Evening star., 1938-03-06
WAGES SINCE 1929

"Well, there were lots of other fac
tors" the Royalist began.
"Ah hah, ah, hah!" his antagonist in
terrupted to crow. That's exactly what
I'm saying about the situation now There
are always lots of other factors. Some
times you can raise wages without raising
purchasing power Some times you can
lower wages without lowering purchasing
power. What counts Is not absolute, but
real purchasing power"
Heaven help us, now you're going of
into this hifalutin economic slang again!
No wonder nobody can force any common
sense into New Deal head, short of a
surgical operation. You fellows use Ian
guage that doesn't mean anything to a
practical man."
What Is Real Purchasing Power
Nope, E. r., real purchasing power is as
practical as can be. Listen. Suppose you
raise mans wages 10 per cent and raise
the price Of what he buys only per cent.
Then you've increased his power to buy.
But suppose you raise his wages 10 per cent
and raise buying costs Is per cent Then
he buys less, even if his wages have
gone up
Just now the question is lowering wages,
not raising EN-"
"All right" the New Dealer said, in his
exposition of real" purchasing power.
Suppose you cut him 10 per cent, and cut
the costs OF what he buys IS per cent.
Then he buys more, even if his wages have
gone down. 1t isn't what he gets that
counts It's how much he buys with what
he gets"
The Economic Royalist pondered this for
several moments. "All right: how about
this. them" he demanded Secretary Of
Commerce Roper, he says labor got
bigger slice of the national income in 1897
than ever before. Doesn't that mean wages
went up more'n prices?"
'Well, maybe it might mean that" con-
fessed the New Dealer But was labor's
share in 1887 much higher than in 1882"
Well no, only or per cent higher"
the other had to confess.
"A little increase like that in labor's
share in the national income-shucks, YOU
know as well as do, E. r. that wasn't
enough to set of the avalanche last fall
Why, production fell off faster than at
any time in history-even Eastern after
the stock market crash in 1929! And
there's another point"
Manufacturing Goods and Alibis.
Another New Deal alibi for the depres-
sion, you mean. If we were only manu.
featuring goods as fast as you crackpots
were manufacturing alibis, this depression
would be over before tomorrow noon"
No, this isn't an alibi; this is a fact"
the New Dealer protested. Its Just that a
great many wage-earners are on piece work.
The only way they raised their wages was
producing more. You don't object to seeing
labor paid more if it turns out more, do
you?"
NO. what we object to- the Economic
Royalist complained, lis having to pay
labor more when it doesn't produce any
more-maybe even less"
And what we object to-" the New Dealer
complained in his turn, sis any movement
now to pay labor less while 1t produces as
much-maybe even more"
We'll, I'll admit this much. Maybe
once in while-here and there-prices
went up too much more than wages"
And I'll admit maybe once in a while
here and there-wages went up too much
more than prices"
The devil of it," commented the Eco
nomic Royalist 'is to determine when, how
and where each of us is right. I guess
there's no easy, simple way out. Wages
are pretty darned complicated"
It'll agree to that much" said his friend.
ana the two adjourned on this first piece
OF common meeting ground they had man.
aged to find in many weeks
(Copyrisht, 1881