pursuits were in a state of turmoil would, in the nature of things, be misleading. Only after things had settled down and economic life, though working along quite different lines, had regained a certain amount of steadiness, may figures be considered as sufficiently reliable to form something like an approximate idea of the displacement which the labor forces of the empire have undergone.

If we take the average of the figures published at different times in the year 1915 we gain the following picture of proportional monthly changes of male and female labor in the chief branches of industry:

dustry, metal and machine works, food factories; a decrease of female hands took place in the weaving and clothing industries. The order in which these branches rank as regards employment of labor gives an interesting indication of the present needs of the German Empire.

Another table is of interest because it comprises all of those insured against sickness, not confining itself to the abovementioned branches of economic life. It is a comparison of the changes in male and female labor employment in the months of 1914 preceding the war and the corresponding months of the year 1915:

4.96

+9.18

100

+ 4.65

9.25

February

102

115

99

100.8.

2.40

0.42

March

7.53

3.85

128

95.7 110.6

Average

Keeping in mind that, of course, a multitude of various factors is constantly influencing the fluctuating movement of labor in these times, nevertheless, if we apply the above figures to the whole year, we arrive at the probably not very inaccurate result that in the course of 1915 male labor in the chief branches of industry decreased about 25 per cent. and that female labor increased by 43 per cent. The disparity between increase and decrease would indicate that the individual activities had been intensified by 18 per cent. through the immediate needs of war. But in this connection it must not be forgotten that experience shows that female labor is not a full equivalent of male labor and that an increase in hands does not signify a corresponding increase in production.

If we analyze the figures given above a little more closely to see how the various branches were influenced by the war, we find that as regards the degree of the decrease of male labor they rank as follows: Foodstuffs with the heaviest decrease, then electrical goods, clothing and textile products; the metal and chemical industries experienced an increase in male workers despite the war. On the other hand, as regards the increase of women workers, the order is the following: Electrical industry, chemical in

July

Taking the active labor forces on Jan. 1 of the two years as represented by the index figure 100 we see that while in 1914 there was a steady increase of male and female workers, in 1915 the male workers dropped to 95.7 while the female workers increased to 110.6.

A problem which is causing a good deal of speculation among German exponents of women's rights is the one of the pay which the female worker is to receive in places where she is expected to fill the man's post. The question as to how this problem has been handled in Germany is difficult to answer in a few words, because in many cases the woman has not taken the man's place to perform an identical task. In most cases, as a matter of fact, the work the woman is called upon to do is one newly created by the war, and it therefore does not admit of an exact comparison with the work of the man and the wages he received for it. Most of the factories in times of peace did not think of making supplies for the There were special factories for this purpose, but these are now unable to satisfy the demand. The abundance of female workers, especially at the outbreak of the war, caused the ammunition industry to employ large numbers of these workers and this at first cut down the wages. This condition was, however,

army.

alleviated gradually. Propagandists for women's rights point out with some justice that it should not be forgotten that the female labor in the factories working for the defense of the country is now of great value, because there are not enough male workers and because the demand must be met in the country itself.

Though a general comparison between the wages of men and women for the same work is difficult to make for the above-mentioned reasons, it has been ascertained by the investigations of the trade union of the German machine-construction and metal workers that only in very few cases are the wages of the women as high as those of the men.

In the Upper Silesian foundries the wages of the women are in a ratio of 1 to 3 to those of the men, more rarely in that of 1 to 2, and they are never the same. The wages of women vary considerably even in the same place and also for the same work, ranging from 21 pfennigs (5 cents) to 35 pfennigs (9 cents) an hour.

Weekly wages vary considerably in different parts of the country. There are wages of 9 marks a week in the East. They rise in the West to 27-30 marks. They differ, of course, according to the age and ability of the worker.

In piece-work the difference in the wages of men and women is even more evident. The rates per piece of work are throughout lower for women than for men. A foundry in Mannheim pays women 2.50 marks (62 cents) per 100 bullet cores, while men receive 3.50 marks, (87 cents.) A Dresden firm pays women 65 pfennigs for 100 pieces of a certain article, whereas men receive 95 pfennigs. In a Berlin firm the rates for piece-work are from 25 to 40 per cent. lower than for the men, and in another firm in Berlin the difference is as much as 50 per cent. In short, in most cases female labor receives much lower pay than male labor.

Into the problem of pay enters one that was already touched upon above, that of the comparative efficiency of men and women as industrial workers. The question is, in other words, has woman, replacing man as a factory

worker, been a success as far as her present employment in Germany is concerned?

While the problem is one of immediate interest in its relation to and effect on the question of present wages, it is not only one of passing importance, but one which touches questions of fundamental and permanent bearing on the economic structure of the empire; and it has consequently at once been taken up by those branches which have been most seriously influenced by the invasion of female labor. The metal industry has circularized its members on the question into which the problem in the first instance resolves itself, the question, namely, whether the female workers in the metal industry are able to carry out the work now intrusted to them as well as the men in regard to quantity as well as quality of the product. Of 119 answers to the question of quantity 58 were in the affirmative and 48 in the negative. In 4 cases the women are said to do more work than the men, and in 9 cases to accomplish the same amount only in part. The reasons for this are not difficult to find. In most cases the female workers perform purely mechanical work at machines which are set ready for them by men. They have, therefore, chiefly to watch the machine; here and there the women may show greater dexterity in this than the men.

In regard to the quality of the work, 83 out of 130 answers indicate that the women's work is on a par with that of the men. Thirty-six answers deny this, while 10 indicate only a partial equality, and in one case the work is said to be superior.

Answers to the circular indicate that although in the majority of cases the increase in female labor in the metal industry is due to the scarcity of male workers, the lower wages of female hands also come in as a factor. In 85 cases the lack of male workers is given as the reason for the increase in female labor, in 19 cases the lower wages, and in 15 cases both reasons. In the answers received it is frequently pointed out that unemployed able men were rejected and women employed on account of the lower

wages. A large metal factory in Westphalia employs men for daily wages, whereas the women have been given the more lucrative piece-work.

In most places where there is a scarcity of male workers, and where female workers must be employed, the wives and daughters of the former employes are given first consideration. There cannot be any difference of opinion on the desirability of such an arrangement.

The only question is, what will happen after the war? This question is already being discussed from the point of view that with the return to the normal conditions there must be no bitter rivalry between male and female workers. But apart from that, will the women who entered into vocations previously the exclusive domain of man have to give up the positions they have conquered during the war when normal conditions prevail again? Many of them will, of course, desire, when the tasks enforced upon them by dire necessity are done, to revert with renewed zeal to the duties which from time immemorial have been considered as the natural province of woman. Others may wish to and may have to retain their new activity, since so many positions will not be filled again by those who held them before the war, and so many men will be required along other lines of reconstructive work that the call for female help will probably remain great for a long while to come.

Still, there are vocations which are essentially male, and will ever be so, since they are too exacting, and the continued activity of the female population in them would eventually prove hurtful to the nation. This is true of work in iron factories-the so-called heavy iron

industry—and in mines. Women are not allowed to work in the latter in peace, and even in war they have only by special legislation been admitted to the overground work. The Reichstag has already discussed this matter, and the Government is in accord with the representatives that in such branches as are particularly apt to be deleterious to a woman's health the previously existing protective legislation is to be reinstated as soon as peace returns.

In the meantime the German women proceed quietly along their arduous path of "quiet heroism" and are not behind the men in their determination to bring the war to a victorious conclusion.

Helene Lange, one of Germany's standard bearers for women's rights, says:

"No German woman wants peace if by gaining it the life of her Fatherland is to be hemmed in and restricted. Not one wishes a peace which will not bring us what we must have-security for the active development of German ability, room for the flowing stream of German kultur, firm ground for all the peaceful conquest of the world which is possible for the German spirit of science, the technical arts, or social and economic organization. If the question is 'War, or a permanent check to German development-death or a German life in chains,' the answer of the German women is, without a moment's reflection, 'War and death.' Small everyday cares and everyday happiness vanish when measured by great suffering and great exaltation. All of those who have gone through our experiences feel that there is also a victory over death, that there are possessions for which life is not too high a price, and that greatness is more than happiness."

AR

BRITISH commission sent to France by Lord Murray and Mr. Lloyd George to study the methods of manufacturing war munitions in that country has recently made a noteworthy report, which throws a white light upon the self-sacrificing patriotism with which the women of France are wearing out their lives in that work. "The country needs me" is the keynote of the factories as it is of the trenches, and the bulk of the work in these factories is now done by women of all classes.

One section of the British report contains a table showing the present and former occupations of France's munition makers. In one factory the forty-one women now engaged in boring are composed of fifteen housewives, one corsetière, twenty factory girls, four mechanics, and one florist. Fuses are being made in the same factory by 848 women, of whom 470 were formerly makers of breeches, seamstresses and milliners, 125 clerks, 125 housewives, and 75 factory girls, while 53 had no profession previous to their present arduous labors.

Women who were formerly dressmakers, children's nurses, weavers, tulle makers, cashiers, hairdressers, and typists also are among the thousands upon thousands of those who are now turning out the food for the weapons of France. For The average pay per day is: laborers, 6.01 francs, (a little more than $1.20;) for machine men, 10.42 francs, (a little more than $2;) for skilled workers, 12.23 francs, (about $2.50;) for females a minimum of 3.53 francs, (a little more than 60 cents;) mean wage, 5.95, (about $1.20.)

The purpose of the commission was to study the underlying causes of the greatly increased output of munitions in France. Their main answer to the "why" of this remarkable increase is summed up in their tribute to the patriot

ism of the women. Technically, however, they cite three main causes-increasing intensity of production, erection of new factories and extension of existing plants; adaptation of other kinds of factories to the manufacture of munitions.

"As the war proceeded," says the mission's report in explaining these factors, "the French Nation has settled down with a determination and feeling of set purpose to the fulfillment of the task allotted to it. There is no question that the nation is at war and the dominant sentiment, not only of the men but also of the women, is to carry the war to a successful termination. Everything else is subordinated to this determination.

"Women, of whom many thousands are employed in munitions factories, work with a good-will which is most impressive; this spirit is also evident in the case of male workers."

There is no jealousy on the part of the Frenchmen, no ill-will over woman's encroachment on what once was man's own realm. On the contrary, the investigators found that the men have welcomed the assistance of the fair sex and are aiding them in every way possible. The report points out the significance of -this fact, inasmuch as the introduction of women in the munitions work was aimed not only at increasing the output but also at freeing the men for military service.

Whether through well-calculated intention or not, the British mission's report conveys between the lines some striking contrasts between the never-tiring willingness on the part of all France to lighten the heavy burden of the country, no matter what the cost, and the apathetic attitude of certain classes in Great Britain in the face of the nation's call, especially during the earlier phases. of war. The commission says:

"Although prior to the war the usual labor troubles were experienced, no strike

has taken place since the commencement of hostilities.

"No applications for general advances in wages have been made by the work people since the commencement of the war."

To those who last Fall, before the Damocles sword of the military service bill was hung out over the heads of the masses of of unwilling, witnessed the troubles and riots in the coal mines of South Wales, these statements, made under the names of a commission of highly respected and responsible British investigators, sound like rebukes whose keynote seems to be "Look at France."

French capitalists have not lagged behind the working classes in the demonstration of real, practical patriotism. "It is remarkable," says the report, "that the erection and equipment of new factories resorted to in great measure are due to private enterprise. No factories have been subsidized by the Government, nor have loans of any kind been made to the owners."

There are in the Paris district alone 1,800 small producers for machine operations. The vast majority of these are now working day and night for the Government, under sub-contract, the main contractor making no profit out of the work sub-contracted. Many small shops are manned by various members of a family and work day and night shifts.

Thus the British visitors found the day shift superintended by the father and daughter and the night shift by the mother and son. The meagre proportions and the poor equipment of this, as of thousands of other shops, the report says, were overcome "no doubt by the spirit which dominated every one employed in it."

In another case, a very small shop, the work had been superintended by the

wife of the owner, who was serving in the army. The woman worked herself

to death, and the husband was ordered back from the army to continue the work she had been doing.

As to the standard number of hours, it can hardly be said that there is such a thing in France today. There is a break of about two hours at noon, which enables the women to look after the meals and comfort their children at home.

In most cases the shifts change over every fortnight, and on the change the work people get twenty-four hours off. No difference is made on Saturdays, the same hours being worked as on other week days. In some cases no work is done on Sundays after noon. In most cases women work the same hours as men, allowance being made, however, for the time spent on tramway journeys, to avoid congestion.

While thus far women have worked mostly only at day time, they will, to a large extent, soon be engaged on night shifts as well. The report continues:

"The opinion in the French factories is that the output of females on small work equals and in some cases exceeds that of men, and in the case of heavier work, within certain limits, women are of practically the same value as men.

It

"It has to be kept in mind that physical considerations limit the range of work which may be done by women. was noticed, however, that part of the work done by women involved greater strain than might be thought reasonable in this country."

Of the "general conclusions" cited by the commission, the following stands out as bearing out every word of the report:

"It appears to the mission that the increase of production in France is due to one cause, and one only, and that is the patriotic enthusiasm which exists there."