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and we are fearful of being reported incorrectly, thus we prefer to state our case to the men as a whole, and to three men representing the whole. Of course in large corporations this is not practicable. Taken as a whole, we pay our men as high or higher wages than others in like business, and our men know this, and if they can do better elsewhere we either meet the conditions, or let them go. anticipate no trouble during the coming year, as we now have a clear and distinct understanding with all our men.

Dear Sir: In reply to your inquiry of December 24th will say that I retired from the tanning business July, 1900. Being you ask my experience in the labor question will give you a short sketch of my life.

In July, 1860, I was apprenticed for four years to a Mr. Vogel. Terms were, my father was to furnish the clothes, Mr. Vogel to furnish board, I to work without pay, and he was to teach me the art of tanning. While serving there I never received a cent for my labor, but one Christmas he gave me twenty-five cents. In 1865 I had full charge of my father's tannery, being then 19 years old, my father being a passive man and not caring about the cares of business just put the whole responsibility on my shoulders.

So you see I conducted business from 1865 until 1900, being a term of 35 years and in this time employed from 20 to 45 men, the last 15 years not less than 45.

I was always successful, never had a strike or dispute with my help, and I attribute it to the following rules. I never under any circumstances would give employment to a union man.

2d. I never asked any thing unreasonable from my men.

3d. I always treated my men as my equal in the tannery or out, in fact wherever we happened to meet.

I will mention one case which comes to my mind where the men thought I imposed on them, which we settled in the following man

ner:

I complained to my beam men that they were not doing work enough. They thought otherwise. They were hand fleshing sixty sides per day per man, I wanted eighty pieces.

So I pulled off my coat and showed them that I could do 160 pieces in 10 hours and then asked them if they were not ashamed of themselves, when only asked to do one-half what I could do? That settled that point. They got a new move on and it was only a few days

ANALYSIS.

Before entering up a review of the several statistical presentations contained in this report we desire to give a belated acknowledgment of the courtesies extended by Laird, Schober and Company, and The Harrisburg Boot and Shoe Company for the privilege of illustrations from their factories showing the process of shoe manufacture and of like courtesies extended by Geo. Watkinson & Co., showing the method of making rubber boots and shoes, and of courtesies shown by American Cement Company, in the privilege of illustrations of cement works and quarries. Also to acknowledge the courtesy of Lathbury and Spackman in allowing the reproduction of cuts showing modern crushers, testing machinery, etc., used in the manufacture of cement.

The first presentation of statistical tables will be found on page $3, Comparative Statistics of Manufactures, 1892 Series. As with 1901 the series ends, the natural inquiry would be, what has it shown-what has it accomplished? In considering this question it must be borne in mind that the 354 establishments represented by the 44 industries are the same establishments throughout the ten years, 1892 to 1901, inclusive. If a sufficient number of representative plants are considered in each industry, the work must have interest as portraying general business conditions, particularly in helping the mind to conclusions that without data would be formless and shapeless. History, if correct and impartial, is of value. Statistics, even in the form of a chronology if possessing like virtue must have like comparative value. Marked changes have taken place in the industrial world during these ten years. The series was estabiished in 1892 with prosperity, dropped into adverse conditions in 1893, 1894 and 1895; its closing years however were marked by an era of prosperity for a number of the industries without a parallel in the history of the country.

The tables presented in this series from year to year show, with much accuracy, the effect that the varied conditions have had upon the respective industries. The exception, however, to this will be found in such industries as have been reduced to too small a number of establishments to be representative. The occasion of the reduction has been the retirement from business, failures, or possibly com

bined ownerships, the combining with establishments not considered in this series and in consequence separation being impracticable. In several instances this work of depletion has resulted in but a single establishment being left to represent the industry.

We submit herewith tables of comparison, 1901 with 1894, showing the comparative condition of wage earners. While 1894 has been taken as the year of the greatest depression, some of the industries considered were more seriously affected in 1893, or perhaps in 1895. In making comparison the single establishment industries have been eliminated, leaving but forty-one of the forty-four industries represented in the 1892 Series to be considered in this work of retrospection.

COMPARISON OF VALUE OF PRODUCTION BY THE SAME ESTABLISHMENTS FOR THE YEARS ENDING 1894 AND 1901, AS DEDUCTED FROM THE 1892 SERIES.

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