210 INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION AND WAGES
of goods to the consumer have not risen as much as wages
have risen. And fourth, general prosperity during the last
three years has been greater and more widely diffused than at
any previous period in our history. . . . The result is that
the purchasing power of the average wage—the “real wage,”
as it is called—has increased about one-third since 1914.
Before that date the wage-earner was not getting his share
of the increase in production—he was right about that. Now
he is getting a much larger share than he formerly received.
Why the change? There are many reasons. One is found in
our new policy of restricting immigration, which has checked
the inflow of new and for the most part ignorant workers;
another is .the higher average mechanical intelligence of
wage-earners, which makes them more valuable; another is
the greater accumulation of capital available for industrial
purposes, with which is closely connected our greatly im-
proved methods of handling credit; and one of the important
reasons, undoubtedly, is the general feeling among employers
that a relatively high wage-scale pays. . . . Irregular employ-
ment means thousands of temporarily nonproductive con-
sumers. Likewise, it means nonproductive machinery, fac-
tories, capital, railway cars and locomotives. It means that
thousands of persons are no longer turning their work into
circulating dollars, that wealth is being dissipated instead of
being increased.
Stability and regularity of industry mean more to the effi-
ciency of production and therefore more to the rapid accumu-
lation of wealth than any other one thing. And it is in this
direction that the greatest strides have been made in the last
half dozen years. Toward this the Federal Reserve Bank
system has contributed much by supplying credit when needed
and keeping the money market on an even keel. Better man-
agement and more cooperation among employers, especially
in various kinds of trade associations, have contributed much.
A broader-minded attitude on the part of members of trade
unions, and better leadership in the unions, have contributed
much.
