CHAPTER IV.

SALIENT CHARACTERISTICS.

Literacy-Conjugal condition-Visits abroad-Age classification of employees [Text Tables 248 to 253 and General Tables 166 to 170].

LITERACY.

The degree of literacy which prevails among the employees of the shoe manufacturing industry is set forth in the table next presented. It shows by general nativity and race of individual the percentage of employees who were able to read and the percentage who were able to read and write.

TABLE 248.-Per cent of employees who read and per cent who read and write, by sex and general nativity and race.

(STUDY OF EMPLOYEES.)

[This table includes only races with 80 or more persons reporting. The totals, however, are for all races.]

Of 7,398 employees investigated, 4,511 were males and 2,887 were females, 99.5 per cent of the total number reporting can read and 99.3 per cent can both read and write. Of the males 99.1 per cent can read and 99 per cent can both read and write, while of the females 99.9 per cent are able to read and 99.8 per cent can read and write. The employees who are native-born of foreign father show the highest percentage who can read and who can read and write, followed by the employees who are native-born whites of native father, each of these nativity groups showing over 99 per cent. The employees

of foreign birth follow in somewhat smaller proportions. It is particularly noticeable that in each nativity group the percentage of females who can read and who can both read and write is higher than that of males having this ability. Of the employees whose fathers were born in Austria-Hungary and in Ireland, all can read and write; of those whose fathers were born in England and Germany, 100 per cent of the females of the first-mentioned race can read and write and 100 per cent of the females of the race last mentioned can read and in somewhat smaller proportions can both read and write. Of the male employees of these two races those whose fathers were born in Germany show a higher percentage who can read and write than those of English parentage. Among the foreign-born employees a greater degree of literacy is observed among the Germans than among the Greeks, the German employees showing a higher percentage of females who can read than of males, while the males show a greater proportion who can both read and write than females.

CONJUGAL CONDITION.

The following table shows, by sex and general nativity and race, the percentage of employees 20 years of age or over who were in each conjugal condition:

TABLE 249.-Per cent of employees 20 years of age or over in each conjugal condition, by sex and general nativity and race.

(STUDY OF EMPLOYEES.)

[This table includes only races with 80 or more persons reporting. The totals, however, are for all races.]

TABLE 249.-Per cent of employees 20 years of age or over in each conjugal condition, by sex and general nativity and race-Continued.

Of the 4,237 persons included in the preceding table, 55 per cent are single, 40.2 per cent married, and 4.8 per cent widowed. The nativeborn of foreign father shows a larger proportion than the native-born of native father, white, which in turn shows a larger proportion than the foreign-born, who are single. The position of the nativity groups is reversed with regard to those who are married. A comparison between the males and females shows that a considerably larger proportion of the latter are single and widows. This is true with regard to each nativity group.

The following table divides the totals of the table immediately preceding and shows, by sex, age groups, and by general nativity and race, the percentage of employees who were in each conjugal condition: TABLE 250.-Per cent of employees in each conjugal condition, by sex and age groups, and by general nativity and race.

(STUDY OF EMPLOYEES.)

[This table includes only races with 200 or more persons reporting. The totals, however, are for all races.]

TABLE 250.—Per cent of employees in each conjugal condition, by sex and age groups, and by general nativity and race- -Continued.

In the group including persons from 20 to 29 years of age 26.3 per cent are married and 2.2 per cent are widowed. Of those from 30 to 44 years of age 69.1 per cent are married and 9.7 per cent are widowed, while of the employees who are 45 years of age or over 79.1 per cent are married and 13.4 per cent are widowed. The employees of foreign birth show a slightly smaller percentage of persons married in the group from 20 to 29 years of age than the employees who are native-born of native father and a higher percentage married than the employees who are native-born of foreign father. In the groups of employees from 30 to 44 years of age, 45 years of age or over, and 20 years of age or over, the foreign-born exhibit the highest per cent who are married, followed in the order mentioned by the native whites born of native father and the native-born of foreign father. The foreign-born employees show a somewhat smaller percentage of persons who are widowed in each age group than is shown either by the native whites born of native father or the native-born of foreign father. Of the employees native-born of foreign father those whose fathers were born in Germany show a much higher percentage mar

ried, a considerably lower percentage widowed than is shown by employees whose fathers were born in Ireland. The male employees exhibit a very much higher percentage married than the female employees, while the proportion of the latter who are widowed in every age group is very much larger than the proportion of the males who are widowed. In the groups including persons from 30 to 44 years. of age and 45 years of age or over, female employees show 38 per cent widowed in the first mentioned group and 55.3 per cent widowed in the latter.

As showing the location of wives of the foreign-born employees, the following table is submitted:

TABLE 251.-Per cent of foreign-born husbands who report wife in the United States and per cent who report wife abroad, by race of husband.

(STUDY OF EMPLOYEES.)

[This table includes only races with 40 or more husbands reporting. The total, however, is for all foreignborn.]

This table shows the proportion of all foreign-born husbands reporting wives in the United States to be 83.5 per cent. Of the Germans, 97.7 per cent report wives in this country.

VISITS ABROAD.

The tendency manifested by employees of foreign birth to return to their native lands for visits, is considered in the table next presented, which shows the number of visits abroad made by foreignborn employees according to years in the United States.

Owing to the small number reporting, percentages were not computed.

TABLE 252.-Visits abroad made by foreign-born employees, by sex, years in the United States, and race.

(STUDY OF EMPLOYEES.)

[By years in the United States is meant years since first arrival in the United States. This table includes only races with 20 or more persons reporting. The totals, however, are for all foreign-born.]