Artisans working single-handed 1,430,000 1,237,000 995,000
----------------------------------------------------------------------
From 1 to 5 employees 746,000 753,000 875,000
” 6 to 50 ” 85,000 139,000 187,000
Over 50 ” 9,000 18,000 30,000
------- ------- ---------
Total 830,000 910,000 1,092,000
(With the artisans) (2,270,000) (2,147,000) (2,086,000)
What appears quite distinctly from the last census is the rapid
decrease in the numbers of artisans who work single-handed, mostly
without the aid of machinery. Such an individual mode of production
by hand is naturally on the decrease, even many artisans resorting
now to some sort of motive power and taking one or two hired aids;
but this does not prove in the least that the small industries
carried on with the aid of machinery should be on the wane. The
census of 1907 proves quite the contrary, and all those who have
studied it are bound to recognise it.
“Of a pronounced decay of the small establishments in which five or
less persons are employed, is, of course, no sign,” writes Dr. Zahn
in the afore-mentioned work. Out of the 14·3 million people who live
on industry, full 5·4 million belong to the small industry.
Far from decreasing, this category has considerably increased since
1895 (from 732,572 establishments with 1,954,125 employees in 1895,
to 875,518 establishments and 2,205,539 employees in 1907). Moreover,
it is not only the very small industry which is on the increase;
it is also the small one which has increased even more than the
preceding--namely, by 47,615 establishments and 812,139 employees.
As to the very great industry, a closer analysis of what the German
statisticians describe as giant establishments (_Riesenbetriebe_)
shows that they belong chiefly to industries working for the State,
or created in consequence of State-granted monopolies. Thus, for
instance, the Krupp Shareholders Company employ 69,500 persons in
their nine different establishments, and everyone knows that the
works of Krupp are in reality a dependency of the State.
The opinions of the above-named German authors about the facts
revealed by the industrial censuses are very interesting.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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