. Undoubtedly this VIII
be organized intelligentiy.
Positive signs of business recovery
have been furnished by the eommls-
sioner OF labor statistics, Secretary Ia
Wis declared, adding:
''Some of these signs have an aspect
of their own. | put them out for 9TH
ers to interpret as they please, But
one must have his head very much m
the air, these days, not to notice the
growing prevalence OF silk hosiery and
the use of silks in general
Secretary Davis said in 1920 the
number of wage earners in the United
States reached the total of is or 20
millions, not counting agricultural
workers. This, he declared, would have
the effect of reducing the ratio OF un-
employed to the total Of workers com
pairing 1920 with 1914.
THE statement has been constantly
made, in the news and in the editorial
columns of the newspapers, that the
department of labor has reported o.
1856 900 men as being out of work" he
said. '"rhe department of labor has re-
ported no such thing II did report that
according to the best estimate that
could be made there are 5,735,000 few
er men, women and children on the
payrolIs than there were in March,
1920. There is difference with dis
tinction. IL is very different matter
from saving that there are 5,135i000
men unemployed.
Nothing is to be gained by stick
ing our heads in the sand and ignor-
ing the gravity of the present unem-
ployment situation. Neither do we
profit by distorting the facts and ex-
aggerating the figures estimated. Here
is one salient fact to be kept in mind
probably not more than third Of
these 5,735, 900 are the principal bread
winners of the family"
Discussing efforts to relieve the sit
uation, Secretary Davis said that the
unemployment service of the depart
ment of labor was doing all it could
to place workers in positions. Dur
ing the harvest" he explained, sit sent
between 5000 and 10000 men to the
farms and kept them moving as the
harvest season moved northward.
"Cotton and wooden goods already
show signs of recovery and there is
scarcely a plant in the country turn
ing out silk hosiery that is not work
ing full or overtime. Silk fabrics are
on the move. These things speak for
themselves, and may be speaking the
same language as the figures showing
that more garages than houses have
been built in recent months"