persons regularly employed by him. The other work is done by laborers employed for specific parts of it.

The racial compositions of the classes of "regular" and "temporary hands" differ materially.

The vast majority of the "regular hands" are what may be called "miscellaneous whites," as opposed to other races eastern Asiatics, Armenians, Italians, German-Russians, and Mexicans who are known as such and as "foreigners." foreigners." Among the "miscellaneous whites" are to be found a comparatively large number of natives as well as Germans, Danes, and other immigrants from north European countries. Yet some Italians are regularly employed on ranches conducted by their countrymen. The same is true of the Armenians. The German-Russians regularly employed are more numerous than either of these, however, for they take employment on ranches not conducted by their fellow-countrymen as well as on the limited number conducted by them. The Japanese are sometimes regularly employed as domestics. In recent years they are also finding a place as regular hands doing field work. A few of them are employed by Japanese farmers-yet only a few, for most of these farmers do their own work with occasional help during the busier seasons. A large number, though it is still small as compared to the number of "miscellaneous whites," are employed regularly on large ranches conducted by white men. Few Chinese are now regularly employed save as cooks, in which capacity they outnumber the Japanese.

This racial composition of the class of laborers regularly employed in orchards and vineyards is explained partly by the racial composition of the ranchers growing fruit and grapes, for each farmer, as a rule, employs men of his own race in preference to all others. The vast majority of the farmers are natives and Americanized north Europeans. They employ the "miscellaneous whites" very largely and usually provide them with board as well as lodging. The Italian growers are few in number, but they employ their countrymen almost exclusively, and these laborers seldom work on other ranches. This fact is explained chiefly by their relatively small number, clannishness, and by their tastes with reference to the character of their food and drink. The German-Russian growers are few, but, being clannish, employ their fellow-countrymen almost if not quite exclusively as regular hands. The Japanese and Armenian farmers are more numerous. The former employ their fellow-countrymen as regular hands exclusively, and the latter do the same in so far as the limited supply will permit.

Of importance also in explaining the predominance of the "miscellaneous whites" among those permanently employed is the fact that much of the work to be done requires adaptability and skillespecially in handling teams. The members of the eastern Asiatic races are not good teamsters and are rarely employed as such except on those ranches conducted chiefly by Asiatics, where white men do not care to work. On other ranches they are usually employed for handwork only. "White men" are usually the most adaptable, an important fact, for the "regular" hand has many and diverse things to do in the course of the year.

Moreover, the numbers of white laborers required to do work of this character have generally been at hand and to be had at wages

such as the ranchers were willing to pay. The work is regular, not particularly arduous, and fairly well remunerated, with the result that white laborers have not withdrawn from it to such an extent as to necessitate the extensive employment of new immigrant classes. This is not so true of the handwork done by regular employees, however. In some instances it has been necessary to employ Japanese and other races conspicuous as temporary laborers; in a comparatively few others they have been employed because more conveniently provided for or cheaper.

The racial composition of the class temporarily employed to do seasonal work presents a strong contrast to this. The races making up this large body of laborers are chiefly Japanese, Koreans, Chinese, American Indians, Mexicans, East Indians, German-Russians, Armenians, and Italians. In the beginning of these industries Americans had a share in this seasonal work, but they have been practically displaced by the races just mentioned.

The racial composition of this class of laborers temporarily employed differs somewhat from season to season, for most of the necessary expansion required at the busiest times is provided for by a few races. The numbers of the various races employed at the height of the raisin-picking season may be indicated, and then the changing proportions of the several races noted briefly.

Between 4,000 and 5,000 Japanese are employed as grape pickers. This number is greater than the sum total of the other races thus employed. These Japanese are nearly all adult males. No Japanese children, and only of late a few Japanese women, are seen in the groups at work. Next in numerical importance are the GermanRussians. They number from 600 to 800. Fully two-fifths of them are women and children, for many families go to the vineyards in a group. Although the work is arduous, the women and children endure it very well and are satisfactory to their employers. East Indians, the most recent of the immigrants to engage in this work, number approximately 500. The men are not accompanied by their wives and children. The Digger Indians, who come down from the mountains during the grape-picking season, number between 200 and 300. They come as families, so that there are many women and children among them. Many of the Mexicans who have come here to work on the railroads leave this for the more remunerative work in the vineyards. Moreover, in recent years some Mexicans have come from other places to work during the harvest season. Possibly the members of this race are more numerous than the Indians. The Koreans, who usually are not distinguished from the Japanese, and who in fact work along with them as members of their "gangs, number from 200 to 300. The number of Chinese pickers, who were the most important field workers a decade ago, has diminished greatly. Scarcely 500 Chinese are now so employed. The Armenians and Italians combined are about as numerous as the Chinese." It is evident that neither race is an important element in the supply of labor available for this harvest work.

"A larger number of Italians work in the wineries than in the vineyards. They prefer the former work.

Most of those who work in the vineyards at this time (the busiest season) are residents of Fresno County. Yet it must be observed that the migration of a few races from place to place is an important fact in adjusting the supply of labor to the demands of the industry. The Japanese and East Indians are conspicuous examples of such migratory races, the Mexicans and Indians less so. Many Japanese who work in the Sacramento Valley to the north and beyond the Techachape to the south for a part of the year come to Fresno for work during the "busy season." Japanese were found who had worked in as many as six localities and at as many as five different occupations during the preceding twelve months.

In this way they "piece jobs together" and make good earnings and incidentally help to equalize the labor supply among the various localities. Yet to avoid misapprehension it must be said the majority of the Japanese in Fresno County reside there throughout the year and no longer belong to the nomadic class. Nevertheless it has been and still is chiefly through their influx in the early autumn that a sufficient supply of labor is made available for harvesting the Fresno grape crop.

The East Indians are even more nomadic than the Japanese, for none of them has a settled residence, and they move rapidly from place to place. The Mexicans who may work on railroads or elsewhere for most of the year take employment for a time as grape pickers, and then return to the former branches of work. The Indians come down from their mountain homes for the grape-picking season only.

This presents the proportions of the several races engaged in the picking of grapes during the busiest season of 1908, as nearly as the agents of the Commission have been able to estimate them. The Japanese dominate the situation. At other times they are less conspicuous in the supply of temporary labor required.

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The Chinese and Indians have a larger share in the picking of "table grapes," for they are regarded as superior to the Japanese for this purpose, a matter discussed in another connection. In picking, cutting, and drying fruit, for relatively little of it is shipped green," the various "white races, German-Russians, and Armenians, constitute the majority of the laborers. The Japanese, it is true, do a large part of the picking and, on such ranches as they conduct, a part of the cutting and drying as well. The East Indians have also picked some of the peaches and figs. On ranches not conducted by Japanese, the cutting and drying are done chiefly by women, among whom all races are found. The German-Russians are the most conspicuous in these groups. They frequently travel back and forth for miles each day, in wagons. It should be added, however, that on some ranches "green" fruit is packed entirely by Japanese, the white ranchers finding such labor more convenient and easier to secure or cheaper to employ. Table grapes are usually packed by white girls, though in the colder weather late in the season the Japanese do much of it. The more important elements among the men pruning orchards and vineyards are German-Russians, Italians, and Chinese, and Japanese. The members of the lastmentioned race, perhaps, do more than one-half of this work in spite

of the fact that they are not regarded as good pruners. The Japanese are also the most numerous of the races temporarily employed in hoeing and weeding in the vineyards and orchards. Yet they do not perform the greater part of this labor, for much of it, as was stated, is done by permanent employees among whom they are not a large element.

The positions occupied by the different races employed on grape and fruit-growing ranches are shown, in a general way, by Table 2, which follows. The data there presented, with reference to occupations, were collected by agents of the Commission from 54 vineyards during the months of September and October, 1908. Some of these vineyards are leased or owned by Japanese farmers. The table does not show the proportions in which the several races were employed throughout the community-a matter already discussed-but the races employed on the ranches visited and the occupations in which they were engaged. It will be noted that the Chinese, Mexicans, East Indians, American Indians, and most of the Japanese were employed temporarily as grape pickers. All of the foremen and most of the teamsters and general laborers regularly employed were "miscellaneous whites" and Italians. Moreover, these two races found little place among the pickers temporarily employed on the ranches.

TABLE 2.-Number of employees working in vineyards in each specified occupation, by race.

Though none were at the time so employed on the ranches visited, Mexicans are employed along with "white" men as teamsters and Chinese as general ranch laborers.

HOURS AND EARNINGS OF LABOR.

The data to be presented with reference to the hours of work and the earnings of laborers employed on vineyards were collected, along with various other details, from 54 vineyardists and 1,122 of their employees. Though these 54 were a small percentage of the vinevards of Fresno County, many of the larger ones were included in the number. Moreover, they were selected from all parts of the county and the selections were made with a view to obtaining an accurate statement concerning the situation. In spite of difficulties met with in ascertaining with accuracy such earnings as were on a

piece basis, and the comparatively small numbers shown in the tables next submitted, it is believed that the data to be presented with reference to the earnings during the harvest season are fairly trustworthy.

In presenting the wage statistics it is necessary to make a distinction between the earnings of those regularly and those temporarily employed. In each of these cases, moreover, it is necessary to take into consideration the question whether board is provided in addition to wages or whether the laborer must provide his own board."

The rates of wages of males regularly employed on the 54 ranches from which such data were obtained are shown in the table next presented.

• Lodging is usually provided whether board is or is not. No commercial value is attached to it, however, and wages are not varied to allow for persons differently circumstanced as regards lodging.