Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-12-09
TYPOTHETAN LAUDS
CARRIERS POLICIES
Editorial Explains Orders of
Public Printer Affect.
ing Apprentices.

An editorial commencing Public
Printer George H. Carter for his deep
and sincere interest" in apprenticeship
tanning Is contained in the current is
sue Of the Typothetan, published weekly
BY the Typothetae Of washington.
Mr.. Carriers order forbidding appren-
Nces enrolled In the Government Print
ing Once school to marry before grad
uation, which has just resulted in the
cropping of five apprentices. has
been the subject Of misinterpretation
and unnecessary comment in the local
; press, the editorial declared. The
same applies, 1t was said, to the order
forbidding the youths to enroll in any
law or medical school while receiving
apprenticeship training.
"The apprenticeship school was es-
tablished by Mr.. Carter for just one
purpose, and that was to provide the
necessary schooling to train journey
men for the various mechanical de-
partments of the Government Printing
once" the Typothetan said. Under
such authority granted by Congress for
the establishment of this school, only
400 apprentices for the "a branches Of
the trade can be in training at any
one time. Under this limitation the
school can graduate only about so jour-
neymen a year, or about one-ffth OF
the total number usually required. The
burden of training the balance Of the
journeymen necessarily has been borne
to a large extent by the commercial
printing industry of Washington.
Training Cost Estimated.
Contrary to newspaper statements,
when an apprentice is appointed to the
school. his services are not utilized on
productive work. Well equipped school
rooms under competent instructors
have been provided for the apprentices
IN the new addition to the @. P. o., and
It Is estimated that 1t costs the Gov
eminent about 5000 to train an ap-
prentice.
eff the public printer denied the stu
dents the right to supplement the edu-
cation which they receive at the school
with other study. there would be cause
for criticism, but, on the contrary, the
public printer has not only encouraged
academic study, but in many instances
has insisted upon It,
Each year there has been enrolled in
cur classes number Of boys from the
q. p. o. Many others are enrolled IN
hight schools studying grammar, Ian
guageS, accounting and other subjects
which will be of benefit to them in the
craft. It is obvious, however, that when
an apprentice selects q professional
course of study in either law or medi-
cine, he does so with the intention of
making that profession his life work If
possible.
Assumes Obligation.
1.-THE compensation for apprentices
ct the G. p. o. has purposely been set
at more than the established rate III
the commercial industry to enable ap-
prenticeS from other States to take the
training and live in reasonable man
IN Nxynnlne0Ynn eifrrOaiFdfTnc WThAY1
the students accepts the appointment
and avails himself of the training pro-
Tded at governmental expense, he as
sumes the obligation of fitting himself
for the work intended. When the ac-
prentice accepts the appointment merely
as means of securing the necessary
money to obtain education to fit him
{ for some other work or profession, such
rs law or medicine, he obtains the
money under false pretenses. At the
same time, because of the limitation on
the number of apprentices which can
be trained, he Is depriving some other
boy that does want to make the graphic
arts his life work Of the opportunity for
such training
$50 far as marriage Is concerned, it
V obviously impossible for an appren-
tice to support family on the compen-
sation which he receives, even though
IL is more than the established com
mercial rate. Some of the apprentices
have learned this TO their sorrow after
they have taken one or more years of
training. with the result that after
marriage they have had to give up their
training and find more lucrative EN-
ployment. Thus not only does the APP
prentice suffer, but the Government
loses the investment which IL has made
In that boy to provide the necessary
training.
THE @. p. o. school Is as much a
Government training school as West
Point, Annapolis or similar institutions.
at these schools marriage Is not per-
mttted before graduation nor Is the
student permitted TO take q program
Of study not in keeping with his
training
THE public printer is to be COM
mended for the deep and sincere inter-
est which he has taken in apprentice
ship training and it is to be hoped that
Congress will eventually give him the
authority necessary to enable him to
train all Of the journeymen necessary
for additions and requirements In the
mechanical personnel of the G. p. o."