Page:American Journal of Sociology Volume 3.djvu/386

 37 2 THE AMERICAN JOURNAL OF SOCIOLOGY

1 6 to those under 14, to be in Lowell 17 to i, in Lawrence 22 to I, in Holyoke 19 to I, in Springfield 122 to I, in Cambridge 1 5 to I, and in Boston 1 1 to I. Only in New Bedford do we find conditions as to the employment of children anything like those existing in Fall River. In this city we find 331 children under 14 and 373 from 14 to 1 6 while in Fall River the proportion was 765 of the former and 749 of the latter age.

Possibly the writer is mistaken in the conclusion which he draws from the figures of the Massachusetts inspectors, report and those of the census that they demonstrate a very consider- able increase instead of decrease in the proportion of child workers for the Massachusetts statistics may not be representa- tive. He has, however, resorted to the only method at his command of ascertaining the truth. As an investigation regard- ing this matter has been made by the government at a very con- siderable expense the public is entitled to the information. Is this suppression of the facts a part of the same plan to mislead the public that seems to have been adopted by Colonel Wright in his Atlantic Monthly article in which to demonstrate the improved condition of the working people he compares statistics of annual earnings the incomparability of which he has himself admitted ? Colonel Wright's article appears to have misled Secretary Gage who quotes it in his recent address at Peoria as showing the error of the popular opinion now prevalent which he admits many things open to common observation seem to justify. Secretary Gage declares Colonel Wright an authority acknowledged as good by the laboring classes. As one belonging to what is commonly termed the laboring class the writer desires to here enter his emphatic protest against Colonel Wright's misuse of statistics.

Some of the statistics quoted by Colonel Wright in this article disprove his conclusions and those of Secretary Gage, that is they would had he quoted them more fully.

Quoting the Aldrich report on prices and wages Colonel Wright says : "The report deals with seventeen great branches of industry, and they are the principal ones in the country."

How far this statement is from the fact will be seen when it