rom Our Tnave U: the figures printed in our Liberal and Labour newspapers on the wages arid the costs of living Germany are correct it is difficult to understand How the workers there manage to exist. And if the stories in the other newspapers of the enormous wages of the Aniericans are also true it is evident that, most of those lucky workers will soon be able to retire and Jive on the into est of their en pital. To the Brit ish worker the accounts of conditions in other foreign countries are equally perplexing. "Relative statis-ties on the subject are easy to get, and itis even more easy to gen-oralize from them. What is lacking is a detailed account of just how the workman lives; what—as the American cinema captions put it—his "cats" are, and what he pays for housing accommodation, when ther he is able to save any considerable proportion of his wages, and what share he has in the more civiized amenities of modern lite, The difference between the general and the particular in dealing, with these problems was. sharply brought home to us a few days ago through a visit we paid to the home of a skilled artisan who: had been out of work for nearly thee years. He was one of the million and a half unemployed who are eustomarivisualized as being the most unhappy section of our populace. He is middle-aged, married, and has two. children at school; and his nother, an old woman over 70, lives with him, On the surface one would think that here was a case of particular hardship, for there are children at school, the unemployment has been prolonged, and the wife has no trade. soap and hot water in the same building. Nearer still there is a fine Free Library and reading rooms. From these he can' obtain the latest and best novels and techical works a few days after pubication. By filling in a form any special book will be bought for him to read, subject to the approval of the librarian, which is usually freely given. The living room of this employed man's house contained 'a shelf exclusively filled with new books lent from this library. Other municipal amenities at his disposal gratis were half.a dozen art gal-levies, several beautiful parks and flower gardens, and many courses of free lectures by men of world famous reputation.
His son and daughter having shown an intelligent interest in the subjects taught in the early standards of the elementary school had been drafted into a secondary school. In this the teaching was far sup-enor to that at a good private school. The curriculum included mathematics, French, chemistry, and physics, and the most modern laboratories' and the best equipped workshops were at the service of the scholars. All books and appar-otus were supplied free of charge.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.