that in winter they may be had for five dollars; and that sometimes, in that season, when labour is scarce, they work for their board alone.
It is difficult to answer with precision your inquiry as to the average wages of canal labourers. They vary with the seasons, and are still more dependent upon the proportions of labourers to the work required to be done. In the winter season men can be had at $5 a month and found. In some cases I have known them to work a whole winter for merely their food. On the contrary, at the busier periods of the year, $15 to $20 a month have been given when hands were scarce. I incline to think, however, that $10 to $12 a month and found might be taken as a pretty fair average. Contractors, in making their calculations, set down 70 to 75 cents a day for each man employed, including wages and food. This would give about $12 a month as the average of wages.
M. Carey, Esq.
It is important to observe, that in this and similar cases, averages do not afford a fair criterion for a correct decision. This may at first glance appear unsound doctrine, but a very slight reflection will remove all doubt on the subject. Suppose A and B to work, the former at seven dollars, and the latter at ten—the average would be eight and a half. But would it be fair to calculate the capacity of A to support his family by this average? Surely not. The calculation must be made on his actual wages: I will therefore assume ten dollars for ten months, and five dollars for two—and take the case of a labourer with a wife and two children. Many of them have three or four.
| 10 | months at 10 dollars, | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | $100 00 | ||||||||
| 2 | months at 10 dollars, | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 10 00 | ||||||||
| Suppose the wife to earn half a dollar per week, | - | - | - | 26 00 | |||||||||||||
| Total, | - | - | - | - | - | - | 136 00 | ||||||||||
I now submit a calculation of the expenses of such a family, every item of which is at a low rate.
| Shoes and clothes for self and wife, each 12 dollars, | - | - | $24 00 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Washing at the canal, 6¼ cents per week, | - | - | - | - | 3 25 | |||||||||||||||||
| Shoes and clothes for two children, each 8 dollars, | - | - | - | 16 00 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Rent, 50 cents per week, | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 26 00 | ||||||||||||||
| Soap, candles, &c. 6 cents per week, | - | - | - | - | - | 3 12 | ||||||||||||||||
| Fuel, at 12 cents per week, | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 6 24 | ||||||||||||||
| Meat, drink, vegetables, &c. &c. 8 cents per day, each, for wife and | 87 60 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| children, | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | |||||||||||||
| $166 21 | [1] | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Deficit, | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | $30 21 | |||||||||||
This is one of a large class, whom some of our political economists of the new school are not ashamed to stigmatize as worthless and improvident, because they do not, forsooth, save enough out of their miserable wages, to support themselves and families, in times of scarcity, without the aid of benevolent societies; whereas it appears that their wages are inadequate to their support, even when fully employed.
- ↑ Statement in detail of the expenses of such a family per week, exclusive of clothes and rent, which, I trust, will be found moderate.
Bread, - - - - $0.62 12 Salt, pepper, and vinegar, - $0.07 Meat, - - - - 20 Fuel, soap, candles, &c. - 21 Potatoes, - - - - 15 Butter, - - - - 20 Per week, - - - - $1.69 12 Tea, - - - - - 10 Sugar, - - - - 12 Per day, about - - - .24 12 Milk, - - - - - 7
