For females the range is from $5.00 to $15.00, sixteen out of the twenty-two firms reporting wages from $7.50 to $10.00.

The total number of adult male employees of high-grade skill is given as 1,279 males and 587 females. The nationality of 1,261 males is noted as 27.8 per cent foreign born and 72.2 per cent American born; of the females 15.3 per cent are noted as foreign born and 84.7 per cent as American born. The weekly wage of the greatest number of adult male employees in this high-grade class range from $15.00 to $24.00, ten firms out of twenty-two reporting wages ranging from $18.00; for females the range is from $6.00 to $14.00, eleven of the seventeen firms reporting wages from $9.00 to $10.00.

Twelve firms report employees under 16 years of age with a total of sixteen males and forty females.

A total of 40 males and 116 females employed under 18 years of age are reported in the low-grade class of whom 31 males and 91 females are 16 or 17 years of age. The preferred age for beginners in this class ranges from 16 years to 19 years for males and from 16 years to 18 years for females; out of fourteen firms reporting for males, five give 16 years and six give 17 years; for females out of twenty-two firms reporting thirteen give 16 years. The weekly wage paid such beginners ranges from $4.00 to $9.50 for males, and from $2.00 to $6.00 for females; for males, eleven firms out of • fourteen reporting give wages from $4.00 to $5.00; for females, eleven out of twenty-two firms reporting give wages of $4.00. The average time required for male beginners to gain full wages in low-grade work ranges from one year to six years, three firms of the twelve reporting three years and three giving four years; for females the range is from one year to four years, five of the twenty firms reporting one year, six giving two years and four giving three years. Eighteen firms report that employees of low-grade skill have opportunities to advance to high-grade work and three firms report the contrary.

Twelve firms report apprentices or beginners under 18 years of age that are being trained for work of high-grade skill with a total of 78 males and 51 females.

One firm reports that all and ten that a majority of their skilled employees. are trained in their own establishments; three firms report that all and nine that a majority of such employees are obtained from other sources; these other sources are reported by two firms as trade unions, and by ten firms as advertising. Eleven firms report that they have difficulty either in obtaining or training skilled employees; eleven firms report no difficulty.

Six report that the apprenticeship system meets the need for skilled employees in their business; eleven firms report the contrary; nine firms report that the reason the apprenticeship system does not meet the need is because of restrictions of the number of apprentices allowed by trade unions. Nine firms state that the restrictions of number of apprentices by trade unions prevent them from employing as many apprentices as they would otherwise employ; seven firms report that they are not affected by such restrictions; eleven firms report that they are employing the full number of apprentices allowed by union rules; one firm reports in the negative.

Fifteen firms representing 2,364 employees report that the efficiency and future opportunities of their employees would be increased if they were

given a training between the ages of 14 and 16 in a general public industrial or preparatory trade school which should aim to give a knowledge of materials, shop mathematics and fundamental industrial methods, and some ideas of industrial organization but not teach a special trade; six firms representing 1,156 employees answer this question in the negative. Fifteen firms representing 2,418 employees state that practical day trade schools, giving a specialized training of one year or more after the age of 16, would help to meet the problem of skilled employees in their business; five firms representing 932 employees answer this question in the negative. Representatives of ten firms state that in their judgment the last mentioned schools could be advantageously administered by the State or community at public expense and operated on a non-commercial product; representatives of nine firms answer this question in the negative. Representatives of thirteen firms state that in their judgment such schools would be practical if conducted by industrial establishments or a combination of such establishments and operated en a commercial product; representatives of five firms answer this question in the negative. Sixteen firms report that practical evening, or part time, trade schools would be of value in helping unskilled workers, or those of lowgrade skill, to advance to positions requiring high-grade skill; seven firms answer this question in the negative.

BLANK BOOK MANUFACTURE.

Blank book manufacture is a trade employing relatively lowgrade skill.

Girls and women perform the work of gathering, counting, sewing, forwarding, operating wire staple machines, paging, indexing and wrapping, while the printing, ruling, case-making and case finishing are done by men.

Girls become skilled in some one branch in a year or more. wrappers represent a high degree of skill.

The

Machines are constantly being introduced in this industry that lessen the nced for skill on the part of women workers.

The printers, rulers and casemakers work under much the same conditions as in book and job printing establishments.

Returns were obtained from five establishments, of which three are in New York City and two in other parts of the State. The largest number of persons employed in the manufacturing departments of these establishments during 1907 was 576 males and 608 females; the smallest, 442 males and 397 females.

The length of the working day varies from nine hours to ten hours, three firms giving nine hours.

The total number of adult skilled employees is given as 401 males and 598 females. The nationality of the males is noted as 37.9 per cent foreign born and 62.1 per cent American born; of the females, 4.8 per cent are noted as foreign born and 95.2 per cent as American born. The weekly

wage of the greatest number of adult male employees in this class ranges from $10.00 to $15.00, four of the five firms reporting wages of $10.00; for females the range is from $6.00 to $7.50, two out of the four firms reporting wages of $6.00.

Two firms report employees under 16 years of age with a total of 15 males and 22 females.

A total of 16 males and 30 females employed under 18 years of age are reported in the low-grade class of whom one male and eight females are 16 or 17 years of age. The preferred age for beginners in this class ranges from 14 years to 19 years for males and from 14 years to 17 years for females; out of five firms reporting for males two give 17 years; for females out of five firms reporting three give 17 years. The weekly wage paid such beginners ranges from $3.50 to $8.00 for males, and from $3.50 to $4.00 for females; for males, three firms out of five reporting give wages from $3.50 to $4.20; for females, three out of five firms reporting give wages of $4.00. The average time required for male beginners to gain full wages in lowgrade work ranges from one and one-half to five years, three firms of the five reporting two and one-half to three years; for females the range is from one year to five years, two of the five firms reporting one year, one giving twoand one-half years, one giving three years and one giving five years.

Two firms report that all and one that a majority of their skilled employees are trained in their own establishments; one firm reports that all and one that a majority of such employees are obtained from other sources; these other sources are reported by one firm as advertising and by one firm as application. Two firms report that they have difficulty either in obtaining or training skilled employees; three firms report no difficulty.

Two firms report that the apprenticeship system meets the need for skilled employees in their business; three firms report the contrary; two firms report that the reason the apprenticeship system does not meet the need is inability to secure good material as apprentices; one firm reports the inability to retain apprentices until they have finished their apprenticeship as the cause. No firm states that the restrictions of number of apprentices by trade unions prevent them from employing as many apprentices as they would otherwise employ.

Three firms representing 822 employees report that the efficiency and future opportunities of their employees would be increased if they were given a training between the ages of 14 and 16 in a general public industrial or preparatory trade school which should aim to give a knowledge of materials, shop mathematics and fundamental industrial methods, and some ideas of industrial organization but not teach a special trade; two firms representing 362 employees answer this question in the negative. Three firms representing 822 employees state that practical day trade schools, giving a specialized training of one year or more after the age of 16, would help to meet the problem of skilled employees in their business; two firms representing 362 employees answer this question in the negative. Representatives of one firm state that in their judgment the last mentioned schools could be advantageously administered by the State or community at public expense and operated on a non-commercial product; representatives of two firms answer this question in the negative. Representatives of no firms state that in their judgment such schools would be practical if conducted by industrial estab

lishments or a combination of such establishments and operated on a commercial product; representatives of three firms answer this question in the negative. Three firms report that practical evening, or part time, trade schools would be of value in helping unskilled workers, or those of lowgrade skill, to advance to positions requiring high-grade skill; two firms answer this question in the negative.

PAPER BOXES.

The manufacture of paper boxes is a trade employing large numbers of women and girls and requires for the most part either unskilled or low-grade skilled workers. A brief training of two to six weeks suffices to learn the simpler operations.

Both hand and machine work enter into the making of most paper boxes. The handwork operations include glueing, pasting and turning-in, all of which are performed by women or girls, and running the glue table, which is done by men. The machines are strippers by which the box is covered with a strip of pasted paper, stay machines which place stay pieces on the ends, cutting machines and end setting machines. The first two machines are commonly operated by women and the last two by men.

Boys start in as errand and chore boys and are later given the work of glueing boards together, and of operating the simpler hand and power machines. They may eventually become cutters. who represent the highest grade of skill. Girls begin as helpers or tenders for the operators and are gradually allowed to operate the machines and progress to strippers.

Automatic machinery is constantly doing away with the need of highly skilled hand workers, although the finest boxes are still finished entirely by hand and help competent for this work is hard to secure in times of special demand.

Returns were obtained from twenty-one establishments, ten of which are in New York City and eleven in other parts of the State. The largest number of persons employed in the manufacturing departments of these establishanents during 1907 was 1,149 males and 3,820 females; the smallest, 791 males and 2,212 females.

The length of the working day varies from eight hours to ten hours, eleven firms giving ten hours and eight firms nine hours; the length of day for females has the same range, eleven firms give nine hours and 8 firms ten hours.

The total number of unskilled adult employees is given as 484 males and 2,683 females. The nationality of the males is noted as 37.4 per cent foreign born and 62.6 per cent American born; of the females 11.7 per cent

are noted as foreign born and 88.3 per cent as American born. The weekly wage of the greatest number of adult male employees in this unskilled class ranges from $6.00 to $12.00, nine of the seventeen firms reporting wages ranging from $7.00 to $8.00; for females the range is from $3.00 to $8.00, seventeen out of the twenty firms reporting wages from $4.00 to $6.00.

The total number of adult male employees of low or medium-grade skill is given as 626 males and 1,113 females. The nationality of the males is noted as 22.2 per cent foreign born and 77.8 per cent American born; of the females, 13.6 per cent are noted as foreign born and 86.4 per cent as American born. The weekly wage of the greatest number of adult male employees in this class ranges from $8.00 to $21.00, eleven firms out of twenty reporting wages ranging from $10.00 to $14.00; for females the range is from $5.00 to $11.00, fourteen of the eighteen firms reporting wages from $6.50 to $10.00.

Fifteen firms report employees under 16 years of age with a total of 30 males and 120 females. The effect of the law that went into operation October first, 1906, relating to the hours of employment of boys and girls under 16 years of age is reported as follows: Five establishments not affected, seven establishments have discharged employees under sixteen amounting to 24 boys and 71 girls and six establishments have ceased to employ children under that age.

A total of 109 males and 346 females employed under 18 years of age are reported in the unskilled class of whom 79 males and 239 females are 16 or 17 years of age. The preferred age for beginners in this class ranges from 14 years to 18 years for males and from 14 years to 17 years for females; out of nineteen firms reporting for males eleven given 16 years; for females out of twenty-one firms reporting seventeen give 16 years. The weekly wage paid such beginners ranges from $3.50 to $9.00 for males, and from $3.00 to $6.00 for females; for males fourteen firms out of nineteen reporting give wages from $4.00 to $6.00; for females, fourteen out of twenty-one firms reporting give wages from $3.50 to $4.50. Nineteen firms report that unskilled employees have opportunities to advance to skilled work and no firms report the contrary.

Four firms report that all and eleven that a majority of their skilled employees are trained in their own establishments; six firms report that a majority of such employees are obtained from other sources; these other sources are reported. by nine firms as advertising and by three firms as application. Eleven firms report that they have difficulty either in obtaining or training skilled employees; eight firms report no difficulty.

Twelve firms representing 3,785 employees report that the efficiency and future opportunities of their employees would be increased if they were given a training between the ages of 14 and 16 in a general public industrial or preparatory trade school which should aim to give a knowledge of materials, shop mathematics and fundamental industrial methods, and some ideas of industrial organization but not teach a special trade; eight firms representing 1,004 employees answer this question in the negative. Eleven firms representing 3,652 employees state that practical day trade schools, giving a specialized training of one year or more after the age of 16, would help to meet the problem of skilled employees in their business; nine firms representing 1,137 employees answer this question in the negative. Representatives of seven firms