Page:Popular Science Monthly Volume 33.djvu/465

Rh After the period of congratulation was over, the President of the Issoire Citizens' Foot-wear Manufacturing Association called the heads of a few of the rival houses to his office. They agreed together to ask for an increase in the octroi, in view of the depressed condition of the boot-trade, after which they would, in view of the increase of the octroi, raise the price of boots to twenty-five francs. They formed a new association called the Issoire Equitable Confidence Society, the object of which was to prevent the Clermont dealers from flooding the city with cheap boots, a thing which the latter had been steadily on the watch to accomplish. The Equitable Society took special pains to serve Issoire by regulating the price of boots according to the city's real needs. The city had suffered from overproduction. Now, when any firm outside the Equitable Society tried to resume work, the price of boots was suddenly lowered, until the competing dealer would be willing to sell out on favorable terms to some of the society's members. There were a few dealers in Issoire who still brought boots over from Clermont. These were made to understand that their course of action was unpatriotic, and that it was displeasing to the members of the Equitable Society. The office of the octroi was visited by several men who accused one of these dealers of having silk stockings concealed in an invoice of boots from Clermont. All the boxes were opened and each boot examined. Then all were thrown in a pile by the side of the street. The owner gathered them up as well as he could, but the street boys helped him, and before he knew it several boys and several pairs of boots were missing together. And so in a hundred ways the Equitable Society discouraged outside and inside competition, until at last the entire boot-trade fell into its hands.

But the rise in the cost of boots had its effect on the workingmen. Clearly the increase in the price of boots was due to the growth of labor, for the price of hides was no greater than it was before, while the value of hides made up into boots was materially higher. If a day's work was worth five francs before, nine francs was not too much now when labor was so much more valuable to the capitalist.

The big workman Jacques thought this out, and in the café of the Lion d'Or he advised the workingmen to march in a body to the President of the Confidence Society to demand their rights. They did so, with the master-workman Jacques at their head. Their demand was nine francs a day, or no more boots in Issoire. The president had expected this. In fact, he had rather hoped for it; and so he had kept a good stock of boots in reserve for such an emergency.

He spoke very kindly to the deputation, patted Jacques softly on the arm, but, in brief, said that the state of the trade would