The differences in the amounts consumed and the sums spent for the chief commodities by workmen's families receiving certain specified weekly incomes are brought out in the two following statements:

RATIOS OF THE QUANTITIES OF CERTAIN ARTICLES OF FOOD CONSUMED BY WORKMEN'S FAMILIES IN FRANCE, RECEIVING SPECIFIED WEEKLY INCOMES, TO THE QUANTITIES OF THE SAME ARTICLES CONSUMED BY WORKMEN'S FAMILIES IN GREAT BRITAIN WITH CORRESPONDING INCOMES.

RATIOS OF THE AMOUNTS SPENT ON CERTAIN ARTICLES OF FOOD CONSUMED BY WORKMEN'S FAMILIES IN FRANCE, RECEIVING SPECIFIED WEEKLY INCOMES, TO THE AMOUNTS SPENT ON THE SAME ARTICLES BY WORKMEN'S FAMILIES IN GREAT BRITAIN WITH CORRESPONDING INCOMES.

An inquiry was made into the rates of wages prevailing in October, 1905, in the various towns canvassed. In order to facilitate comparison, four industries were selected which were represented in all the towns with few exceptions, and in which the standard rates of wages could be ascertained with accuracy. These industries were the building trades, engineering, printing, and municipal employment; and the rates in Paris were again taken as the base for the index numbers. The rates referred to are in all cases weekly rates.

The following table shows the predominant range of weekly wages for each of the occupations in the selected standard industries in towns of France:

PREDOMINANT RANGE OF WEEKLY WAGES IN CERTAIN OCCUPATIONS IN FRANCE, OCTOBER, 1905.

[As the number of towns included in this table is stated to be 30 for several occupations, the figures of the table apparently relate to all the French towns covered by the report, Including the city of Paris.]

In the following table is shown the predominant rate of weekly wages for skilled men for each of the specified occupations in the building, engineering, and printing trades in 12 towns of France, selected as to certain geographical districts:

RATES OF WEEKLY WAGES IN 12 SELECTED TOWNS OF FRANCE, OCTOBER, 1905.

RATES OF WEEKLY WAGES IN 12 SELECTED TOWNS OF FRANCE, OCTOBER,

In the table following index numbers are given comparing (with Paris as the base 100) the weekly rates of wages of workmen in the four specified industries in the different towns of France, the towns being arranged in geographical groups:

RELATIVE LEVEL OF WEEKLY WAGES IN SPECIFIED TOWNS OF FRANCE AS COMPARED WITH PARIS.

RELATION OF RATES OF WAGES TO RENTS AND PRICES.

The presentation which follows shows for each of the geographical groups the mean index numbers for rent and prices and rent and prices combined, together with the mean index numbers for the weekly rates of wages of skilled men in the building, engineering, and printing industries. Paris has been taken as the base (100) in each case. In the construction of the index numbers for rent and prices combined, prices have been given a weight of 5 and rent a weight of 1.

RELATIVE LEVEL OF RENT AND PRICES, OF RENT AND PRICES COMBINED, AND OF WEEKLY WAGES OF SKILLED MEN IN SIX GEOGRAPHICAL GROUPS OF FRANCE, AS COMPARED WITH PARIS.

a The number of towns represented in the construction of this index number is less than the total number included within the geographical group.

If the mean of the wages index numbers in each group for the three industries (building, engineering, and printing) be taken, and the means so obtained divided by the index numbers for rent and prices combined, a comparison of the average level of "real" wages in the selected occupations may be made, viz, the money wages expressed in terms of their purchasing capacity (as shown in the index numbers of rent and prices combined). The results are shown in the table which follows:

AVERAGE LEVEL OF "REAL" WAGES AND LEVEL OF RENT AND PRICES COMBINED IN SIX GEOGRAPHICAL GROUPS OF FRANCE, AS COMPARED WITH PARIS.

FRANCE AND GREAT BRITAIN COMPARED.

The predominant rates of weekly wages paid in the building, engineering, and printing trades of France (industries which were found in all the towns investigated) are here brought into contrast with the rates of weekly wages paid in similar trades in Great Britain:

RATES OF WAGES IN ENGLAND AND WALES AND IN FRANCE, COMPARED, OCTOBER, 1905.

a Apparently including Paris; see prefatory note to table on p. 81.

In

In the case of the building trades the weekly wages given are, for both countries, the wages for a full working week in summer. the engineering and the printing trades, the English wages are the standard time rates recognized by the unions concerned; the French rates, on the other hand, are in most cases based on returns of actual earnings, and it is consequently doubtful how far the two sets of returns are strictly comparable. The standard time rates being often exceeded by actual earnings on piecework, it is probable that the French rates appear somewhat too high relatively to the English.

For skilled men in the building trades the French wages are about 68 per cent of the English; for skilled men in the engineering trades about 81 per cent of the English, and for compositors in the printing trade about 85 per cent of the English. The arithmetic mean of the ratios for all trades shown in the table indicates that the mean predominant wage in France is approximately 75 per cent of that in England and Wales. The corresponding figure for Germany was 83 per cent.