Labor Famine in Muncie, Hemingray's amongst those looking for both men and boys

IS A LABOR FAMINE

Men and Boys to Do Common

Work Cannot be

Pro­cured in City.

ARE BADLY NEEDED

Boys are at a Premium and

Men Cannot be Found —

An Unusual Condition.

There is a common labor and small boy famine in Muncie that is unprecedented. Manufacturers are loudly clamoring for laborers at $1.50 a day, but to their wild entreaties comes no response. The shortage has become of serious proportions for several weeks. No laborer is now paid less than $1.50 and few can be obtained even at that price. Ball Brothers are in need both of men’s labor and boys. Hemingrays and the Boldt factories are in the same predicament and the iron mills are running short of common labor.

There is no apparent reason for the dearth of labor. The construction of new railroads through this part of the country might account for some of it, but not all. The wages are now higher than ever before on an average, but high wages is no apparent attraction.

The boy shortage is no new story, but it has become alarming again after several months in which there were more boys than usual. Some manufacturers are advertising for lads, but this is unlikely to result in any perceptible increase in the supply. Boys in glass factories are now earning any­where from $3 to $6 a week, but even this increase is insufficient to make a stampede in the direction of the manu­facturing plants.

As an example of the shortage in la­borers, the Country club attempted to obtain 20 to do necessary work upon the club grounds, but only two could be secured.