But The Wages Given, Though Very High In Comparison With
Those Of Any Other Army, Have Not Been Of A Nature To Draw Together
From Their Distant Homes, At So Short A Notice, So Vast A Cloud Of
Men, Had No Other Influence Been At Work.
As far as I can learn,
the average rate of wages in the country since the war began has
been about 65 cents a day over and beyond the workman's diet.
I
feel convinced that I am putting this somewhat too low, taking the
average of all the markets from which the labor has been withdrawn.
In large cities labor has been much higher than this, and a
considerable proportion of the army has been taken from large
cities. But, taking 65 cents a day as the average, labor has been
worth about 17 dollars a month over and above the laborer's diet.
In the army the soldier receives 13 dollars a month, and also
receives his diet and clothes; in addition to this, in many States,
6 dollars a month have been paid by the State to the wives and
families of those soldiers who have left wives and families in the
States behind them. Thus for the married men the wages given by the
army have been 2 dollars a month, or less than 5l. a year, more than
his earnings at home, and for the unmarried man they have been 4
dollars a month, or less than 10l. a year, below his earnings at
home.
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