Evening star., 1928-04-08
MACHINE AS JOB KILLER
ROUSES FEAR AND HOPE
Some Experts See Grave Increase in
Unemployment-Others Confident
of Final Benefits.
BY BEN McKELWAY.


clsSSion over the extent OF
unemployment has been the
blame heaped upon the ma
chine. The premise Is reasonable
enough: One bottle making machine
win take the place of 81 hand blowers,
Presto! F1fty-three hand blowers are
out OF work Multiply the effect Of
this one invention by scores OF In
ventions and a clear picture is present.
ed OF the machines havoc among the
unemployed
But while there is agreement on the
premise. there is no agreement upon the
conclusion One school Of thought rea-
sons that the machine takes the places
of men, throwing these men out OF
work. Another school OF thought ad-
vances the theory that men supplanted
in one Job by machine will md
greater opportunity for getting Work
than ever before because Of the in
creased production brought about by
the machine.
And as soon as one begins testing the
logic of these opposing schools OF
thought, one is brought sharply up
AGAINST the fact that both schools are
indulging in a large amount of inter-
esttng guess work: that neither knows a
great deal about what it is talking about
and that the only reasonable thing TO
CO rs 10 SEk aOAA QGACAAt aAA4 N0~S ava
the 1890 census to tell the whole story
Of what is taking place, That much is
taking place is evident
Labor Secretary'S Views.
A few weeks ago Secretary of Labor
Davis delivered an address in Washing
ton in which he made the following
statements:
.Of late. We have found brand-new
Industrial Worry, the consequences OF
which we did not foresee In our earlier
DAYS of rejoicing ] refer 70 the labor
saving machinery, which. despite Its
wonderful efficiency and its energy-sav-
ing virtues. is beginning 70 load us down
with increasing unemployment.
Some of our JOY over the great inventive
genius of our masters Of mechanics has
been turned 70 grief as we witness
yearly the growing lines Of 1ob-hunt-
ers-men-trained men-aged men Of
extraordinary qualifications. who have
been forced away from their trades and
vucations By labor-savfng machinery.
We were not prepared TO take care OF the
man who was displaced. We were
highly gleeful when our new machine
did the work Of 20 men; but We had no
place for the Ie whom the machine
processes turned out into the open
world. With the necessity Of beginning
HI QNGE AEG&4A Sb14 aAAA SA&NAAA AAA ~AA~N
honest faces.
aTt seems to me that this is a phase
Of industrial proficiency which BIDS 70
exact too heavy q toll IN years 10 come.
unless we get busy and invent new IN
6ustries for the fellow whom the ma
chine shunts aside.
Commerce Expert Talks.
Three days after the Secretary OF
mwhe ~ Hsnl3aHN
Klein. director Of the Bureau Of Foreign
and Domestic Commerce. delivered
speech. also in Washington. IN which
he said:
1T has been frequently pointed out
Of late that the value OF our manu-
factured products increased from 1928
70 1925 (tfe latest available census
fgures5 BY not less than 50 500, 600 900
and meanwhile there was decrease OF
some 900. 900 employees. This brings
ND the element Of the reactions OF one
aspect OF the efficiency program which
has occastOned some unWarranteo
alarm. namely, the alleged prospect OF
unemployment as the. result OF mass
production and the greater application
Of labor-saying machinery. With ref
erence 70 the above figures II Is wen 70
note In the first place that the earlier
census included certain factories which
we're omitted In the second and the re-
duction Of employees Is, therefore, not
strictly represented By the 4o0,oOO
figure. Nevertheless. there can be no
doubt that there has been a very sub
S.antssi decline IN factory employment
during the dehation Of the wartime In
6ltytries and the general introduction
Of siYnplifcation Standardization ano
other phases Of waste elimination. Ac-
fyrdtrg 10 some estimates. the decline
in manufacturing pay rolls since 1919
has approached 100000.
"But did this represent correspond
tng increase In unemployment II Is
well known that improvement IN pro-
cuction methods Of any industry ulti-
nstely rebound 70 the cenent OF tne
general weII-being including employ
rnent. Of the whole community; but
IN the course Of the readjustment some
temporary hardghips may be expert
enced@
Hew Labor IL Absorbed.
DR.. Klein th.n proceeded 70 cite
such figures as these: The NUMBER OF
workers engaged in automobile serVic.
ing and distribution has increased
ESQ 600 during the postwar period: the
newborn radio trade, exclusive OF us
manufacturing aspects, has taken on
125!OO0 more helpers: motion picture
fhezterS and services have counted for
an increased employment OF l25.OoO'
while personnel IL the hotel ano res
ts1Jrsut business has increased more
than half a million since 1913
Nov. Secretary Davis and DT. hlein
we're not engaging IN debate, But
unconsclogSly they hit the 9ign spo4
of the opposing theories. 5ecretAIs
Davis taxing one theory, DIR. Klein an
other. Secretary Davis sees IN the ad"
vent Of iaDoT saving machinery a
ffand-new industrial worry" wnlcn Is
''begiBnlhg 10 load us down NTH m
6FeaElaY unemployment DT. Klein,
however thinks that one aspect Of the
efficiency program has occssi0neo some
unwarranted alarm namely, the aDegeo
prospect of unemployment az the result
Of mass production and the greater ap-
pliestson Of labor wing machinery"
Secretary Davis believes that this y
. phase 0f industrial proficiency which
bids 10 exact TOO heavy toll In the
wears 10 come, unless We get busy and
Invent new industries for TIE fellow
weaorn tie machine shunts aside" but
Or, Klein says taat IL Ii wes known
that improvement IN production meth
edg Of any Industry ultimately win re-
d0und 20 the beneft of the general we'll
being. sncluoing employment. Of the
1ofnmuntty. but Ia ths course Of the re-
adjustment some temporary haTdshiDs
may be exper9need"
Report Made 70 senate.
Eut the theory of the machines ef-
feet on employment became more Ol
Iesg the of1cizl theory when the Sscre'
fary Of Labor Incorporated IN his re-
Doft 10 the Senate on the extent 0f up.
Employment this paragraph from tbs
report Of Etileibert Stewart, commits
s.9faer Of lsbor statistics
1T IL not unreasonable W believe
ens4a3anFgnlA faaFgeraNGe gf an