Evening star., 1923-08-07

america nave risen from rail sDiitters
ana farmers rather than from castled
ancestry.
1t may have been only a coinci-
dence that the first official report
made TO President Coolidge came from
the Department of Labor. giving as
surance that labor was tranquil and
that there would be no coal strike II
is generally said that President Cool
idge owes his ascendancy to the rank
or Vice President to his action against
a strlke-the Boston police-and
therefore labor is supposed to be in
| rear or his attitude now concerning
its organized efforts. President Com
pers was an early caller to assure the
PRESIDENT of the support of the Amer
lean Federation of Labor in all that
makes for the good of the nation and
its people.
Sir Conan Doyle announces that he
has no time now to write fiction. My
only concern" he adds, "is advancing
the principles of spiritualism." There
are folks who would construe the two
statements as self-contradictory. Sir
Conan gave promise of becoming a
hrst-claSs tictionist. Is he not keep
ing his promise? Why do churches
'hoot," as he charges. when he is not
Scotch? Hoot. mon. will We tell why?
** x X
The prophets Of pessimism are prone
! to sigh when they look at the building
activities all over the country, and
to say they will not buy a home until
prices drop. OF course. they assume
that present prices being abnormal
and the present building craze, being
also abnormal and much "overdone
| there is going to be an early reaction
and slump. so they will wait and take
advantage of the fall in costs.
1t was shown a few days ago, by a
report from the Department of Com
merCe. that in spite of the alleged
building boom the new homes built in
the last five years, since the armi-
stice, are not equal to the number of
| families of the increased population
Builders have not begun to make any
headway in the home shortage due to
suspension of operations during the
war.
Reports of the lumber interests reach
ing the National Lumber Manufacture
ers' Association last week. from 399 of
the largest sawmills in the country,
show that the lumber movement during
| the preceding week was "considera bly,
larger than for the corresponding week
of 1922
There were Zoo mills DeiOnglng TO the
Southern Pine and the West Coast
Lumbermen's associations which re-
ported their untitled orders to be 54S,-
| &02, 500 feet
Other building materials are reported
equally active. Wages of building me-
chanics show not the slightest tend
ency to reduce, but, on the contrary,
| they are being pushed upward in many
places. Skilled mechanics are demand
ing the privilege Of working overtime,
that they may earn in excess of $100
week! This does not prove an indi-
cation of an early slump in the cost of
homes. nor in the need for more homes
to be built.
Among the causes for the building de-
| mand. aside from the effect Of the war.
| is the outspreading of suburban re-
gions, made possible by the automobile.
This relieves the congested downtown
/ parts of cities, but the increasing pop
ulation has prevented general appre-
citation of that relief.
Another influence is the trend of the
rural population to the cities. The
cities are growing out OF proportion to
! the entire country.
A third inf1uence-affecting wages-is
that the farmers coming to the cities
are not skilled builders or other skilled
| mechanics. hence they do not swell the
supply of carpenters, bricklayers,
| plumbers, etc. On the other hand, there
| has been loss to the ranks of builders
| through the high wages OF mechanics
on automobiles. Also the unions have
put such restrictions on apprentices
| that mechanics are becoming scarce
| through natural causes.
The man who continues to rent, while
1, waiting for the cost of homes to come
! back to pre-war figures, may be priv
\ ileged to take one more guess; he will
| have time to think 1t over, according
| to many who are close to the building
| situation.
icopyrasht. 1873. by z. Y~ coiiias-k