The Iron Age 1910-03-24: Vol 85 Iss 12

THE IRON AGE. New York, Thursday, March 24, 1910. The Churches Take Up the Labor Question. They Ask for Higher Wages and Shorter Hours. What Pittsburgh Manufacturers Say. AN APPEAL BY CHURCHES WHICH CITES THE PITTSBURGH SURVEY OF STEEL WORKS CON- DITIONS. The Federal Council of the Churches of Christ in America, an organization said to represent an aggre- gate membership of nearly 17,000,000, has issued an appeal in behalf of labor. Bishop Hendrix is president of the council, and Rev. Dr. E. B. Sanford is corre- sponding secretary. Its Commission on the Church and Social Service has for its chairman Rev. Dr. Frank Mason North, New York, and Rev. Charles Stelzle, New York, is secretary. This action is of special in- terest to Pittsburgh because the appeal alludes to the Pittsburgh Survey, which affords so much material upon which to base an attack on general industrial con- ditions. The appeal substantially in full is as follows: The Federal Council of the Churches of Christ in America unanimously adopted, among other specific principles for which it asserts the church must stand: The gradual and reasonable reduction of the hours of labor to the lowest practicable point, and that degree of leisure for all which is a condition of, the highest human life. A release from employment one day in seven. A living wage as a minimum in every industry, and the highest wage that each industry can afford. The Federal Council’s Commission on the Church and Social Service accepts as the basis of its belief and action the entire programme adopted by the Fed- eral Council in its report on the Church and Social Service. For the concentration of attention upon con- crete conditions, and because of the present keen in- terest in the three closely related propositions above set forth, it submits at this time to the churches the follow- ing statement and recommendations, and urges that favorable action be taken upon them by individual churches, synods, assemblies, conferences, conventions, brotherhoods and other representative bodies in the many communions which compose the Federal Council. PITTSBURGH STEEL WORKS CONDITIONS. The Pittsburgh Survey revealed to all interested in industrial conditions a state of affairs in many respects surprising, In the steel mills, according to the report, r day prevailed. Twenty per cent. of the r about 14,000 men in Allegheny County, ours a day seven days in the week. Full 60 of all employees were classed as unskilled and were paid at the rate of 16% cents an hour. Such employees, therefore, by working 12 hours a day, were enabled to earn $1.98 per day, any reduction in time involving a proportionate loss in wages. The high wages paid to a relatively small number of men in posi- tions of responsibility—3 or 4 per cent. getting over $5 a day—had, heretofore, misled the public as to the general scale of wages in this particular industry. An investigation ofthe living conditions showed that the wage actually paid to unskilled laborers in the steel _mills was not a living wage—that is, not a wage on which a man with an average family could live respect- ably—under decent sanitary conditions and with a reasonable degree of comfort. The investigations of the survey showed, furthermore, that in precisely the regions where these low paid workmen were housed, the drink evil was at its worst and the general morality at its lowest. .. What the survey revealed in Pittsburgh is, we are advised, true’to a greater or less extent—often to the same extent+ jn Other industrial centers. The illustration is taken from one industry and one center. The range of the propositions, however, is far wider. For, while it may be proper to omit from con- sideration the workers engaged in the professions and in agriculture, those should be included who are en- gaged in domestic and personal service, trade and transportation, and in manufacturing and mechanical pursuits. Moreover, with the increasing complication of the industrial situation, there has come the necessity of conducting many industries seven days in the week, and as a rule those industries conducted seven days in the week require the service of the individual em- ployee seven days in the week, and the rate of wages is set not for a six-day, but a seven-day scale, THE WORKER'S RIGHT TO ONE DAY IN SEVEN. The Commission on the Church and Social Service of the Federal Council of the Churches of Christ in America calls the attention of the Churches of Christ everywhere to this condition and the menace involved in it, and urges upon all Christian churches officially, through their pulpits, their brotherhoods and various other organizations, to emphasize and bring home to their members their Christian obligation in these prem- ises—namely, that it is the right of every man to have one day out of the seven for rest and recreation of body, soul and mind, and that it is the obligation of every Christian employer so to arrange his business ° that each of the employees may have one day’s holiday in seven, without diminution of wages. The normal holiday is the Christian Sabbath, the Lord’s Day, but where the conditions of industry or service require continuance of work seven days and the consequent employment of some part of the employees on the Lord’s Day, then those so employed are entitled to receive a holiday on some other day in the week; and, furthermore, that it is the obligation of every Christian employer so to arrange his scale of wages that the liv- ing wage of his employees is calculated, not on a seven- day, but on a six-day basis. A LIVING WAGE, It is the obligation of every Christian employer, a part of the essential Christianity of the brotherhood of man, to pay every employee a living wage—that is, a wage on which not only the worker, but the average family, can live under proper sanitary conditions, and with reasonable comfort. Normally the great bulk of the industrial work of our country should be done by the heads of families, and wages should be adjusted not to the cost of living of the unmarried boarder, but to the family life ir the home. The living wage differs from time to time and from place to place. The obligation remains unvaried, and no industry can be counted as properly conducted from the standpoint of Christian ethics which. is not so conducted that all employees therein receive pas wage. It is manffest that that industry which, employi its laborers six days in the week, compels them to sade 12 hours out of the 24, does not give : ployees.a proper opportunity Yor Same 4aik healthy. He t 670 ing. Family life, intelligent social intercourse with one’s fellows, are impossible under such conditions, and the laborer not only is not encouraged to develop up- ward, but, by the conditions of his labor, is held in an inferior and degraded condition, with no chance of de- velopment. Such a condition is, we believe, contrary to the dictates of the religion of Christ and a menace to the well being of the State. It is an obligation rest- ing upon Christian employers so to organize their in- dustry that the employed may have reasonable hours of labor. THE REASONABLE WORK DAY. In view of present discussions and in view of the existing diversities of opinion, this commission is not prepared to state for all industrial conditions what is a reasonable working day. The movement for the standardization of reasonable hours at eight for all industries has not reached such a stage that, in spite of its own opinion that eight hours for labor is rea- sonable, this commission is prepared to call upon mem- bers of Christian churches to adopt that standard as a part of their Christian obligation, but it is the convic- tion of this commission that anything over Io hours in any business or employment is an abuse which should not be tolerated in a Christian community, nor exacted by a Christian employer. This commission recommends to the official bodies of Christian churches, in order to standardize, as it were, the simplest Chris- tian obligations in the industrial field, to adopt resolu- tions calling upon employers of labor within those churches to conform, in their industrial operations, to these three simple rules: One day’s rest in each seven. Reasonable hours of labor. A living wage based on these reasonable hours of labor. PITTSBURGH}MANUFACTURERS ANSWER REGARD- ING LOCAL LABOR CONDITIONS. As the appeal of the churches above given cites the Pittsburgh Survey, The Jron Age has requested the views of a number of the most prominent manu- facturers in that city, whose replies are appended. From )One of the Very Largest Employers. The attempt is apparently made to show that man- ufacturers are heartless. The converse of this is the case, as never before have manufacturers been so deeply interested in the welfare of their men. This is shown by the attention given to the installment of safety devices, to the establishment of works hospitals, to the care given to the injured, to the compensation paid for injuries, and to the efforts being made to establish pension systems for those incapacitated either by age or infirmity. WAGES NOT LOW. MEN CHOOSE I2-HOUR JOBS. It is untrue that wages are systematically kept low. Common labor, now being paid 16% cents an hour, is receiving the highest rate for many years, and a much higher rate than is paid abroad for the same class of work. It is almost universally found that when work- men are given their choice between I0 and 12-hour jobs at the same hourly rate they will choose a 12-hour job. Some well fortified companies having their own raw materials and other advantages, including ample capital, might be able to run their blast furnaces and steel works on 8-hour shifts. If this should in some way be made compulsory, the question arises whether manufacturers less favorably situated would be able to continue in the race. It would certainly not be in ac- cordance with current public sentiment if any measures should be adopted which would crowd out, of existence the smaller manufacturers and concentrate manufac- turing operations in the hands of a comparatively few large interests. Foreign conditions must also be taken into consid- THE IRON AGE March 24, 1910 eration. This country must seek outside markets for part of its manufactured product, and at the same time must defend its home markets from too serious in- vasion by foreign manufacturers. Hence, costs must not be advanced to too high a level, as would certainly be the case if wages were still higher, and if manu- facturing costs were further advanced by the adoption of eight-hour shifts. SUNDAY EMPLOYMENT. Work in steel mills usually ends early on Satur- day afternoon, and is resumed at about the same time on Sunday afternoon. This is not an arbitrary ar- rangement by employers, but is in accordance with the preference of the workmen, who desire for their own purposes a part of Saturday and all Saturday night. They thus get a full 24-4our rest in a week, but get it at the time when they most enjoy it. Efforts are being made systematically by the large employers to reduce the amount of Sunday work. Re- pairs are made during the week as far as possible. At the blast furnaces no man is compelled to work the full seven days a week; he can have a day off each week if he asks for it, and it happens that, with the numerous church days, holidays and special days to which laborers of foreign nationalities have been ac- customed, and which they faithfully observe here, the average time they take off for such purposes is more likely to run over a day a week than under it. INDEPENDENCE OF EMPLOYEES IN THEIR HOME LIFE. The arraignment of employers would ‘make it ap- pear that they desire their employees to live in squalor and to spend their lives like brutes. Employers, how- ever, do not interfere with the home lives of their employees. There are many reasons for this, some of which may be mentioned as follows: 1. Antagonism is created among property owners in all large cities if employers endeavor to improve the home conditions of their workmen by building a su- perior class of houses for rent. 2. Such experiments as have been made in this direction have totally failed to produce the results desired, and in notable instances have created much trouble by being used as the foun- dation of charges against employers of greediness in trying to get back part of the wages paid out, of en- deavoring to subvert the independence of their work- men, and of introducing into American industrial life an intolerable condition of paternalism and espionage. 3. The very class of workmen most in need of domi- ciliary supervision would probably most resent it. Common labor in Pittsburgh, as in other American cities, is no longer American, English, Welsh, Scotch or Irish, but is Italian or Slav. A mode of life has been introduced by these people which, wretched as it may seem to American sociologists, is probably some- what better than that to which such foreign work- men were accustomed in their own countries. They enjoy their freedom from government interference with their movements and occupations and take advantage of the lack of restraint to indulge in practices offensive to those who have been differently reared. Their work is needed here, however, and their employers would gladly co-operate in having these people taught habits of cleanliness and sobriety. Auvother Promtnent Manufacturer Says: No one has a higher regard for the work of the churches of all denominations than I, and I fully believe it is their duty and privilege to labor for the best interests of all classes in the community, but I believe in this case the Federation has been misled by the gross misrepresentations of the Pittsburgh Sur- vey as to the conditions prevailing in this vicinity. No one denies that there is room for improvement of social conditions among a large number of people who are employed in the iron and steel mills of this country, just as it is true of all classes of labor all over the world, but the investigators of the Pittsburgh raga a March 24, 1910 Survey seem only to have discovered the evils, which were grossly exaggerated, and to have shut their eyes carefully to all favorable conditions which exist. Their policy seems to be that of the usual muckraker, and no one who knows anything about actual conditions has the least confidence in any statements they make. The Federation of Churches seems to have accepted their misrepresentations as of real value, and thus has been led to make statements which are not in accord- ance with the facts. However, I am in accord with some of the matters which are deemed desirable. ONE DAY'S REST IN SEVEN IS DESIRABLE. I think especially there should be one day’s rest in each seven. I do not think it is desirable that any man should be required to work more than six days in the week, but I do. not see on what claim of justice or equity manufacturers should be expected to pay seven days’ wages for six days’ labor. As a matter of fact, my observation is that very few ordinary laborers work on an average more than six days, even where the continuous operation of the industry is necessary. A very large proportion of these laborers are from foreign countries, where the marriage and funeral customs and numerous holidays call for a great many more holidays than the Sabbath, and they, there- fore, take much more than the average one holiday in the week, and they very much prefer as a rule that this should not be the Sabbath. As to working more than Io hours, my own ex- perience has been that many of the men prefer the 12 hours’ labor because of the increased pay. In a very few cases where men have to work during the night 12 hours, and on the same class of jobs during the day they work Ito hours, the day men are dissatisfied because they are not put on the night turn, and thus secure wages for 12 hours’ work. To reduce the hours of labor among the class of men to whom this appeal refers would not be acceptable to the men themselves, nor beneficial either to their moral or financial in- terests. I regret very much that the Federation of Churches has been led into making statements that are untrue and discussing matters of which the members have little knowledge or experience, and endeavoring to reg- ulate matters the difficulties of which they have no conception. I believe it is their right and duty to de- mand that Sabbath labor shall be reduced to a mini- mum, and I also believe that where it is possible the man who has to work on the Sabbath should have another holiday if he so desires, but I do not see how it can be made compulsory on him to take it. From Another Very Large Employer. The attitude of the churches is undoubtedly in the right direction and sincere co-operation on the part of employers who require the 12-hour continuous work would result in largely curing this evil, and would confine actual labor for each man to six days per week, as it unquestionably should be. We do not think the eight-hour day is practicable. A nine-hour day in mill work is short enough, and a 10-hour day is not at all unreasonable under the vary- ing conditions that attach to the work, but 60 hours per week should be the maximum, with a rest day each week—Sunday if possible. We have no doubt this is attainable by proper and sincere effort. THE QUESTION OF LIVING WAGES. The “living wage” question is a very complex one. The cost of living is largely a matter of individ- ual habit and temperament. It is a constantly varying factor, and one over which the employer of labor ordi- narily has no control whatever. One family will thrive on what another wastes, and squalor is not always the result of unfair wage. The varied forms of cheap cereals and canned goods that contain the maximum THE IRON AGE 671 of nutrition are to-day within the reach of even the small wage earner, as never before in this or any other country in like degree. It is a question of intelligent living for the individual to appreciate and work out, and not for the employer of labor to solve. The trouble is largely in the undue proportion of the ignorant foreign element that enters into what is generally classified as unskilled labor in the operation of large plants. Very many of these, as the Pittsburgh Survey and other investigations have proved—and as the almost daily headlines in newspapers confirm—ex- pect to spend 60 per cent. of their earnings in debauch and waste 40 per cent. in the essentials to consistent living and then pose as proofs of the starvation wage allowed them by their employers. The Survey report emphasizes the statement that the low wage earner is the profligate spender, not because he is underpaid for the value of the service he renders, but because he chooses to pay his first tribute to debauchery and devote the balance, if any, to possible good provision for his family. The natural inference from the plea of the churches is that 10 to 15 per cent. advance in wages to this class would correct the evil and change the dis- position of the laborer, but what as a matter of fact would it avail if the beneficiary has no inclination or ambition to rise above his sordid level? If the Church Federation, with its millions of adherents, will under- take to stimulate the ambition and correct the profligate inclinations of these objects of their concern, then it will be up to the employer to co-operate with them by a more liberal wage to accomplish the object. In our plant—and we think ours is fairly represen- tative of like manufacturing propositions—we know, beyond any possible cavil, that our labor costs are con- siderably above their just proportion of the competitive price we must now accept for our finished product. Our costs for both material and labor have been stead- ily for higher levels, and statistics will unquestionably show that the trend of prices to the consumer, of ma- terial for manufacture of articles required by the masses, is lower in ratio with ruling prices of raw material than at any time with the country at large in the same condition of general prosperity. The unskilled labor in a mill cannot be individ- ualized, and is to a large degree irresponsible. It must be worked in groups, and under competent direc- tion. It has a value and true relation to the cost of the finished article, and to treat it arbitrarily as a social proposition and out of proportion with its true worth would soon demoralize any system. The vast majority of so-called skilled workers—which includes the ordinary mechanic in every line of industry—are relatively no better paid than the present-day laborer in the mills, but in the main they are law respecting, self respecting citizens and the difference in their prosperity and that of the laborer is not owing to dif- ference in wage, but in the manner of spending their time and earnings. If competition determines what a “ Christian em- ployer” of labor must accept for his goods, he must measure his costs accordingly, or accept bankruptcy as his later reward. If social revolution in the interest of the laborer as a class is to be effective, the “ Chris- tian” press and the “Christian” public must co- operate with “Christian” employers of labor; and “Christian politicians” must be better informed and more sincere when ringing the changes on the hack- neyed principle of competition, and on the sacred right of the consumer, the farmer, for instance, to buy his needs at the lowest possible price, and to sell the product of his fields to the mill worker at the highest. There is ample food for thought in the proposition, and, while the church idea is for general betterment, and should not be antagonized, good results will rather accrue from co-operation along general lines than mere suggestion to those who are compelled to buy labor at competitive prices. 672 THE IRON AGE This Manufacturer, Also a Large Employer, Attacks the Survey. I have, and have always had, a very unfavorable opinion of the so-called Pittsburgh Survey, first, because its published matter seemed so extremely overdrawn, and, second, because on the few details that I have looked up I have found that the report was character- ized in so many instances by direct falsehoods, or by suppression of the truth, that I have no faith whatever in any of the conclusions, or alleged conclusions, which have been drawn. FALSEHOODS AND SUPPRESSION OF THE TRUTH. In the matter of direct falsehoods I instance one picture which the Survey published, with other matter, representing the interior of a tobacco factory. At my first view of that picture I was struck with the distinctness with which the details of the room were brought out in a photograph evidently intended to rep- resent the dark and dismal conditions under which workers were compelled to live. I took the trouble to seek out the shop so photographed, and found it to be a large and well lighted room. The picture published showed the brick fire wall which separated the build- ing from the adjoining property and one very small section of a window. I found the workroom itself to be lighted on three sides. The building, occupying the whole end of a city block, was lighted from three streets and with as many and as large windows as the safety of the structure permitted. The photographer, in taking the picture, placed the back of the camera toward the windows and in such position as to take in only the brick wall, and this acceunted for the flood of light which brought out in the picture the sharp details mentioned above. Writers who would so deliberately “ fake” in one in- stance would not hesitate to do it as a rule in order to serve a special end, and this was so evidently a de- liberate falsification that it would of itself condemn the entire series of articles if no other facts were de- veloped. In the matter of suppression of the truth, I have been informed from an entirely reliable source that the agents, or “social engineers” as they call them- selves, spent a good deal of time at and in the Am- bridge Works of the American Bridge Company, and that the officials were at great pains to give them all the light and information possible. When publication was made the Ambridge Works were not referred to, and in reply to an inquiry from the officers of that company the Survey people announced that no men- tion had been made of them because they had found nothing to criticise. I am informed that there are a number of instances of the same character, which I can readily believe in view of the knowledge that I have of the care which is being taken in the mills of Pittsburgh for the prevention of accidents. On the evening of Friday, February 4, being in New York, I attended a meeting of the People’s In- stitute at Cooper Union. I was drawn to this meeting by a notice of it which I read in the Evening Post. It was to have been addressed by three of the so-called “ workers,” who developed the Pittsburgh Survey, and I was curious to see for myself what manner of peo- ple they were. After a view of them, and a hearing, I am not surprised at the character of the matter which they have produced. To call themselves engineers of any sort is a gross libel on an honorable profession which is guided by the cardinal principle, “ Get at the truth and tell it honestly.” THE MOTIVES IMPUGNED. I do not for a moment think that the impulse for the organization of a Pittsburgh Survey was in any sense altruistic. I think that the money to be secured (whether earned or not) from the Sage Fund had all to do with it, and it was certainly anything but an honest piece of work. The matter which the agents March 24, 1910 worked upon looks to me to have been drawn largely from interviews with the inefficient, the shiftless and the lazy, from which class are recruited always the mendicants of any community. There is no such “ in- credible overwork” or “ overstrain” as they represent. It takes very little work to produce overstrain with a lazy man, and the people whom they write about as going to work exhausted by hanging to a strap con- stitute a picture too ludicrous to receive serious atten- tion. Of course, we would all ride more comfortably if we had a seat, but those who are physically unable to ride holding on to a strap should be in a hospital and not on their way to work. Personally, when I am unable to get a street car that is not overloaded I walk, and I do not find that any more detrimental than I did 50 years ago, when there was practically no means of city transportation for any one save what nature provided. The trouble with our clerical brethren is that they are too emotional, and are apt to believe everything they see in print, but for that matter we need not con- fine that view to the clerical people alone. There are plenty of people who ought to know better, and who have opportunities for knowing better, who accept even the statements and conclusions of the “social engi- neers” of the Pittsburgh Survey. No growing town, especially a manufacturing town, ever attained its full development without producing slums, and the progress in Pittsburgh presents many illustrations of these changes. Within my recollection the aristocratic sections of the city have been convert- ed into slums, and, on the other hand, the places that have been a waste and therefore forbidding have been made to blossom as the rose. —_— oro Large Piping Contracts.—The Pittsburgh Valve, Foundry & Construction Company, Twenty-sixth street and Allegheny Valley Railway, Pittsburgh, has re- ceived a contract from the Jones & Laughlin Steel Company for the piping, valves and fittings required in the steam lines for the boilers of No. 4 blast furnace and the piping for the rod and tin mills, to care for over 10,000 hp. boilers, at its new plant at Aliquippa, Pa. Another contract with the Inter-Ocean Steel Com- pany, Chicago Heights, IIl., calls for 5-in. double extra heavy pipe, cast steel fittings, and valves of special patterns and cast steel construction, required in the high pressure hydraulic work, which operates the large presses, &c., on 3000 lb. pressure. This contract amounts to about $25,000 and the work will be com- pleted about May 1. Another contract, on which the shipment of material has commenced, is with the Pitts- burgh Railways Company, and requires high pressure piping, valves and fittings, with 24-in. main steam lines to care for 10 new 500-hp. boilers and one 5000-kw. Westinghouse generating outfit, condenser, &c. This amounts to $50,000 and will be completed about June 1. All this work, with other jobs in prospect, will permit the Pittsburgh Valve, Foundry & Construction Com- pany to operate its plant in full over the next four months. oo The Shenango Furnace Company, Frick Building, Pittsburgh, Pa., operating blast furnaces at Sharpsville, Pa., is sending the trade an interesting booklet devoted to ore, coke and pig iron. It contains the analyses for 1910 of the different ores mined at the company’s properties on the Mesaba and Menominee ranges of Lake Superior. There are four Mesaba Bessemer and three Mesaba non-Bessemer ores and two Menominee siliceous ores. Views are given of the ore boats Wilpen and Shenango, of connected vessel companies (there being also a third steamer, the William P. Snyder); also of the Shenango Mine at Chisholm, Minn.; the coke works at Wilpen, Pa., and the No. 1 furnace at Sharpsville, Pa. March 24, 1910 Civic Development at Gary. The towns which have grown up in the ordinary way around iron and steel works have not been noted for their beauty or civic attractions. In such mills a large amount of unskilled labor was required for drudgery, which did not appeal to native born work- men, and the efforts of employers to promote sanita- tion or civic improvement among their employees have usually been resented as an invasion of personal lib- erty. Conditions have been no better and no worse in such iron and steel towns than in the average manu- facturing town of spontaneous growth, as human na- ture is much the same the world over in old estab- lished communities. At Gary, Ind., conditions have been favorable for creating a city in harmony with modern ideas of san- itation and progress. The land was all brought under one ownership, and the existing laws of property made possible a high plane of civic development in planning to build a city out of a wilderness. The ideals thus established before the real city came into existence have been adopted, and even improved upon by the progressive merchants and workingmen who have been attracted to the new city, and it is probable that in the years to come Gary will be as famous for civic progress as for the production of steel, The miles of streets paved with concrete are kept clean and bright, and the lighting system is excep- tional. Moreover, a clean street encourages cleanli- ness and tidiness around the houses. The sewage dis- posal system conforms to the best practice of sanitary engineers, and the sanitary code initiated by the land company and afterward adopted by the people when the city government was established is looked upon as a model. The water supply drawn from a point far out in the lake leaves nothing to be desired. Lots are sold under restrictions as to building, which are dem- , onstrating their wisdom, as the city is kept free from dives and slums. The most notable feature of all, however, in the human side of Gary is the school system, which ap- peals with peculiar force to the merchant or working- man who wants his children to grow up with educa- tional advantages. It has often happened in Ameri- can cities that when they begin to feel the pulsation of progress and prosperity, their civic energy takes the direction of monumental public buildings, sheltering tax gatherers who draw salaries and levy more taxes. Gary has no monuments of this character. Its civic energy is making the school system the center of in- terest for the people, and two large school buildings which have been completed bear witness to the policy that will be followed out in this respect. One of these buildings, just completed, is probably the best equipped in the United States, or is only equaled by similar schools designed by the same architect. The central feature of the building is a fireproof theatre, used for school assemblies and available in the evenings and at other times for popular entertainments. The main en- trance from the street leads directly into it. A room on the main floor with outside entrance is fitted up as a reading room and branch of the city library; and each school building erected in the future will have a similar library, open to the public in the evening as well as through the day. Two gymnasiums and a swimming pool are open evenings throughout the week under restrictions, which make them available for both sexes of all ages. The school equipment is remarkably complete. A manual training room for the boys is provided with a full equipment of tools and appliances, and the girls have a sewing room and a kitchen in which special care has been given to the appointments. The plumber has been called in to provide facilities for clay maps with real rivers, and in every nook and corner there is THE IRON AGE 673 some useful feature which proves a revelation to those who look back to the little country schoolhouse. The plumber has contributed his best in the toilet rooms, and in the halls are sanitary drinking fountains, which have banished the objectionable cups. Mysterious benches ‘in the halls are found to have warm air flow- ing under them, by forced draft, to dry the children’s shoes and stockings on rainy days, and thus protect their health. The citizen of to-morrow has been made the center of.the civic development of Gary, and the outside world will watch with interest the future of this city built by a corporation. capcinaabuaineatibiaedanii The Crucible Steel Company of America. Chairman Herbert Du Puy of the Crucible Steel Company of America, Pittsburgh, states that though the quarter ending February 28, 1910, was the shortest quarter of the year, and included the holidays as well, yet the operating profits, as compared with those of the previous quarter, wer¢ practically the same. Orders have kept up well and shipments show no diminution. The demand for the company’s products has been so urgent that the management has recently been com- pelled to reopen the Aliquippa plant, which had not been in operation for several years. Every available plant owned by the company is now actively producing. During the quarter just ended a number of permanent improvements have been made at several of the com- pany’s works, with a view of economy in operation. These are now effective and have begun to show re- sults. A number of important additions are now under construction at the Atha and Park plants of the com- pany, the wisdom of which will show a great saving in productive costs during the next few months. The results of the company’s operations in the half year ending February 28 were as follows: Profits for quarter ending November 30, 1909..... $1,410,905.70 Quarter ending February 28, 1910...........0545 1,406,361.03 OS 5 rc oe a aie ies 5 ke ASR RE RA Ras ee $2,817,266.73 Depreciation and repairs............. $625,520.09 COMING 8 os 6S fo NEUE 65,943.50 Ha oe 691,463.59 TOG QHONLO:. . ss cnc so 60a Reekes Can eeee $2,125,803.14 Surplus, February 268, 1910... 6. sic cectecue : $4,489,616.08 Surplus, February 25, 1000. ..ccinccvcccecetcaves 2,640,589.67 BRCUOIG 6:4 0c 0:0 CoRR E CAREER OTR est $1,849,026.41 Analyzing this statement, the profits for the quarter ending February 28, 1910, as compared with the corre- sponding quarter of 1909, show an increase of $850,- 537-64, while the net profits for the six months just ended, $947,695.40, show an increase of $1,178,107.74. —_—__~+--e—___—__ The Dangers of a Hot Box.—Fortunately, the re- sults of hot boxes are rarely as dire as they proved two years ago at a powder mill located in Indiana, where a hot box caused an explosion which reduced the fac- tory buildings to ashes, and even damaged a section of the town in which the factory was located, but there is always a chance of loss in every case. It may be the ruining of the bearing or journal; it may be the tying up of the plant for hours; it may be a fire that destroys a portion or all of the plant. What is regard- ed by the manufacturer as a perfect insurance against such accidents is Dixon’s flake graphite, which it is declared will absolutely prevent excessive heating of bearing parts as well as cutting and seizing. It at- taches itself directly to the metal surfaces, filling in the microscopic depressions and becoming fastened upon the microscopic projections that exist in all metal surfaces. Thus direct contact of metal-to-metal is made impossible, and what may be termed a “ graphited contact” is secured which lowers friction, reduces wear and prevents damage. 674 The Geiseg Road Roller. A road roller which contains a number of novel features is the new steam driven machine built by the Geiser Mfg. Company, Waynesboro, Pa., and shown in the accompanying illustration. This roller has its en- gine frame so mounted on the boiler that expansion and contraction cannot induce stresses in the frame, and other special features are the reverse arrangement of the engine, the arrangement of the rear end of the roller, the scraper rigging and the universal coupling in the steering connections. One size of roller, 12 tons, is built, and in addition to performing its specific function of packing and com- pressing roadbeds or any other earth surface requiring similar treatment, it can be used as a portable power plant and shifted from place to place to drive rock crushers or other machinery. For such purposes a pulley is placed on an extension of the crank shaft on the opposite side of the engine from that shown. Some THE IRON AGE March 24, 1910 The universal coupling in the steering mechanism connects the large steering hand wheel with the steer- ing worm and worm wheel mounted in the oscillating front truck frame and makes possible the application of a positive steering arrangement. The arrangement of the front truck, which is shown in the illustration, consists of a turntable, into which each end of the front roller axle is secured and a frame located above the table and connected thereto by rollers. As the large steering hand wheel is turned from side to side, its movement is corhmunicated to the chain and cable which contro] the turning of the front roller. It is also stated that the new type of construction employed for the front roller increases the stability of the machine, as the center of gravity is lower than in the older type. The short wheel base enables the roller to make very short turns, and with the front truck arrangement there is no risk of upsetting, even when an obstruction such as a large stone is encountered. The change from a road roller to a stationary The New Steam Road Roller Built by the Geiser Mfg. Company, Waynesboro, Pa of the advantages claimed are stability on rough or sloping surfaces, ability to make sharp turns without upsetting, and easy control. The engine is of the double cylinder type which insures positive starting of the roller from any position as soon as the throttle is opened, and the gears trans- mitting the power to the rollers are arranged in the double drive plan, so that an equal amount is trans- mitted to each of the driving rollers. A compensating gear device is also employed, which makes the trans- mission of power certain, even when the roller is mak- ing a turn. The reverse arrangement of the engine enables one eccentric to operate the valves of both cylinders, and is so designed that wear in almost all its parts can be compensated for by the removal of liners. The special arrangement of the rear end, whereby the operator’s platform is located in the rear of the driving rollers, enables the wheels to be set close to the boiler, and affords the advantage of combining the minimum width of tread with the maximum face of the driving rollers, so that the machine can be used on narrow roads. As will be noticed from the illustration, the scrapers are held against the rear rollers by springs actuated by the lever which moves over the toothed arc. This holds the scrapers close against the faces of the rollers, even though the rollers themselves have a slight irregularity of motion due to wear in the axle boxes. power plant is accomplished by attaching a leather covered pulley 15 in. in diameter and having a 9-in. face to the end of the shaft overhanging the roller on the opposite side to that shown. This pulley has a key on its hub which fits the keyway on the shaft and is held in place by a set screw. When in position the inside face of this pulley is only 3% in. from the outer face of the engine shaft box, and is in an excellent position as far as overhang is concerned. The belt is run backward over the left coal box, which is provided with a removable top, to give sufficient space for the belt. It is stated that this change can be made in less than 2 min. by one man. Os In the year ending June 30, 1908, the railroads of the United States paid in wages $1,035,437,582. These figures have been submitted to the Interstate Commerce Commission by the railroads of the country, and, while they have not been made public until now, they will appear in the commission’s report. Most of the year was a panic period, yet the amount paid in wages was a decrease of only 3.44 per cent. from the high record of 1907 and an increase of 9.5 per cent. over 1906. Gross operating revenue decreased $195,299,589, or 7.4 per cent., from 1907. The relatively small decreases in the amount paid to employees is due to the fact that the rate of wages on the railroads was not cut after the 1907 panic. March 24, 1910 Tests with Notched Bars. In the Revue de Metallurgie for February, 1910, is given a short paper on bending tests on notched bars of cast iron, steel and wrought iron. The testing of notched bars by shock has not yet come into commer- cial use, but a great deal of experimental work has been done, and many papers have been read at the meetings of the International Society for Testing Materials since Igol. In Germany particu- larly much progress has been made, and a standard test piece and method of testing have been chosen, based on an elaborate report of Dr. Ehrenberger, of Krupp’s. The results mentioned in the first few lines lack value be- cause the condition and analyses of: the mate- rials tested are not given. Twenty-four bars were tested of each material. They were all 30 x 30 mm. and 160 mm. long. Fifteen were bent stat- ically and the remain- ing nine by shock. Three bars were broken un-notched and for the others four dif- ferent notchings were used, including the standard German prac- tice—namely, a V- shaped notch, 45 de- grees and penetrating half way through the piece. The supports to hold the piece were 120 mm. apart, and _ the edges of the support and the knife edge were rounded to a di- ameter of 2mm. Cer- tain definite facts were brought out: 1. In the breaking by slow pressure (stat- ically) the result is more strongly influ- enced by the shape of the notch than by its depth. 2. For notches of equal depth a V-shaped THE IRON AGE 675 New Springfield Grinders. Three grinding machines have recently been added to the line built by the Springfield Mfg. Company, Bridgeport, Conn. The motor driven surface grinder, Fig. 1, known as the No. 2 automatic planer surfacer, and the No. 3 oscillating surface grinder, Fig. 2, are Fig. 1.—The No. 2 Automatic Planer Surfacer Built by the Springfield Mfg. Company, Bridgeport, Conn. notch gives a lower re- Fig. 2.—The Springfield No. 3 Oscillating Surface Grinder. sult than a round one. 3. The static results and those of shock testing do not bear any simple relation. G. B. W. — LOO 4 The Griffin Wheel Company, manufacturer of chilled iron car wheels, operating seven foundries in various parts of the United States, will move its gen- eral offices, May 1, from the Western Union Building, where they have been located since November, 1888, to the twelfth floor of the new McCormick Building, corner Michigan avenue and Van Buren street, Chi- cago. developments of machines which the company has been building for some years and embody important im- provements. The direct connected motor-driven dry grinder, Fig. 3, is a new type with the company. The automatic planer surfacer is entirely self con- tained and possesses original features. The grinding wheel is driven by a belt from a motor mounted di- rectly above it. Means are provided for keeping the belt under correct working tension. The motor on the uprights reciprocates the platen, operates the feeding movements and also through the lower driving shaft a centrifugal pump for circulating cooling compounds. 676 This particular maching has a capacity to grind 8 ft. long and 24 in. wide, but the type is made in various lengths from 4 to 12 ft., as required. A 3-hp. 230-volt motor drives the wheel head, while that on the up- rights develops 2% hp. The machine carries an emery wheel 12 in. in diameter by 2 in. face, with a 2-in. hub. The oscillating surface grinder, known as the No. 3 automatic, is driven either by rack and gearing, as shown, or by a screw. The wheel, which is 20 in. in diameter by 12 in. face, is carried on a large spindle, running in two phosphor bronze lined boxes, which os- cillate in the saddles mounted on the uprights, the oscil- lating being regulated to suit the width of the work tc be ground by the crank, which gets its power from the upper shaft. The machine is equipped with a fine feed attachment on the right side under the face of the upright. It is provided with a centrifugal pump, which takes care of the cooling compounds. The capacity of this machine is 24 in. wide, 18 in. high and Io ft. long, but this hight is special, the standard dimension under the wheel being 9 in. The type is built to grind in widths from 15 to 30 in. and from 4 to 12 ft. long. The D-M direct connected motor-driven dry grinder shown in Fig. 3 is designed to take a Westinghouse alternating-current 5-hp. motor speeded for wheels 4 X 24 in., of standard design, except that the shaft is of special construction, being fitted to the regular armature and mounted in self-oiling bearings 2 in. in diameter and 8 in. long. A motor of this capacity does not require an expensive starting apparatus, as an ordinary knife switch is sufficient, and one of alternating-current type will give satisfaction when not entirely inclosed, for the reason that there are no Fig. 3.—The Springfield D-M Direct Connected Motor Dry Grinder. Driven delicate parts, such as commutators, to give serious trouble. The Springfield Mfg. Company furnishes this machine with an entirely inclosed motor, if desired, or with a direct-current motor. Om The Lehigh Rim Friction Clutch. A clutch which is especially adapted to high speeds and is suitable for motor drives and machines where a quick acting powerful friction clutch is required is shown in the accompanying illustration. It is made by the Lehigh Clutch Company, Denckla Building, Philadelphia, Pa., and has been named after its manu- facturer. The Lehigh clutch was designed and pat- ented by a practical millwright to overcome the diffi- culties usually encountered in adjusting and repairing friction clutches. The best features of all of these THE IRON AGE March 24, 1910 clutches have been combined and the Lehigh friction clutch has been the result. This clutch is of the opposite jaw type—that is, there are two on each arm which grip the friction ring on the outside and the inside and thus give the type its name. In operation the outer jaw is drawn toward the center of the clutch and the inner one is forced away from it, and the friction ring is gripped between The Rim Friction Clutch Made by the Lehigh Clutch Company, Philadelphia, Pa. them. A separate positive acting lever and link are employed to operate each jaw, which is then connected to the spool by a special turnbuckle. When the shoes wear, this turnbuckle provides a means of adjusting the pairs of jaws. No springs are used to release the clutch, but the jaws are moved from the rim by positive acting levers, which are so proportioned and arranged that the clutch may be engaged and disengaged, it is stated, with less power than any other clutch of equal capacity. The method of adjusting each jaw, either inside or outside, separately without disturbing the other mem- ber of the pair is probably one of the most important features of the clutch. This way the clutch can be easily adjusted, so that each shoe has a positive grip on the rim. Another advantage of this arrangement is that it is possible to renew the wooden shoes or friction blocks when required in a very short time. In the other models of friction clutches, it is stated that it is necessary to dismantle the clutch so that the jaws can be taken off and new shoes fitted and bolted or riveted on. In the Lehigh clutch all that is required is to move the jaws away from the friction ring, loosen the two bolts holding the wooden shoe in place, and slide it along the friction ring until it clears the jaws. The spider, the spool and the jaws are made of a special mixture of cast iron, while the levers operating the jaws and those parts which are subjected to severe strains are made of malleable iron. Each piece of the clutch is finished in jigs, making it interchangeable and easy to replace worn out parts. Twenty-six dif- ferent sizes of clutch are made to transmit from 4 to 128 hp. Thé smallest is a 12-in. clutch, with two arms, and the largest is 36 in. in diameter and has six arms, a OG W. P. Snyder & Co., Shenango Furnace Company, Shenango Steamsh