Strikes are the bane of progress here
in these days. Demands for more pay
and shorter hours follow each other
In quick succession from the various
branches of organized labor. The trou
ble is that less efficiency seems to fol
low the granting of each demand. Im
mediately one of the big industrial
companies settles with one section of
its employees by Increasing wages,
trouble starts in another section of the
workers till the change goes all
around. Then it begins again. Rail
way fares have been Increased 50 per
cent in the last three years. Now
another 50 per cent is to be added
to meet the Increased cost of opera
tion. New rolling stock, however, has
been constructed and service has been
Improved considerably in the last year,
and In spite of the high fares and
dropping of excursion rates the trains
are packed in every direction.
Hotels Are Crowded.
London stijl has an extra million
population which drifted there during
the. war, and the hotels are so crowd
ed that strangers who have not re
served rooms frequently have to drive
about for hours seeking accommoda
tion. Prices are high, especially for
Americans, whom a part of the popu
lation seems to regard as traveling
banks, always ready to hand out large
sums when called upon. The hotel
best known to Americans charges $10
day for a room without a bath, and
New Yorkers staying there assert that
It costs them $24 a day for lodging,
meals and tips.
