THE INCOME OF THE INDUSTRIAL WORKER. 195
3holapur. These enquiries are of great value as a guide to local condi-
sions ; but in a country presenting the variations of India, they cannot
be treated as typical. Enquiries made in two centres of the Central
Provinces and six centres in Bihar and Orissa have been directed
bowards measuring the movements in the cost of living and a little work
on this has been done elsewhere ; but none of these enquiries has attempt-
ed to determine actual representative earnings and expenditure. In
Bengal, the leading industrial province of India, not even the construc-
tion of a cost of living index has been attempted, and a statistical analysis
of earnings and expenditure is entirely lacking.
Evidence Obtained.

In the course of our tours, we attempted to supplement the
statistical material available as best we could. Employers readily gave
particulars of their rates of wages, but as a rule these throw less light
on earnings than do wage rates in other countries, and for our present
purpose earnings are of far greater importance than wages. Information
regarding expenditure is even more difficult to obtain. As might be
expected, the worker seldom keeps any accounts and, even among
educated men, there are few who would find it easy, even if they had no
natural reticence, to explain without reference to documents how their
income was spent. We examined and conversed with a large number of
workers and others who were informed on the subject, and in personal
visits to the workers’ houses we endeavoured to supplement, by the
“ evidence of the eye ” the information otherwise available.
Special Enquiries.

As our first winter’s work progressed, it became steadily clearer
bo us that the material we could collect in the ordinary way would fall far
short of yielding all the information desired. We therefore decided,
at the end of our first winter's work, to appeal to Government for further
assistance. In a circular letter, which was addressed to the provincial
Governments and to the leading railways and is reproduced elsewhere, we
asked them to utilise the period which was available in the collection of
information bearing on the standard of living of the workers. What we
desired, in particular, was “evidence of the same character » as the
Commission * might itself have secured if it had had a much longer time
at its disposal and had been able to obtain from a number of witnesses
information of a somewhat intimate character regarding their manner of
life ”. - We appended to our letter a schedule indicating the particulars
for which we were looking. We are under deep obligation to the
Fovernments, the railway administrations, the employers, the workers
and the numerous officials who co-operated in assisting us in this matter.
Having regard to the very great difficulties which limitations of time,
means and personnel Imposed, the results obtained are by no means
disappointing. Their value would have been enhanced if more attention
had been paid to the crucial question of sampling, for in a number of cases
the efforts have been dissipated over too wide a field. But practically
all the enquiries have served a purpose in throwing a sidelight on the

09