The San Francisco call. [volume], December 06, 1903, Image 12

About The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913

Image provided by: University of California, Riverside; Riverside, CA

                
THE SUNDAY, CALTj.
STRIKING FACTS ABOUT
STRIKING THINGS
BJMUUAMg>.g!giK>J| HE following com
| 2BEE2£&i£3 parlson only attempts
i< £? SUi *° eal w ' tn wages In
b V^j S^3 *^e or^inary accept-
B jOH? a.nce of the term — the
r» r?^ "W^i money received In
pl^^r?^^ payment for labor. It
is, however, evident.
that to examine thoroughly the rewards
of labor In different countries and to
compare them, many other factors.
such as cost of living, would, call for
consideration. For, as Adam Smith
says ("Wealth of Nations," Bk. I.,
Chap. V.) "the real wa?es of labor may be said to consist of the auantlty of
the necessaries and conveniences of life that are given for It; its nominal wages
In the quantity of money. The laborer Is rich or poor, is well or ill rewarded. In
proportion to real, not the nominal, wages of his labor." A comparison of
"real" wages would be an extremely difllcult. if not an impossible task The
best practicable substitute consists of an account of money wages, with the
reservation that the "real" wages may be, either greater or less than the
"money" wages— greater where the cost of living is low. less where this is
high. •
Even with reference to money wages it is impossible to give as exact a
comparison, when dealing with large classes In different countries, as v. hen
dealing with smaller classes or with individuals in the same country I sha
endeavor to present a fairly correct picture of the conditions which prevail
by first giving an estimate of the general average of wages in the three
countries in -whirh the conditions are most Interesting, viz.: America. Kng
land and Germany, and then by giving in more detail particulars of wages
In tucclal branches of Industry in several countries.
Let us take America first. An offlclal estimate (the Wage -Census) gives
J4S4 per year (3Ss 9d per week) as the general average of wages for the' whole
of the States. In the slave States, where the competition of cheap black la
bor is felt, the average runs from $211. to $395 per year (16s lid to 31s 6d per
week) In "the States around New York the general average is $493 per year
(29s 6d per week). I have made an estimate from the returns relating to
255 000 workers in the State of Massachusetts (published by the Massachu
setts Bureau of Statistics of Labor) and obtain an average of 42s 6d per
week, or a little more than the average above given. I do not know of any
offlcfal general average for this country, but Charles Booth gives particulars
of the wages of 75.000 workers in various trades in- London, and their average
is approximately 31s 9d per week.
In Germany particulars are recorded as to the wages of 10,000 employes
In various trades in Baden, and here the average is iss <a per wmk. tsroaq
averages such as these are, of course, liable to. certain errors, but probably
they are sufficiently accurate to give a fairly correct Impression of the gen
eral level of money wages fn the three countries. .
The employes have been. divided Into classes according to the amount of
their wages, those receiving under 20s per week forming one class, from 20s
to 25s the next class, and so on. The vertical height of each column repre
sents the number in each class out of a hundred work people. In England
it will be observed there Is a very large group in the classes ranging from
20s to 35s per week, and the numbers fall off rapidly above and below these
limits. Almost half the workers are In the two classes which earn from 23s
to 35s per week.
In America there is much more variety in the Incidence of wapes, and
the population Is much more evenly divided among the various classes. It is
Interesting to note that the proportion earning less than 2Qa a week Is near
ly twice as large as It is In this country. At the other extreme the figures
are more favorable to America; as ths number of people there v who earn
more than 45s per week is five times as great as It is here.
The diagram does not throw a very favorable light on the ; state of
wages in Germany. More, than half the wage earners appear to receive
less than 20s a week,, while the number of those receiving more than 30s a
week Is only 7 per cent., and, does not admit easily of a further division
Into classes. Indeed, in, order to get a complete picture of German wages
It Is necessary to subdivide further the group of wage earners receiving less
that 20s *a week. When' this Is done it is found that 12 per cent receive
less that 12s a week, 14 per cent receive from 12s to 15s a week and 20 per,
cent receive from 15s to 18sja week.
The mos't Important industry in every country is agriculture and on the
whole it is one of the worst paid. The following figures give an idea of the
rate of. pay given to agricultural laborers in various parts of the world.
In England the general average of wages of ordinary agricultural labor
ers is 17s a week .without* board. There are considerable variation* In dif
ferent parts of the co'untry; the rate being highest as a rule In the neigh
borhood of coal mines and, In other industrial centers. The highest rate ia
found in Durham and Is 20s 9d a week; the lowest. In Suffolk, is 14s 5d.
In America the general average is 17s lid a weekend the rate varies from
£1 IOs 2d in Washington to 12s in South Carolina. The lowest rate of ag
ricultural wages in the States is thus lower than the lowest In this coun-
On the Continent the wages of agricultural laborers are much lower than
the rates given above. For instance. In France the average Is 12s a week,
Dr .mark 9s to 10s, Belgium 9s Gd and in Hungary only 6s 3d. On the other
hand, in the colonies the average rates are higher than' either In .this coun
try or in the States. For instance, In Canada the general average Is 21s,
ivhiia thin is pvwpripri \n Manitoba and British Columbia. In the older col-
onles of Australia the average runs
from _10s to 20s a week with board, and
In Western Australia reaches 60s a
week, but this does not include board.
The mining industries show very
considerable variations. In coal mines
the following are average wages: -
s. d. s. d.
Austria ..... 10 0 to 14 0 per week
Belgium .... 15 fi to 21 0 per week
France 16 8 to 25 0 per week
Prussia 18 6 to 24 0 per week
In each of these cases the lower fig
ure refers to the wages of "putters"
and "trammers," while the higher
one refera-to those actually working at v .;• T?neland the
cutting the coal. In Belgium the miner., day is W hour.. In England the
general average rate of wages in coal and Iron mines Is Ms M per *eeK.
. but of course there are wide variations above and below this «*"«•
The metal trades produce .high rates of wages in America and to a less
fra y de. and theWng wage, are obtained
Si :•:•••••• "* >™ SB5SE
¦SSSce :::::::::::...... 2y<d P ernour. ™ per hour.
I rermany per hour. S%d per hour.
Germany jw 15Hd por nour ,
England"""" V.V.'.V.V.'.V. . . . . >• 8Vid per hour. 8V4d per ho % ur.
S^mewhaSlmuiV rates are found in the bolldin* trades: F° r *" m »£
bricklayers' wages are as follows: Belgium. 3d per , hou ;: u . D « nm 2^ E Jl:
¦ i?uld be necessary to flnd out the cost of living in ™*™£Z™£ ,£
tlmate the surplus left out of the wa^es when the ordinary expenses of life
had beet, provided for. This It is impoiilble to do with any degree of accu
racy, and we have to be content with the generally accepted conclusion
that in the United States the cost of living Is considerably h»*her than In
•England, especially ns it affects clothing, coal and rent, while in- continental
countries it is probably not much lower.
State Library at Sacramento. Legislation was soon procured which gave
the trustees ample authority; not onlyto send out traveling libraries, but also
conferred the long-desired right to make the library otherwise helpful to the
State. 0:;^'' "•/.• ¦.¦*.'¦_
The State Library, established in 1850. has by the generous appropria
tions made for its increase become one _of the largest and best selected
State libraries In the Unlted^States; in fact, It Is surpassed. only by the State
Library of New York. :'But*during. the half century; of Its existence Us
functions have been, limitedfsolely to those, of a reference library, save
that a few State officials could borrow books for y : short periods. The time
was ripe for a change.^^ when the great; storehouse" of '120,000 volumes of his-,
tory, art, literature and law— -and; all other departments of knowledge
should become beneficial, to : Its owners— the people of California.. The, first
liberal measure of recent adoption to be described Is that of ' individual
loans outside of Sacramento.. Responsible Individuals and all approved In
stitutions throughout the State may now borrow— perferably through their
local library or the/school authorities— any volume which In the Judgment
of the State Librarian can be spared, or which Is not of such rarity a» to
forbid loaning. 'Such books may be borrowed for two weeks, subject ordi
narily to renewal for the same length of time.- The sole conditions are good
care of the' books and payment of all express charges.
Special stress Is laid by the State Library upon the value of this work,
and no paina will be'spared to accommodate all applicants, regardless of
their, location., in the State., Teachers and women's clubs will find this
boon to t>#'of the highest vaiue in thalr studies.
... •— ;' ' ? * *
No two" States have exactly the same educational problems. Hence, be
fore undertaking the dispatch of traveling libraries, the State library
trustees determined to send State Librarian James L. Glllls on an exten
sive tour of investigation and comparison of the traveling library systems
in the East, bo that the best features of their work might be Incorporated.
If desirable, in our own. During his month's absence Mr. Gillis visited
many State and public' libraries, was' everywhere received with special
courtesy, had every facility for -Information opened to him. with promise
of subsequent co-operation.* His report to the trustees indicates that he
was profoundly Impressed with the value of the work as a 'whole and hear
tily believes in Its widespread adoption In California.
TtteHrustees Immediately voted to send out fifty traveling 'libraries of
fifty volumes each as early as possible and they are now in process of
preparation. These 2500 selected volumes' have been purchased in the East
and will form the basis of a duplicate department of the State library, for
It has never been contemplated— as has been erroneously supposed— to de
plete the existing collections on the shelves by large drafts on them for
traveling library purposes.
The rules governing the issue of traveling libraries are very simple.
They will be loaned to any community now without a public library.
Five resident taxpayers must organize as a local library association and
must pay *3 In advance for transportation of the library both ways. Other
details may be learned by correspondence addressed to the traveling li
brary department of the State library. %
• - • -V.* ji
Inevltabiy 1 the question arises, will this library extension work be a
success? , Before seeking an answer, let us look fit some of the prevailing
conditions. It would seem as if It were supremely appropriate that the
traveling library should have a permanent home among us because of the
peculiar topography of the State. The vast areas and the great mountain
ranges of California ordain the . existence of hundreds of scattered hamlets
and villages that will never be able to support a local library. For that
very reason the State should reach out its helping hand and say to the boy
and girl, the lonely housekeeper and the telling man. "You shall not, be
cause of your Isolation, be deprived of the mental life and power which
comes through the reading of good books; It Is your birthright." Such read-
Ing is part of the education which every State in. this age of the world
should give to those of its youth and adults who desire it. No argument
is needed that without such knowledge there cannot be realized the Indis
pensable qualification of a democracy— the best citizenship.
In further seeking a solution of our question we cannot be unmindful
of the far-reaching results that may flow from this work. It is not merely
a proposition of a few hundred libraries circulating throughout the State,
but rather, what ia to be their effect?— to what will they lead?
Said Oliver Wendell Holmes, when asked at what time a child's educa
tion should begin: "A hundred years before he Is born."
To -our query then we may briefly reply, that, like other worthy enter
prises, the results will largely depend on the management. Rarely does
there come to any body of men an opportunity to do finer work for a great
State than is now presented to the trustees of the State Library. A new
educational field is to be occupied— fortunately with the use of ample
means— yet there, is another imporant factor to be secured. This Is noth
ing less than the' good will and co-operation of the people. No measure for
the uplifting and enlightenment of the masses ever succeeds if It falls to
command that element divine— human sympathy.
From the known strong interest of the State Library Trustees, the
deep concern of Governor Pardee In all educational matters and the well
founded belief that our leading educators will counsel and assist, there is
no room to doubt that the future of library Interests in California Is as
sured.
As time rolls on, to all race lovers comes more and more the con
sciousness'that .
"The education of the people Is the real underlying work for earnest
men who would best serve their country." •
. ¦ . ¦ 2 jc educational measure Is now In view which demands the
]^^s-fc-^sr| sympathy and widespread attention of the people of Caii-
£» fornia. It Is a part of a movement which has for its ob
j*»j&//^ra<«*|) J >(1 lh<? helping of every person, young or old, to broader
</*/^-^Vc^B views of life, to a wider outlook on the world, to a culti
; Ti'W^| vation of the best lhat is in them. These alms are to be
T/d^"-Jifc~^. \ accomplished, first, by a general use of traveling libraries;
JjXjtliauLaqggBg second, by an extension of public libraries to every place
which Is able to support one. . :- '* \
The traveling library is easily described. It is simply a little collection
of books of varied selections— usually of fifty volumes— sent from a center to
places more or less remote. Its object, like that of the public library, Is th«
recreation and Instruction of the people. The most noticeable feature js
seen In the fact that the book is brought to the individual. Instead of com
pelling him to go weary distances to the library. It Is free to all, excepting
transportation charges. f'Jr'--
The ready response to the widespread use of the traveling library In all
parts of our country reveals the longing of the common people for quickened
Intelligence and broader knowledge. They have long waited for such a help
and now cheapness of printing and transportation and rapid communication
combine to make the wish a reality. California is distinguished among her
sister States for zealous educational efforts which have given her schools and
universities exceptional rank. What then has been done In traveling library
work? With the exception of several scores of libraries sent out by women's
clubs, which have done valuable pioneer work, nothing has been accom
plished. Organized womanhood stands for the best in this, as In all other
uplifting plans for the State.
The States of New York, Michigan, Ohio. Wisconsin, Iowa and others
have for many years past found this labor, conducted by the various library
:ommiEslons, to be of the most productive they have undertaken; in fact, it
s Impossible to estimate the educational value of the missionary purpose
tvhlch these Itinerant libraries have performed. They have been sent to min
ing and forest camps, to distant hamlets and towns shut away from close
touch with the world, to little villages whose local libraries are struggling to
live, to granges, schools, societies without number and women's clubs, every
where carrying the refining and elevating influences which are the message
of good literature.
Surely It was with prophetic vision that Horace Mann, the distin
guished educator of Massachusetts, forty years ago exclaimed, "Had I the
power I would scatter libraries over the whole land, as a sower sows hla
wheat field."
The charge of indifference to this great popular movement can no longer
be made against California, for preliminary steps have been officially taken
to a wide and general use of traveling libraries. The Initiative was .effected
a year ago by the California Library Association, which after due discussion
succeeded in obtaining the Interest and. co-operation of the trustees of the
¦¦¦!¦¦! ii n HOUGH we sometimes speak of the great importance and
t '" ir " W * T ", pi the wondrous power of sympathy, too few realize how In-
I IS conceivably potent Is its function In the formation^of hu
oVr JRevS man cnaracter - Especially powerful Is its influence over
SyVcg the tender feelings of a child. In his joys and sorrows
v^** ;Fcm a every child wishes some one to share. At every turn he
w ¦¦n-jui.TWTTTTT-a needs, and should have, the tenderest sympathy of the lov
ing parent. Too often he receives no sympathy where he
has a right to expect It.
The child who has injured himself is made no better by being told, "It
serves you right; be more careful next time." "I told you you would hurt
yourself." Such a statement will tend to Btir up all that # ls worst in any
child, but especially in the child of some temperaments. ',
Parents must ever remember, and never forget, then, that sympathy Is
the strongest bond of union between human hearts. It is not -possible for -
any heart to shut Itself against it. When all else has failed it will prove to,
be the most powerful factor In reclaiming the lost. Indeed, it seems almost
Impossible to exaggerate the strength of the influence which it exerts in
forming character and in regulating the habits of all. If a child feels
that you sympathize with him he will imitate you, and you can .mold him
almost at will.
As children grow older their habits become firmly fixed, and determine
character. That which is once fixed in a child's mind . through loving
sympathy will scarcely ever be removed, even by the moat skillful argu
ment. Each one of us can trace most changes in ourselves to the Influence
of some one whom we loved, 'because of the sympathy which was shown
us. It may have been silent sympathy. It may have* been almost or en
tirely unconscious. It was none the less powerful.
The child who loves the parent and feels that he possesses the parent's
sympathy needs but little admonition or criticism. When he perceives
what the parent wishes the, bond of sympathy tends to firmly establish
the desired principles. Be assured that In no way can any parent gain
such power over a child for the purpose of shaping his character as by
manifesting warm sympathy with the .child. Next to a lack of loving
kindness there Is no more potent cause of unhapplness to children than a
lack of sympathy In those from whom they have a right to expect It.
Almost every person has wondered at the peculiar, potfer and action of
sympathy. One child starts to cry, and nearly all the young children present
will do the same, as if they had been Injured also. The actress feigns
great grief, and two-thirds of the audience Join with her In' shedding tears.
Or one or two start to laugh, and, In a short time it will spread to the whole
company, though none may be able to tell why they are laughing. Some
one sneezes or yawns and many others do the same. \,A Joke which Is
scarcely, understood by a single heare r will set a whole audience- into
sympathetic laughter. ,
It would thus seem, that there Is some mysterious. Inexplicable power
In sympathy. By this power the mental or physical conditions of one may
be communicated to others, Increasing in intensity as It passes from one
to another. Since this is so, need we wonder that that sympathy, prompted
by. holiest, love, should have such an all-powerful effect upon children, who
are bo "delicately deeply sensitive, to every influence? .
Some may assert that there is no difference between sympathy and love.
If this is the caBe,; then, having considered the power of love and kind
ness, we are not Justified In spending even a few minutes In the/con
sideration of sympathy. But are they the same? Love may. be" upon one
side alone, and therefore . unappreciated and without any power of affect
ing the object loved. It is not so with sympathy. Sympathy Is two-fold.
It starts as a response to an express need. It is an answer to a call for
it, whether • expressed in words or ; not. It is therefore certain of grateful
recognition, even where love Is neither felt nor welcome.
v As .before - stated, next' to love, there Is nothing a child needs so much
as sympathy. It is : much easier for a parent to love a child than to give
the child the'sympathy which. It should have. ' Parental ! love is natural. It
may not be unnatural, but It is. comparatively 'seldom r. that a parent is
found who, shows. great sympathy with his child In both work and play.
When such. a) parent is noticed it is considered worthy of remark, if not re
markable. UThiB may Beema; strong statement, but It is believed that it will
bear the test, of Investigation.' '
Let the reader ask himself the questions: "How many playthings have
I taken home to my child? Of these, how many have I taken time to enjoy
with the child in play? How many books have I purchased for him? How
many of them have I enjoyed with him or even made Inquiry concern-
Ing? Of the things lost how many have I simply replaced? Concerning the
lost how many have I really sympathized with the dear child in his then
great sorrow?" Truthful answers to such questions as the above will give
a parent some idea as to .whether or not he is showing that sympathy to
which every child is entitled. SflSpl
v To sympathize. with a child you must be able to put yourself in the
child's place and feel as a child. You must forget that you ara not a
child. any. longer. By being a child again 'for a few minutes you will not
only make the child love and adore you, but you will again renew your
youth and be the better and the stronger because of it-
Let it be acknowledged, then' that the most effective way of securing
that confidence and love of children which make their management
easy- Is by sympathizing with them in their hopes, in their fears, in their
sorrows, in their plays and in their work. Certain It Is that the parent
who does not sometimes descend into the world in which the child lives
as a sharer of its fears and sorrows and not as « faultfinder or even as
a counselor cannot have the fullest power over the child.
NlneAlmes out of ten— yes, ninety-nine times out of & hundred— the
child does not mean to do wrong. The right kind of sympathy will have a
more powerful effect at this time than at any other, for the heart is es
pecially open to Buch influences when bowed down by grief.
Why should not the loving parent sympathize with the weakness
which has resulted in some folly? - ; Then is the time a child is most happy
to turn for advice and, comfort to some one stronger than he. God for
give the parent who could turn an unsympathetic ear to a penitent child's
cry.
Foolish is the parent, and not often truthful, who tells the child he does
not understand how he can be so bad'. Hard-hearted he who can turn such
a child away without the sympathy to which he is entitled. If he does this
he need not be surprised if, at the same time, he builds between himself and
his child a barrier which will probably never be removed.
REMARKABLE, DEVELOPMENTS OF TRAVELING LIBRARIES IN CALIFORNIA
By William P. Kimball
SYMPATHY BETWEEN PARENT AND CHILD—-- ELEVENTH TALK
BY W.J. Shearer
12