Evening star., 1923-02-06
CAPITAL KEYNOTES
BY PAUL r.. COLLINS.

In the north during midwinter.~H Here
| is what the committee on labor OF tho
Associated General ContractDrs OF
America reported day or two ago.
Young men are not learning ten
trades important TO building: These
trades are: Strurtural iron. workers.
plumbing, carpenters. pain ters, brick
masons, roofers, plastercrs, peper
hangers, building laborers and stone
cutters. =
with the exception of tho first three.
there were actually fewer in 1870
than in 1910"
This report Is based on census sta
tistics, not the dictum of Interested
advocates. The report states the cause
of the falling Off to be that American
young men are unwilling today. 10
learn mechanical trades, and immi
grafton of mechanics has been choked
off. In view of the great stimulus To
building operations now, foIowinE
the suspension during the war, TINS
shortage of labor. as alleged. results
IN sxtravagant and almost probitg4s
tive wages. ranging from. S12a dap for
some trades to double that, and moro
for others.
Once there was a plan to lower tho
tariff. on imports by horizontal re-
duction of certain nat percentage
1t was not final adjustment, but 1t
was start in the right direction, ac-
cording to the free traders in Con-
gress. Why not try a horizontal re-
ductfon" now on plastering and other
work, with an agreement that it shall
apply on everything? That will leave
the proportions OF values between
food costs and plastering just the same
as now. A plasterer still would wort
one day and get as much a farn1er
averages after he has cultivated three
! acres all season. That means a field
about equal to two average city
blocks-say 203 feet wide and 609 fcet
long.
/: x i
In q recent speech on the Lenroot.
Anderson rural credit bill Senatoi;
! McCumber told of the returns of Il
32o-acre farm in North Dakota. The
farm belongs to one of the best farm
ers In the state: he got fine crop.
and, after reserving seed for the mex;
year. his crop sold for s1,562.95; the
| cost Of producing 1t was S1.405.73. An
excellent crop! That gave the farmer
$1,000 to live on and support his FAM
lily year. An Industrious, intellb-
gent farmer, with favorable weather.
producing a bumper CROP or at
least good yield" The farmers
profits for the year, not counting in
terest on the capital. amounted 70
about two weeks wages for city
mechanic. How long will food pro-,
ductton upon American acres continue
under such conditions? And when
| farmers cease to produce, what will
| be the cost of food in cities?
x x X
The Senate passed the rural credit
bill by a unanimous vote. Good-so
| far as It goes. But what good docs
credit do farmer who, even under
| favorable conditions. upon well
| titled farm of half a section, earns
only $3.50 a year on which to suppor-
a family?
| While that farmer received unIs
| $3.50 reward for his years labor, The
railroads which carried his crop to
market got S397.88, and his taxes [ir
| that state which has been suciaHz,d
| for eight years. amounted to s462.
, Initiation OF credits is not SOUND
prosperity, if that IS all that is done
to help agriculture. 1t is no suunder
than fiat money or any mflder form
of inflated money, unleSs-With creaJts
comes reform Of conditions {.
| !; * x x =
| Senator Capper, who is one Of the.
best informed agriculturalists Of
America, reports that in Kansas =
ton of apples brings the farmer $t5,
and the railroad -hauls it TO mark"t
for SIS. A ton of potatoes brings the
| farmer $40 and the railroad SO. The
! farmer gets 45.5 per cent and tn
railroad 545 of the wholesale pric"
| of farm products. The consumer, Of
| course, pays all the added profits OF
the handlers, wholesale and retail.
x * X
The railroads claim they cannot re
duce freights because of high- wages
Somewhere. something must give way
or other means of transportation ana
other means of market handling will
be substituted, Motor trucks and CO.
operative associations must come.