Thus, in all cases where I have found it possible from the apparent similarity of the work to make a comparison, there is an enormous apparent rise in money wages, ranging from 20, and in most cases from 50 to 100 per cent, and in one or two instances more than 100 per cent.[1] This understates, I believe, the real extent of the change. Thus, builders' wages are given at the earlier date as so much weekly, whereas in the later returns a distinction is made between summer and winter wages, the hours of labor being less in winter, and as the wages are so much per hour, the week's wages being also less, so that it has been possible to strike a mean for the later period, while it does not appear that anything more is meant at the early period than the usual weekly wage, which would be the summer wage. Without making this point, however, it is obvious that in all cases there is a very great rise.
Before passing from this point, there is another and continuous official record I would refer to. Unfortunately, it does not go back for much more than thirty years. Still, as far as it goes, the evidence is in the same direction. I refer to the return of merchant-seamen's wages annually issued by the Board of Trade, in what is known as the "Progress of Merchant Shipping Return." From this return may be derived the following comparison of seamen's wages:
Comparison of Seamen's Money Wages per Month at 1850 and the Present Time.
[From the "Progress of Merchant Shipping Return."]
| 1850, sailing. |
Present time, steam. |
Increase. | ||
| Amount | Per cent. | |||
| s. d. | s. d. | s. d. | ||
| Bristol | 45 00 | 75 00 | 30 00 | 66 |
| Glasgow | 45 00 | 70 00 | 25 00 | 55 |
| Liverpool (1) | 50 00 | 67 6 | 16 6 | 33 |
| "(2) | 50 00 | 85 00 | 35 00 | 70 |
| "(3) | 45 00 | 60 00 | 15 00 | 33 |
| "(4) | 40 00 | 50 00 | 10 00 | 25 |
| "(5) | 42 6 | 60 00 | 17 6 | 40 |
| London (1) | 45 00 | 75 00 | 30 00 | 66 |
| "(2) | 50 00 | 77 6 | 27 6 | 55 |
| "(3) | 45 00 | 65 00 | 20 00 | 45 |
| "(4) | 45 00 | 70 00 | 25 00 | 55 |
| "(5) | 40 00 | 67 6 | 27 6 | 69 |
| "(6) | 40 00 | 67 6 | 27 6 | 69 |
Here, again, there is an enormous rise in money wages. This return is specially subject to the observation that money wages are only part of the wages of seamen, but I assume it is not open to dispute that, with the improvement in our shipping, there has been an improvement in the food and lodging of the sailor, quite equal to the improvement in his money wage.
This question of seamen's wages, however, well illustrates the difficulty of the whole subject. Ships are not now navigated by able sea-
- ↑ The mean of the percentages of increase is over 70.
