"I say," broke in a fresh voice, "that's all very fine, you know, what you've been saying; and I don't say there's no truth in it. But I'd like to know one thing, and that is, why working-men are paid at a higher rate in other countries than in England?"
"And perhaps, if I answer that, you'll tell me why workmen are paid at a lower rate in other countries than in England," said John.
"Look at America," was the answer.
"And look at France—look at Germany—look at Holland. It comes in both cases from the same reason. Labour is more scarce in one place than in another; or, capital is more plentiful. Either way the wages must rise."
"Twelve to eighteen shillings a day, as I've heard say Englishmen could make awhile back in a place called Lima," chimed in somebody else.
"Maybe so," John answered. "And if you want to make that amount, you'd best go there—supposing it's the same still. Only take care too many of you don't go; for as sure as labour gets more plentiful, the wages will run down."
"When you think of the lower rate of wages paid to workmen on the Continent, you'll no doubt say that the advantage on our side is all owing to Trades, Unions and strikes. But it's nothing of the sort. Trades Unions, property managed, are all very well in their way; and a strike at the right time may be a good thing in its way. But Trades Unions and strikes can't force wages up to a higher level and keep them there, when the state of the labour-market don't allow it."
"There's trades in England, with powerful Unions, which haven't made any advance in wages during years past. There are trades on the Continent, with no Unions at all to push for them, which have just gone on with the tide; and the workmen have gained twenty or thirty per cent. on their wages."
"I've spoken longer than I meant when I began; and now it's about time I should stop. A word more, first. You'll tell me, perhaps, that many a strike isn't for higher wages, but for shorter hours. So it is. English workmen are growing mighty careful of themselves nowadays, and afraid of work. But the rise is the same either way. It's a rise if you get better pay for ten hours' work than before; and it's a rise if you keep ten hours' pay for nine hours' work."
"Yes; and it's the same thing in another way. The cost of production is greater, whichever sort of rise you get; and that means a higher price for the thing sold; and that means, sometimes, driving away the trade to some other place. A lot of trade has drifted away from England to foreign countries, of late years—and why? Just because the shorter hours and higher wages of English workmen mean higher prices for the produce of their work—and people won't pay higher prices when they can get as good for lower. Would you? No, of course you wouldn't!"