Fitzgerald leader. (Fitzgerald, Ga.) 1921-1921, 1921-03-15
HIGH WAGE SCALE MEANS

1NOOE GNl - IL lie Leader
published several weeks ago an
editorial from the Manufacturers
Record, the recognized, spokes-
man for the operators of American
industry and an admitted and ac-
knowledged conservative" The
title of the editorial was Cheap
ness" its theme was that cheap
wages make cheap citizens and
that cheap citizens make cheap
country and a poor country--n
only for labor but for all. China
and India were cited as examples.
The Leader wants to expand a
little more on that theme and
try to bring it home to Fitzgerald
business men if it can. Under the
1870 wage scales approximately
$4,000 a month was paid to A.
B. and A. employees living in Fitz-
gerald. 1t was sometimes a great
deal more than that. Under the
new wage scale which has not
been accepted and we sincerely.
trust will never be imposed, these
same men would have only about
10000 to spend in Fitzgerald.
Fitzgerald merchants and law
yers and bankers and doctors
would have to share among them
loss of $4,000 month, nearly a
quarter of a million dollars year
---more than the estimated value
OF all the tobacco that will be
raised in the Fitzgerald district
this year.
That is a very narrow, very
small, and almost contemplate
way to measure Fitzgerald's in
terests, or any city's interest in
the wage question. When the
question of whether class of men
shall be allowed to live as gentle
men or as near-paupers is con-
cerned, the Leader dislikes to
speak in terms of dollars and
cents to its friends.
However, it is easy to see the
force of this fact if a cheap wage
scale means loss of quarter OF
a million dollars annually to Fitz-
gerald alone, in one industry
alone, cheap wage scale in all
industry will mean loss annual
ly to all American business stu
pendous in its proportions.
Here is another fact that is
easy to see: If the millions
of men who work with their
hands and who eat corn and
pork, and wear cotton clothes,
and smoke tobacco, and wear out
Georgia cowhides in their shoes,
whose wives and children wear
clothes, and eat, have one-fourth
less food and clothes, or else in
sist on getting them one-fourth
cheaper, then the demand for the
tobacco and the cotton, and the
corn and the hogs and the cattle
in Ben Hill County is going to be
one-fourth less. 1t is gazing to sell
one-fourth less. 1t is going to sell
will, therefore, have one-fourth
less money to spend, and the poor,
worried, overworked business
man gets it in the neck coming
and going.
In the above discourse, the
Leader has tried to speak in words
of one syllable and in simple, cas-.
lily understood word pictures and
ideas. We hope to enable the
most untutored reader to under
stand what we mean. If we have
not, it is evidence Of fault of the
exposition and not of the truth of
the point asserted. The Leader
welcomes questions and criticisms
from any reader on any point OF
argument of fact we try to make,
The Leader does not want to per-
suade its readers into any certain
line of thought; it wants to con-
vince its readers that its line OF
thought is right.
GOVERNMENT OWNER
SHIP IS THE ANSWER
If the present scale of wages
were unjust and unreasonable; if
they gave more than the work for
which they pay is worth. the pres
ent controversy would show diff
ferent complexion. If it were
true that American industry could
not AFFORD to pay the present
wage scales the controversy
would show different complex