---------------------------------+----------------- | RHODE ISLAND. OCCUPATION. +--------+-------- | 1869. | 1874. ---------------------------------+--------+-------- Carding: | | Overseer, | $17 00 | $17 00 Picker-tenders, | 7 80 | 7 72 Railway-tenders, | 3 50 |[B]4 47 Drawing-frame tenders, | 5 00 |[C]5 40 Speeder-tenders, | 6 12 |[C]7 48 Picker-boy, | 6 25 |[A]4 03 Grinders, | 9 08 | 9 10 Strippers, | 7 26 | 7 50 Spinning: | | Overseer, | 15 60 | 17 69 Mule-spinners, | 9 50 | 10 16 Mule-backside piecers, | 2 85 |[A]2 52 Frame-spinners, | 5 00 |[B]3 70 Dressing: | | Overseer, | 13 75 | 14 80 Second hand, | 9 00 | 11 83 Spoolers, | 5 00 |[C]4 32 Warpers, | 5 75 |[C]6 98 Drawers and twisters, | 5 00 | Dressers, | 11 25 | 13 11 Weaving: | | Overseer, | 18 33 | 18 00 Weavers, | 8 00 |[C]7 91 Drawing-in hands, | 7 50 |[C]7 25 Repair-shop, engine-room, etc.: | | Foreman, | 18 00 | 15 79 Wood-workers, | 15 00 | 13 58 Iron-workers, | 13 16 | 13 68 Engineer, | 18 00 | 13 71 Laborers, | 9 33 | 8 59 Overseer in cloth-room, | 15 00 | 12 42 ---------------------------------+--------+-------- [A] Boys. [B] Females. [C] Part females. It will appear, therefore, from an examination of the tables that the average weekly wages in Rhode Island cotton-mills (which fairly represent those of the rest of the country) are in most cases from a third to nearly double those paid in Manchester. But it will also be observed that, whereas English wages appear to have increased steadily in every grade, the American rates show a decided tendency downwards. The highest skilled American labor holds its own with difficulty, but in the lower grades cheaper labor has been extensively employed since 1869. Dr. Young’s explanation must also be borne in mind in reading these tables—viz., that the labor is frequently piece-work. In some instances the English operatives also employ their own helpers.