stated the grounds of that belief. We ask you now, without further delay, to authorize and direct a thorough investigation to produce all the facts. If you find we are right, as we think you will, you can then act to save the situation, while there is yet time.

Gentlemen, in order that the record may be made straight, the American Watch Workers Union today does not desire a quota. We asked for a quota in 1945, for we felt, justifiably so, that the Swiss importers had had free, complete access to the American market during the war years and that the American jeweled-watch manufacturers were entitled to a fair chance to reestablish themselves on the American market. We knew then that Waltham had to reconvert its facilities entirely to the making of watch movements from 17 jewels to 21 jewels in contrast to its prewar manufacturing operation when they manufactured 45 percent of Waltham's production in 7-, 9-, and 15-jewel watch movements, and that they could no longer compete in this field. We knew the problems of reconversion for the American jeweledwatch industry and wanted them to have a chance at the growing American watch market. We failed in that attempt to obtain a fair share of the American market through the use of a fair quota. The State Department failed the American jeweled-watch industry and its employees when it reversed its position of asking the Swiss Government for a quota of 3,000,000 in November 1945, and settled for 7,700,000 in April of 1946, and during 1946 actually 9,037,000 jeweledwatch movements entered the United States.

A quota today would be of no value. All we are asking for is that Swiss watch movements enter the United States in fair competition with United States jeweled watch movements. We want equality in production costs at the border of the United States. There is so much controversy on this matter of Swiss watch imports that we ask of you that you establish this investigating commission so that the facts can be put on record where everyone will know what they are. We know to the best of our knowledge and belief that we are telling the truth; we ask that you bring the importers before such an investigating commission and make them produce the facts and figures which will prove our case.

The national defense of our country is a prime factor in our case. Let anyone disprove it; they cannot.

Table A, which is Swiss watch imports of jeweled watch movements from 1935 to 1948, has eliminated from it all of the zero to one jewel watches, the so-called pin-level watches, and are just those jeweled watch movements which directly compete with the American jeweled watch industry.

The CHAIRMAN. Are there any questions at this time?

Senator SALTONSTALL. Mr. Chairman, I think the only other witness who has come down from Boston on this subject is Mr. Partridge. Mr. CENERAZZo. If I may add one thing more, Senator:

I think it is important that I put into the record at this time that Mr. Carnow, when he appeared for the Bulova watch people, admitted that he did not personally know what the wage rates were in Switzerland. But he said he had some figures from the Swiss Legation, and he said that the average wages as of October of 1947 were "two francs, 92 centimes, which would be about sixty-odd cents an hour."

To quote from the House committee record:

Mr. CURTIS. And you do not know what your wage rates in Switzerland are? Mr. CARNOW. I personally do not know. I have some figures here sent to me by the Swiss Legation, if you want me to quote those, I can quote those. Mr. CURTIS. What are they for?

Mr. CARNOW. They give you the watch industry, skilled workers in October of 1947, which is the last figure they had available.

Mr. CURTIS. What was that?

Mr. CARNOW. Two francs, 92 centimes, which would be about sixty-odd cents an hour.

Now, I would like to point out that from the best figures that we have available, from people who have been in Switzerland—and I have talked with people who have visited there during this last summer-the average wages in Switzerland go from 30 cents an hour for women, to 60 cents an hour for the highly skilled mechanics. Then, to compare that with the minimum rate in the American jeweled watch industry: The minimum expected earned rate at Waltham at 96 cents an hour, $1.04 at Elgin, at Hamilton $1.08, and those rates run all the way up to $1.86 an hour, and some tool and die makers make in excess of that figure. You can see what the differentials are in cost of production there.

I have tried to give you gentlemen as best I know the information, and I have tried to be as factual as I know how, and I hope we can get an investigation for the benefit of the industry.

I would like to point out that the next witness who is going to speak, Mr. Partridge, has written some articles for one of the newspapers in which he deprecates Waltham. Mr. Partridge is a former employee of Waltham, but he has not been inside that plant for a number of years.

He has established a good plan for a horological institute, with which we are in sympathy. But there are not the finances in the American jeweled-watch industry to cover such a plan, and the employees do not have the funds to finance such a plan.

And as far as his knowing what has happened in the last few years at Waltham, he doesn't know. He doesn't know the amount of energy and effort that has been put into making the Waltham watch movement the precision movement it is.

I hope he will take into consideration the fact that Waltham is being reorganized, and that the entire community is being asked to buy stock in that company so that we can reestablish it.

The CHAIRMAN. Thank you very much.

Senator MILLIKIN. Mr. Chairman, may I ask the Tariff Commission gentlemen if they have any data on costs of production in Switzerland; or rather, the wages paid to watchmakers in Switzerland? If there is any data of that kind, may I ask that a statement including such data be submitted to the committee?

Mr. CENERAZZo. Mr. Chairman, we have in every country, under the State Department, a labor attaché. That labor attaché should be able to get that information very rapidly and see to it that it gets into this committee before the hearing is adjourned, if the request is made of the State Department.

The CHAIRMAN. Mr. Brown is here from the State Department. Can you supply the figure requested by Senator Millikin of the Tariff Commission?

Mr. BROWN. I don't know whether we can or not, sir, but I will look into it and give you the best information we can get.

The CHAIRMAN. If you can, please give us those figures as early as possible.

Mr. BROWN. We do not have a labor attaché in Switzerland.

The CHAIRMAN. You have none in Switzerland?

Mr. BROWN. No, sir.

Mr. CENERAZzo. Mr. Chairman, I would like to say that that is one place where they could really accomplish something with a labor attaché, and it seems to me they should send one there quickly to get those figures.

(The information requested is as follows:)

COMPARISON OF WAGE RATES IN THE AMERICAN AND SWISS JEWELED WATCH MANUFACTURING INDUSTRIES

This information was obtained from La Vie Economique, July 1948, p. 237, which is published monthly by the Swiss Federal Department of Public Economy. Wages have increased since these rates were assembled (1947), but no official figures reflecting the rise have been published.

United States

Average hourly earnings, clock and watch workers_

$1.264

Voluntary wage rate information received by the Department of Labor is considered confidential and cannot be released without the written permission of the companies concerned except as a part of a division total. This latest United States figure is from the Monthly Labor Review, January 1949, p. 110. The most current, although unofficial, information on wage rates in the two countries may be found in the testimony given during the recent hearings before the House Ways and Means Committee. The president of a company owning plants in both Switzerland and the United States testified as to the wages paid employees for similar work in the two plants (pp. 708, 709). Page 518 of the same hearings offers a statement of the average wages paid by one particular domestic jeweled watch manufacturing company.

No official complete break-down and comparison by job skills is available at the present time.

Senator SALTONSTALL. May I say that Mr. Partridge is a distinguished Boston jeweler. As far as I know, he has no connection with Waltham. He asked me for the opportunity to testify on this subject, and I present him as one of the leaders of a very old Boston firm. The CHAIRMAN. We would be glad to hear you now, Mr. Partridge, if you wish to make your statement.

We have one other witness, who is anxious to get away about 4 o'clock. I thought perhaps we might adjourn and come back. However, we will hear you now.

86697-49-pt. 1. -23

STATEMENT OF HAROLD T. PARTRIDGE, RETAIL JEWELER,

BOSTON, MASS.

Mr. PARTRIDGE. Mr. Chairman, I am not going to take very long. The CHAIRMAN. I understand yours is a brief statement.

Senator MILLIKIN. Mr. Chairman, may I interject for just a moment?

The CHAIRMAN. Senator Millikin.

Senator MILLIKIN. I have been informed, and I hope that some witness from the State Department or somebody else will later meet the point, that in the negotiation of our reciprocal trade agreement with Switzerland, the Swiss watch manufacturers were a part of the negotiating panels, or at least were kept very closely and currently informed as to what was going on; whereas our watch manufacturers were completely excluded from anything of that kind.

The CHAIRMAN. Mr. Brown, please note that, and have a witness who participated in the negotiation of the Swiss trade agreement come before us, if one is available in the Department at this time.

Mr. BROWN. I will get the facts on that for you, sir.
The CHAIRMAN. All right, Mr. Partridge.

Mr. PARTRIDGE. My name is Harold T. Partridge. I am in the retail jewelry business in Boston, Mass. It is a pleasure to appear before your committee on a matter affecting the American watch industry, of which I have been a part since 1910. I believe my 16 years as a watchmaker, combined with 23 years in the retail jewelry business, leaves certain facts in my mind, which I surely feel should be of some consideration.

I am not employed by any watch company, and I am not employed by any jewelers' association. I was at one time president of the Massachusetts and Rhode Island Retail Jewelers Association. I came here on my own to present this idea to you gentlemen, and I have had good reception on this idea from very important men, such as the dean of engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

As I said, I worked 16 years as a watchmaker, and I was in the Waltham Watch Co. for 12 years.

We have read over a period of years many arguments on the protective tariff on watches. This is an old subject with many of us as I well remember the tariff question of previous years. There can be no doubt of the present need of a tariff for the protection of the American watch manufacturers. They are in a bad position, gentlemen, and it is claimed that the three American manufacturers make and sell only 12 out of every 100 watches sold in the United States. That was quoted in the newspapers sometime ago, and figures were quoted before a committee here in Washington. That means 88 watches that are sold out of every 100, gentlemen, are Swiss-made watches.

We must remember that during the war period the American watch manufacturers were almost wholly on war work, and are really just getting started again.

I am here to ask for a tariff, gentlemen, but a tariff combined with a plan designed for the not too distant future when the American watch industry will be able to stand on its own feet. And I think the figures show that they are rather weak just now.

I have the plan, which I have advocated for several years. I have taken this up with Elgin, Waltham, and Hamilton. It is a very simple plan and calls for the establishment of a chair of advanced. horology similar to the Swiss plan, with perhaps some Swiss help, where watch engineering and machine designing will be taught to a few bright prospects, most of them selected, probably by the watch manufacturers themselves. And, of course, this attractive course should find others willing to consider it. It would be useless, in my estimation, to adjust a tariff wall, as has been done in the past, just simply a tariff wall, because the three American manufacturers, judging by past experience, would not take advantage of the situation.

At the time of the Payne-Aldrich tariff bill-which is ancient history, but not too ancient for me to remember-the provisions of the tariff were almost wholly written by Romney Spring, a Boston lawyer, who at the time was on the Waltham Watch Co. pay roll. I talked with him last week and have permission to use his name here. He is available if you gentlemen want to get in contact with him.

Now, of course, this was good legislation and smart protection, but the weakness was that the American manufacturers did nothing to improve their competitive position. They sat back and manufactured watches behind this tariff wall. And I am afraid that is what they will do again if they get a tariff without some strings tied to it. They have been down here several times since, and have asked for tariff protection. This is just one of the times.

The American manufacturers have many complaints, one of their chief complaints being that the State Department failed to make necessary arrangements whereby Swiss watchmaking machinery can be leased to them at favorable terms. This is very true. Where the Swiss may purchase our heavy machinery, they are reluctant to sell to the American manufacturers the complicated machinery for the making of the many small parts necessary to the manufacture of watches.

The Swiss, due to the national set-up, are in an enviable position. Negotiations between our State Department and the Swiss have been dragging along for some time, and I feel quite sure the dragging is not all the fault of the State Department.

I have advocated a program whereby the three American watch manufacturers could combine to form an association, with the object of establishing a chair of advanced horology, not watchmaking but advanced horology, at some such institution as MIT. I mention MIT because it is near to me, and I know quite a few professors there and this watchmaking thing which the watchmakers try to tell you is so complicated is just a matter of engineering.

I worked in many watch factories for many years as a boy or as a young man, and these old-time watchmakers all tried to make you think it was something they just brought out of the air, something that they had to get by working at for a long, long time. But the real situation is somewhat different.

The American watch industry has been very dependent upon the Swiss for horology engineers and designers, and almost wholly dependent upon itself for the development of watchmaking machinery. A chair of advanced horology which, as I suggest, would, in time, eliminate this trouble; for surely the American engineers could de