LEAST WORK NO PAY.

Timaru Herald, Volume LVIII, Issue 1658, 11 January 1895, Page 4

LEAST WORK NO PAY.

No more striking example of the wide difference that exists between the pay received for services rendered by the capitalist and by the skilled workman can, we think, be . found than m the successful floating of the last loan issued by the United States ■■'Treasury. This loan, it will be remembered, was issued a few days ago to a syndicate of bankers at a price which, after all reasonable expenses of handling the bonds, cost this syndicate about 118. Other bids were received at a higher figure, and had time been allowed the public would probably have taken up the whole loan at a considerable advance on the price received from the bankers. But this time was not granted, and as the syndicate's bid was for all or none, the whole £10,000,000 of five per cent, bonds were sold to them. The following day, one-tenth of this sum was offered to the public at 119 and oversubscribed. Then another one- tenth was offered at 119£. That, too, has been taken, and the prospect is that the whole £10,000,000 of bouds will be sold by this small group of bankers with a profit of at iesist one and a half per cent., or about £150,000. Tlie syndicate may be taken as composed of about thirty men, partners m the Various banking houses. The transaction has been so quickly made and closed that the interest on the transaction cuts little figure. These thirty bankers had;>sayi, six consultations of three hours each to arrange the transaction ; or, we may put it, did eighteen hours of what they would call "work," and for these eighteen hours of work the thirty men are paid £150,000. Now let us look at the other side of the picture ; see how long it would take Labour to earn this sum. Thirty skilled workmen, we will say, each earning £3 a week, would have to work, without one holiday or day off for sickness, for thirtytwo years to earn what these thirty bankers earned m practically two days. Another point of view. The total wage of 150,000 skilled workmen at 10s a day for two days would equal £150,000, or the exact sum earned by the thirty capitalists by working the same number of days. But there is one very important point which must not be overlooked. What have the thirty bankers added to the general product, the real wealth of. the world, m exchange for this "wage" of £150,000? Nothing; ■■'hot one bushel of wheat, bale of, cotton, ton. of coals, bar of iron, or manufactured article that will increase the comforts o_r aid m sustaining the life of one individual. ; On the other hand, think of the vast product resulting, from the work of thirty skilled labourers for thirty- two years, or 150,000 skilled workers m. two days! These thirty capitalists, standing between a Government of the people which must sell its securities, , and a people ready and willing to buy them, has been able to levy this princely tribute — owing to the unique position and power granted Capital by law and custom — from an army of workers, citizens, and taxpayers, creators of wealth and property. This, too, remember, has taken place m a land of so-called equal rights, and where, theoretically, every worker stands on the same footing with eveiy capitalist. Does it hot show, as clearly as any object lesson can show, that money, originally created to facilitate barter or the change of products between producer and consumer, to be m fact their common Beryant, has come to be their 'master ; a tyrant" wlio, without right or reason, levies tribute from both producer and consumer^— (Daily Chronicle.') ' '•'