Norwich bulletin., 1922-07-28
THE TALK ABOUT "A LIVING WAGE"

Written Specially For The Bulletin-) In the jargon Of the times no phrase is more frequently used than "a living wage"
 Strikers for higher pay cry that they have the right to "a living wage newspapers magnify the words in big headlines; social economists split hairs about it: and labor boards gravely dis cuss it
 There Is something In this insistence by some that the world owes them "a living wage" strangely suggestive of that older phrase once used by people too lazy Co work that the world owes us a living
 That was the working theory of Dick Turpin on the one hand, and of Harold Sirimpole on the other. It was once more widely held than it Is now. Prob ably there are very few. at present, who would seriously claim that "the world, meaning thereby you and l and the oth- ir inhabitants Of it who have earned our living by working for it, lowe" any hing in The line Of support to others who have refused to earn even their own salt Similarly, I suspect that quite nh argument could he made about the truth Of the more modern variation that industry owes its workers "a living wage"
 But that is a big field and one quite apart from my purpose this morning. I'm not moved to debate here whether Inc world 'owes" any man a living, or whether industry "owes'' any man a living wage"
 For one excellent reason among oth- s-z. to wit namely. that I don't know what ca living wage" is: that I don't know anyway to find out; and I don't believe anybody else does. either.
 Consider for moment. Taking the words at their face value. "a living wage" would seem to men a wage on which the recipient can live. Assuming that to be the sense intended to be con- veyed. the next question is, How much ls the amount in dollars and cents, per month. per week. per day or per hour? That's the practical question involved. One man who IS getting pretty nearly peak-of-war-time wages asserts fiatly that he couldn't live f those wages should be reduced twelve per cent. An other man as fatly asserts that he can't live on his present wages and must have them advanced at least twelve per cent. A third man, who lsnt getting as high wages as either says nothing but keeps on saving wood and has thus far managed to escape the ro'f of famine.
 The trouble is that when a million nen talk about the cost of living they ncnn at -cast 99s 9s9 different scales of 'livinr' There may possibly be two Fho mean the same thing. But I'll bet a good d0urhuut against a rotten apple That there aren't three.
 
 r,als for million men. how in the name make one weekly or hourly sum fit 9s9,- 339 different requirements7
 Some years ago. during a strike ir the packing works at Omaha, they tried Co find out what was the lowest wage on which a man with a family of four or Ave could live. One man appeared before them and testified under oatf that he and his wife were just as econ cnicaI as human beings can be; tha they never bought anything whiel wasn't absolutely necessary; that the! spent no money for luxuries. etc. Thel also kept careful accounts of incom and outgo. and their books showed tha they simply couidn't- live on the s2,60O ; year to which his pay had been cut
 A. that very time happened to knov of a family of six. father mother, ant four children. who were llvirg on les than $500 a year They had sHil the. needed to eat were warmly clothed il winter and adequately dressed at al tines. sent three Of the children t school and never asked for outside aid either temporary or permanent.
 Just what sort of wage scale woul- you arrange 70 ft. with equal justice these two sample cases2
 
 men on a railroad running out of Ney York city printed and circulated leaf let among the passengers. showing that with the cut proposed in their wages ther would average only s1,Tss a year They anne7led to the passengers fe Fvmnafhv and support in refusing t work for this starvation pittance.
 The latest statistics available for tn rural county in which live are not a complete or definite as might be wished But they seem to show with fair ao -u-arv -hat the average wage Of tn beo1Ia in the county who work for wage -- r7ia~ire is a trihe less than s6e0 vcar-cnIv about one-third the sur which the New Jersey strikers declar to mean starvation to them. There no starvation in this county; no ind ratfous Of any widespread famine: T more people than usual in the almi houses. and those few mostly draw lrorr the class which won't work an arve- would.
 lust how many dollars per annui would you ret as the living wage" fc tu thc7e c5ses2
 leader of the striking miners show considerable heat in a recent reply certain statements by the mine-owner Hr asserts that they. the mine-owner sor't tell the truth about miners wage I've forgotten just what the mine-ow1 CTS gave out as the average pay working coal miners. Whatever 1t wa fri- strike-leader declares that the fl lf-ee were "doctored'' and misleading. 4 a matter of cold fact. he declares tn thrv don't get much if any over s1.2t "a year. and that isn't "a living wage