LEVEL WAGE RATE
Why Trade Unions Fix a Mini
mum Pay Scale.
BEST FOR ALL CONCERNED.
Organized Labor Holds That the Em
ployer May Pay More Than the Mini
mum, but Not Less A Much Dis
cussed Question Answered.
The tricky employing class opponent
of the trade union is known t a rough
his talk after he has spoken ten words
on the subject of unionism. He has
always "an open mind;" he wishes
"to speak candidly;" he has "no class
prejudices." This run of professions,
however, he is sure to follow with a
"but." and the "but" marks his get
ting ready to fire off at you a law
yer's trip you up query. He has a
mental magazine stocked with about
six "buts" on the labor problem; noth
ing else, for he has no desire to weigh
evidence and reach the truth. He has
heard every one of his "buts" explain
ed away a store of times, yet he still
uses them when he can. Once In
awhile he finds a labor sympathizer
who is not prepared offhand to put
the labor side to one of his "buts"
briefly and clearly, and in such a
case, seizing his advantage, he has
trade unionism vanquished in two
minutes.
Here's a favorite "but" of this can
ny class of objectors; "But 1 never
could understand why the labor lead
ers insist on their followers getting
equal pay for unequal work. They
reduce their best men to the level of
their worst"
That's a tangle of tortuous state
ments, tied up tight with malice pre
pense. It forms somewhit of a puz
zle for the trade union novice to undo.
But its knots are made up of three
fallacies, each of which, taken sep
arately, easily becomes plain:
First. There are no "labor leaders"
In the sense employed in the asser
tion. Matters of primary weight In
the policy of the union movement are
decided by the membership, demo
cratically organized, deliberations free
to all and the right of balloting equal.
Union officials are spokesmen or ad
ministrators, and, while through ex
perience they may become advisers,
they are possessed only of powers im
parted to them by their fellow mem
bers. Opponents speak of "labor lead
ers" as. if some divine right or des
potic method or sorcerer's wand had
conferred on the few in the union the
magic art of dictating to the many.
As a fact, . responsibility as a union
official is assumed at the price of dic
tation from the ranks, sometimes ac
companied with unjust criticism, mis
understandings, jealousies and jarring
reminders of the election day to come.
Second. How is it that no objec
tions to working at a uniform mini
mum wage scale come from "the bet
ter qualified" in a union defending
their supposed interests against "the
less qualified?" In every union the
scale is open to debate by all the mem
bers. In the international unions a
general vote on any question may be
asked on petition by a small minority,
yet the proposition to abolish the ir
reducible minimum of the scale never
comes up. Why? There's a poser for
the "but" man. If the employing
class objectors' opposition on this
point that an Injury is done to the
best workers is grounded on any in
justice, intelligent wage earners suf
fering under it might be expected to
bring It up some time, somewhere, for
adjustment. Men (and jinion menes-
peclally) are prone 'to cry out against
injustice. The reply is that trade un
ionists have time without number con
sidered this question and have reached
a common determination This is that
employers may pay more than a fixed
minimum rate, but shall pay no less.
The employers respond by usually pay
ing an equal rate to all. They see no
Injustice whatever in taking their ad
vantage of cutting down all their em
ployees to the lowest rate which any
will accept. Strange It is that so few
of them see that justice to "the better
qualified" might bring the latter vol
untary offerings from their employers
above the scale in proportion to merits!
That's the other side of the shield.'
The "but" gag worker rarely sees it
so he pretends.
Third. Why a union Irreducible min
imum? Several good answers are to
be given. Here is one now: No em
ployee is paid according to the vol
ume or, value of his individual output.
He is paid according to the price which
a competitor workman in his occupa
tion will consent to work for to get his
job. In the absence of a trade union
employers play off the bids of one man
or set of men seeking work against
another, down to the lowest level pos
slble the social cost of qualifying an
employee considered. The union, on
the other band, restricts this competi
tlon, thereby stiffening the "labor mar
ket" and establishing an enhanced
value for every employee. The union
man therefore generally owes his rate
of wages in live industries to the un
ion and not to his Individual product:
hence "the better qualified" employee,
knowing this fact, is well satisfied to
take even the union minimum rate
rather than risk the variable competi
tive rates under nonunlonism. Under
these, he is fully aware, his pay envel
ope would soon- tell him a less Joyful
tale than when on Saturday night it
now brings him the level union scale
plus manifold forms of the square
deal in conditions of work usually un
known to the nonunionlst.
Have you your answer, honest Mr
"But?" Samuel Gompers In American
Federationist.
A LONG NEW
YEAR CALL
A Story of New Amsterdam
By F. A. MITCHELL
Copyright, 1910, by American Press
Association.
New Year's day, or the custom of
making calls, was brought from Hol
land. Calling on that day was dis
continued a generation ago, and if old
Father Knickerbocker should come
back on Jan, 1 he wouldn't know what
to think.
The housewife was accustomed
once a week to open her parlor, scrub
it, sweep it, dust it and, having re
moved every speck of dirt, shut it up,
lock it, put away the key and leave
it till the next cleaning day, when the
process was renewed.
Now, there lived in New Amsterdam
a Dutchman of the name of Heinrich
Van Olden, whose daughter, Annake,
was the pride of his heart. She was a
plump maiden of some eighteen sum
mers, looking for all the world in her
dozen petticoats like a tea bell, her bust
forming the handle and all below the
waist the ringing part. Her mother
was a frugal woman who, having mar
ried a poor man, found herself obliged
to seek a home in a new country in
stead of living in luxury in an old
one. Consequently she arranged a
match between her daughter and Pe
ter Van Vrankin, .who was thirty-six,
ifhe was a day'and far tod did for a
maiden only half his age. "For," the
girl reasoned, "when I am as old as
he is now he will twice my age,
or seventy-two, and when I am seventy-two
he will be a hundred and
forty-four."
Frau Van Olden was not sufficient
ly bright to contravert this mathemat
ical demonstration, but she insisted on
the match all the same, declaring that
It would be an advantage, since Van
Vrankin would likely die long before
his wife, leaving her his property and
years of independence.
The last New Year's day before the
English relieved the New Amsterdam
Dutchman from governing themselves
and changed the name of the town to
New York was being celebrated 8.3
usual. Every housewife's parlor was
open to the friends of the family, and
many bottles of Scheidam schnapps
were set up for callers.
Well, that night, after every Dutch
man in New Amsterdam had called on
every Dutchwoman living under the
shadow of the fort, Frau Ten Eyck
was greatly worried because her son
Hellegar didn't come home. Though
at 9 o'clock every light in the town
had been put out, the young man had
not turned up. His father went out
to ring the fire bell, and when those
Bleepy watchmen who responded came,
each with his bucket, Ten Eyck told
them that his son was missing and he
feared the youngster had fallen in the
pond where the Tombs now stands
or been spirited away by some Indians
who had been drinking schnapps dur
ing the day on the bowling green.
Every Dutchman said ".Tah!" an
went back to bed.
For a week the people of New Am
sterdam hunted high and low for young
Ten Byck. The pond was dragged,
the wood beyond that wall which gave
Its name to the financial center of
America was searched, and tho slips on
the East and Hudson rivers were
watched with the expectation' that the
body might rise. But no Heilegar Ten
Eyck appeared.
One week from New Year's day Frau
Van Olden unlocked the door of her
parlor and, With broom, brush and
luster, entered it for the purpose of
giving It the periodical cleaning. Over
the banister on the floor above her
daugter, Annake, was looking down
upon her anxiously. The housewife
was engaged in raising as large a
cyclone of dust as possible. Her
daughter, listening to the swish of her
broom and the rolling of the furniture
as it was moved to uncover the dirt
heard her mother give a shriek.
The cry acted as a spur on the girl,
who ran down the stairs and into the
parlor. The missing Heilegar Ten
Eyck was crawling out from under a
sofa, while the housewife stood, broom
in hand, regarding him with infinite
surprise.
"Are you living ot dead?" asked
Frau Van Olden.
The young man looked piteously at
Annake.
"Mother," said the girl, "Heilegar
was calling here on New Year's even
ing. Just before 9 o'clock I left him
to go for something I wished to give
him, and while I was gone you en
tered" "I hid behind the Sofa," interrupted
the young man. "You came in, blew
out the candles and, going out, locked
the door. I have been here ever since."
"Why didn't you knock?" asked the
frau. "How have you lived here a
week without food?"
"I didn't knock, fearing to start a
scandal, and Annake has let food down
the chimney from the roof."
"Really, mother," put in the girl,
"we didn't know what to do, so we
rmf off doing anything till now
"""Well," said the mother, ou two
must be married at once. Don't stir
from here till the dominie comes."
The dominie came, and the twain
were made one. Then the father and
the mother of the groom were sum
moned, and after they had wept over
their son they were informed of the
reasons for his disappearance.
This was the nearest to a scandal
New Amsterdam ever came.
To Plan Eastern Naval Base.
Chief Constructor Washington Lee
Capps, IT. S. N., who has been ordered
to the Philippines on a mission of
great importance to the navy, will
make a careful examination of tho
navy yard at Cavite, Manila harbor,
and the naval station at Olongapo, on
Subig bay.
Part of the general scheme of tho
naval department In the Pacific is to
create an American Gibraltar at Pearl
harbor, Hawaii, which involves the
abandonment of the idea of establish
ing a powerful naval base in the Phil
ippines and converting the station at
Olongapo into a mere repair depot
WASHINGTON Ii. CAPPS.
There Is not water enough at Cavite
to enable heavy warships to approach
the navy yard there, and it is doubt
ful if Olongapo can be made impreg
nable. Still, in view of the necessity of
making more or less repairs to tho
American fleet which must be main
tained in the orient Olongapo will be
put in condition.
Hear Admiral Capps is a native of
Virginia and is forty-six years old.
He was appointed cadet engineer in
the navy in 1S80 and reached the rank
of naval constructor in 1895. Since
1903 he has been chief constructor of
the navy and chief of the bureau of
construction and repair, with rank o
tear admiral.
Evil in Neglected Legislation.
In Belgium, where education is not
compulsory, 21 per cent, of the work
ing people over ten years of age can
neither read nor writ.
A MyBtery.
We sometimes wonder how people
who do not drink sassafras tea are
ever able to find out when spring
comes.
