Evening star., 1922-11-19
UNEMPLOYMENT IS
MENACE IN BRITAIN
More Than Million Now Out
of Work, Latest Fig
ures Show.
BY ALICE NJ. ARCHER.

nv Cable to The Star and Chicago Daily News.
Copyright. 1S2.
LONDON. England. November 1S.-
The number of persons recorded on
October i6. on the live registers OF
the employment exchanges in Great
Britain as wholly unemployed was
I.aao,5o0. Under the Unemployment
insurance acts practically all unem-
ployed work people are registered at
the employment exchanges. and every
detail Of the numbers unemployed ana
tho duration Of their unemployment
can be ascertained.
As regards East London. however.
survey Of unemployment and the con
ditions actually prevailing IN tne
areas of Bethnal Green. Poplar. SnoIe-
ditch and Stepney has just been n'aoe' az G.
and the results have been nublished IN
report by the warden of Toynbee Han.
This report states that the preSen'
condition is quite unpreceoenteo. IN
employment is not only more sewers
than ever before; it is nearly w onn 90
serious as in the bad year OF lsus; c
more than twice as bad as in 1908
and 1910. and more than four times
az bad as in any other year oe1ore
the war. ,,,
Notwithstanding this deploranuie
neonle has not yet become acute:
Trne they are forced to live meageriy.
must stint and deny themselves. out
thanks-in some cases-to SAVINGS pus
by from the generous wages y, .ne
var period. the liberal scales OF al
iowances adopted by boards OF guar
dians and the funds deriyaole from
ths unemployment benefits, they need
not dread or suffer starvation.
Selling Furniture.
Nevertheless health visitors repor.
great deal of selling of furnlture-ommc
thing disappears after another.usuais
TO nay the rent. Stocks OF ciotnlhs nase
a decided tendency to diminish. "A iaase
addition to the number OF Vernlnous Is
dwellings is reported. Overcrowdins is
on the increase, and families OF seven
or eight are found living in one room.
Inquiries made of property owners
covering thousa nris OF tenants, o,uusii' ani
forth responses that were not unanl-
NOUS. Half of them. including tne
agents for some of the largest estates
reported that cases OF Increased arrears
Of rent were few. or that payments were
we'll maintained According to the re.
mainder. however, unemployment had
caused substantial increases IN arrears.
One firm which deals with more than
1000 tenements says arrears OF rent
have increased very slightly. ano ar
very SMALL. This is attributed to the
help received from relief measures
A number of grocerS' stores butchers.
bakers and dairies stated there was
marked decrease in the quantity o!
goods thev sold. This decrease applied
"a ali goods, but was much less marked
in the case of bread than in other
things, particularly luxuries.
Employers in several trades through.
out the district report reductions OF
staff and short time due to bad trade
Trade depression Is attributed to va
riety of causes-the fluctuation OF for
eign exchange rates and the loss OF
foreign markets. Government interfer-
alton and Industrial unrest and foreign
competition are also blamed.
Many Drift to Docks.
Publicans report a considerable di-
minution in the number of their Gus
toners People are said to drink less
and to consume a liquor Of lower
standard than that they purchase In
normal times.
Casual labor in the London docks
and trade depressions." says A. H.
Mess (author of Casual Labor at the
Docks"), "recur in cycles. and every
trade depression hurries along fresh
wave of men to the docks. WheD the
furniture trade Is slack cabinetmak
ers come down to the docks: when the
building trade is idle joiners and 9TH
ers take to the docks; French polish
ers, displaced by woman workers. be-
come dockers:, when there is little do
ing in the cement works on the Med
way men pour into Tilbury. The
docks are the standby for all the un-
fortunates of labor"
Municipal rates in East London
have increased from an average Of 8
shillings pence in the pound (about
$1.90) in 1913 to 19 shillings ($4.75)
in 1922
The report concludes with the SOM
Der warning: Until the resettlement
of Europe takes place Great Britain
is faced with the demand of over a
million work people for work or
maintenance.