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THE FRANCO-ITALIAN LABOR TREATY.
A new step in the development of closer inter­
national relations is marked by the labor treaty
between France and Italy, which President Loubet,
in his speech at the banquet given in his honor at
the Quirinal, alluded to as of equal if not greater
importance than the arbitration treaty recently
concluded between the same powers.
The objects of the treaty are, first, to secure
equal rights to workingmen residing in another
country; second, to insure concurrence between
the two countries in raising the standard of life.
Both the French and the Italian governments are
now under the influence of reformers, who are
pledged to similar programs for the benefit of labor
by factory laws, old age pensions, ets.; but it is
impossible for one nation to advance much beyond
its neighbors in such legislation because it would
be underbid in the markets of the world by the
cheaper labor of other countries. One method of
preventing this is the high tariff system adopted
by the United States. The new method is that of
international concomitance of labor legislation.
Since in Italy the conditions of labor are worse
than in France, the former country has first to
level up. The immediate result is the establishment
in Italy of a system of factory inspection,
which will secure the enforcement of the law of
June 19, 1902, by which the employment of women
and children at night is forbidden, and eleven
hours is made the maximum for their day's work.
In securing equal rights for foreign as for native
workingmen Italy gets the greater benefits, since
there are 200,000 Italian laborers in France and
only 10,000 French in Italy. According to the new
treaty the National Savings Bank of France and
the Postal Savings Bank of Italy will each honor
the deposit books of the other; so the workingman
in a foreign country can continue to deposit his
savings, or withdraw them, without expense or
delay, wherever he may be. Any accident indemnities
or pensions which may become due to an
Italian laborer while in France will be paid to
him just the same when he returns to his native
land, or, in the case of death by accident, to his
heirs in Italy. Italy, of course assumes the same
obligations in regard to French workingmen
resident within her borders.
The treaty assumes that it is the duty of government
to supplement the savings of the workingman
so that at the time of his disability through
accident or old age he may have sufficient means
to enjoy life after his retirement from active labor.
It is mutually agreed between the contracting
powers that this right to support shall not be forfeited
by a workingman who spends part of his
life in a foreign land.
THE COAL TRADE BULLETIN. -Ill
ANTHRACITE WASHERY SHIPMENTS.
Saving coal by the washing process has been
going on for about fifteen years, and it has .jecome
quite a large business. In 1903, when the
washery production was greatest, it was equal to
the output of the anthracite mines in 1850. The
growth in fifteen years has been from 61,600 tons
in 1890 to 3,693,606 in 1903. In 1904 the output
fell to 2,800.466 tons. At the rate of washing in
the last four years, the culm banks will naturally
be exhausted soon, but it is estimated that washing
coal will continue to be somewhat of a factor
during the first quarter of this century. Up to
this time 19,614,049 tons of coal have been reclaimed
from the mountains of culm which are
scattered over the coal regions. The following
table shows the washery production, the total
production of coal and the percentage of washery
coal:
Shipments Per cent, of
from Total Washery
Year. washeries. shipments. coal.
1890 41,600 36,615,459 0.11
1891 85.702 40,448,336 0.21
1892 90.495 41,893,320 0.22
1893 245,175 43.089,537 0.57
1S94 634,116 41,391,200 1.53
1895 1,080.800 46.571.477 2.32
1896 895.042 43,177,485 2.07
1897 993,G03 41,637,864 2.39
1898 1.099.019 41,899,751 2.62
1899 1.368.275 47,665,204 2.87
1900 2.059.349 45,107,484 4.57
1901 2,567,335 53,568,601 4.79
1902 1.959.406 31,200,890 6.28
1903 3,693,606 59,362.831 6.22
1904 2,800,466 57.492,522 4.87
Total.. 19.614.049 671,121.961 2.92
The amount of anthracite coal below buckwheat
size, including rice, barley and culm, produced at
colleries and washeries
follows:
in recent years was as
Pet. of
Pet. of
Year. Tons. total. Year. Tons. total.
1890. 807,398 2.2 1898.. 2,094,988 5.0
1891. 903.726 2.2 1899. . 2,621,586 5.5
1892. 795,179 1.9 1900.. 2,934,823 6.51
1893. 1.010,453 2.3 1901. . 3.705,066 6.92
1894. 1,353,452 3.2 1902. . 3,592,570 11.51
1895. 1,780.828 3.8 1903. . 5.513,726 9.29
1896. 1.705,866 4.0 1904.. 5,904,448 10.27
1897. 1,567,343 3.8
The building of 250 coke ovens is contemplated
in connection with the erection of the extensive
steel plant of the Midland Steel Co. at Neal's
Station, near Beaver, Pa.