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Show "GASOLINE BUM" a PESTIK WEST Oregon, Where Harvests Give Work to Many, One of Chief Victims. Ihe problem of the migratory work- in sonifl of the far western states das become complicated through the rlse of a new species of "hobo," who travels about In a rnmshackle motor car ofteu carrying with him his entire' en-tire' family and housekeeping equipment. equip-ment. In Oregon the natives call him Die gasoline bum" because of his habit of begging or "borrowing" gasoline gas-oline from passing motorists. Borrow Gas. It is easy to "borrow gas" in Oregon, Ore-gon, which still retains much of the free-handed, unquestioning hospitality of pioneer days. Towns and filling stations are far apart, and when a traveler with a tank full of gasoline In his own machine comes upon jorne forlorn family gathered around a stalled flivver in an out-of-the-way spot he is usually glad to "lend" from his store enough fuel to enable It to get to the next village. The loan usually develops into a gift. But that is not the worst of it. Often these transients will stop at a farm house to beg a night's shelter or a bite of food. Later the farmer is likely to discover that his henroost has been pillaged, his cellar looted and that every valuable thing which can be easily carried off lias been taken. Oregon suffers peculiarly from this motoring tramp because so much of tie work In the state is seasonal. From the beginning of the strawberry harvest in May to the end of the apple ap-ple harvest in November, Oregon's farmers must depend largely upon transient workers. The state department depart-ment of labor has organized an employment em-ployment commission in the hope of devising a system under which it will be possible to utilize all the resident labor, but it has found difficulty in getting the farmers to give definite estimates of their requirements so that arrangements can be made in advance ad-vance to meet them. Jobs for All. On this account, says a writer in the Monthly Labor Review, word has gone out that there are jobs in Oregon for all who may drift in during the harvest months. Many of those who drive wheezy cars into the state are actually looking for work, but many others are looking for no more of it than an indispensable minimum. And there is the usual train of camp followers, fol-lowers, habitual mendicants, loafers and vagabonds. |