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Show REDUCED WAGES . CAUSE TROUBLE RAILROAD HEAD DECLARES FAILURE FAIL-URE OF HEALTHFUL LIVING 8TANDARD MEANS DIASTER Labor Leader Says Wages Are Not Money; But Only Pounds of Life's Blood to Nourish Body Of People Chicago. The business concern which cannot meet its fixed charges is bankrupt ; failure to provide a healthful health-ful standard of living for his family a working man's fixed charge means eventual physical and moral bankruptcy bankrupt-cy to the nation. This was the exiom on which B. M, Jewell, head of the shop crafts unions, based his plea for workers Tuesday before the United States railroad labor board. Figures comparing railroad em ployes' expenditures for food with minimum requirements for bare subsistence sub-sistence as worked out by Professor M. E. Paffn, food specialist of the University Uni-versity of California, showed that railroad mechanics In 1921 were able to purchase but 64 per cent of the meat, Dsh, milk and eggs necessary for maintenance of their families at the lowest level of safety, Mr. Jewell said. High wages rather than a further cut, were urged on the board by Mr. Jewell In his fight against the 10 per cent slash proposed by 205 roads now before the board. Wages, he asserted. were "the life blood of the nation and reduction of wages means reduction of nourishment to the bodies of citizens." "The railroad Industry does not today to-day pay a living wage to the mechanics mechan-ics employed In Its shops," said Mr. Jewell, "we have measured the average aver-age monthly earnings of men In the railroad shops by every possible standard stand-ard and In every instance they are found wanting, "The purchasing power of real railroad rail-road families are demonstrated by the analysis of 254 itemized monthly expense ex-pense accounts. They are distributed over the country, but in no sense selected. se-lected. The statements Include careful care-ful records of food and quantities bought. I "The average Income of these families fam-ilies amounted to $1935.50 of which $140.00 came from other than railroad wages being usually secured from boarders. The average expenditure was $19.89.64. The Income from railroad rail-road falls short of nearly $200.00 a year of the actual amount which these families spent." "With prices prevailing during the year of 1921, mechanics In railroad shops were able to purchase about 64 per cent of the meat, fish, milk and eggs necessary to maintain their actual ac-tual families at the lowest level of safety," Mr, Jewell said. "They were able," he continued, "to purchase only food ; only 91 per cent of the necessary vegetables and fruits and only 71 per cent of the necessary butter, fats and oils. |