production of crops of a relatively nonperishable nature which have a
wide market, and of the production of live stock and live stock
products, in addition, with considerable attention to the production on
the farm of food and food supplies for the farm household.
MORE FARMERS NEEDED
Agriculture as developed in the United States gives employment directly
to nearly 15,000,000 persons, who with their families more or less
engaged in agricultural work make up a total agricultural population of
from fifty to sixty million. But more farmers and better farming are
urgently needed now.
Even before the outbreak of the war agricultural production had not kept
pace with the increase of our population, and immediately after war was
declared men on American farms responded to the call for man power to
operate mines, build ships, make ammunition, and carry on the many other
urgent war industries. Then the dire need for farm labor manifested
itself, and the demand for wheat, corn, meats, sugar, fruits, cotton,
and numerous other agricultural products increased. This demand will not
diminish, now that the war is over. On the contrary, the world is
looking to the agricultural production of the United States to alleviate
the suffering which exists in the devastated countries of Europe
liberated from war without adequate means of immediately resuming
agricultural operations.
Our army of agriculturists must be recruited to its full strength, and
your enlistment in this army will help to make possible operation of
American farms to their full capacity.
Recent statistics show a total of over 800,000,000 acres in farms, of
which nearly half are classed as unimproved. A large area is prairie
land already clear. But you would be especially interested in the
improved farms, located, as many of them are, in the vicinity of your
former home, where an interest would be felt in you and encouragement
given you on every hand. A large proportion of our farm acreage is
unimproved and is not employed even as pasture land. It is a deplorable
fact that so many farms are idle or only running partly farmed. But that
fact is _your_ opportunity. The Federal Board for Vocational Education
will train you for any agricultural line of work you may elect, and
farmers, in every State, handicapped by insufficient labor on account of
the war, are anxious to render assistance in making you efficient. Your
training course may be advantageously finished on the farm, or in the
garden or orchard, and may be mutually advantageous to you and to the
owner.
There are three factors which should largely influence the choice of
your vocational line of training--first, former employment and
experience; second, your own desire; and third, the degree of your
disability. If your former occupation was in any way connected with
agriculture, and you desire to return to it, the third factor,
disability, unless very serious, hardly needs consideration.
Even if you were not engaged in agricultural pursuits before the war,
you may well ask yourself if it is not wise now to take advantage of
this opportunity to enter upon a healthful rural life? The labor is
wholesome and will strengthen you physically, constantly decreasing your
handicap.
You may not have had the opportunity before, but it is now yours to
realize the dream of a contented, independent life in God’s big
out-of-doors.
The farm offers many opportunities, so many, in fact, that you can not
fail to find suitable employment. Remember that the world is clamoring
for food and looking to us to supply the increased demand. You may be
inclined at times to be discouraged on account of your disability, but a
brave determination is half the battle toward success in any line of
agricultural work.
It is with a sincere desire to extend sympathetic helpfulness that you
are advised to consider the adoption of some line of agriculture,
general farming it may be, for your vocational training. Later you may
find some specialty in agriculture which is to your liking and suited to
your changed condition. You may be hesitating because of your
disability. You _can_ “come back” and will, with a convincing pride that
will be admired by your old friends and relatives. Come to the country
and you will find your place.
PLAN No. 1061. FARM OWNERSHIP POSSIBLE
Federal loans are now available on long time, and since the
establishment of Farm Loan Banks by the Government, agriculturists have
borrowed for use in farming about $140,000,000 in 18 months. Government
farm loans can be secured for improvements and equipment as well as for
aiding in buying land.
Much is being planned for your encouragement and to assist you in your
determination to overcome your physical handicap on the land which you
may aspire to own. Even before the war, with no idea of providing for
returning soldiers, California had initiated a scheme for enabling men
to acquire ownership of land and develop farms by establishing community
settlements under State law and direction. In Virginia, notably, and in
some other States, under State incorporation laws, community or group
settlements in which the farm owners “carry on” co-operatively are
proving attractive and successful. The day of small farms and orchards
is at hand, and these mean better homes and living conditions, and an
occupation in which the whole family may become interested as
co-workers.
In no other field of employment can you find such diversification and
opportunity for developing side lines as in the broad field of
agriculture. Many of these side lines are specialized branches of
farming, such as orcharding, small fruit growing, gardening, beekeeping,
and poultry raising. These specialties will be considered in separate
monographs, but it may be noted that the general farmer may and usually
does, engage more or less extensively in several specialties.
WORK IS VARIED AND CHANGES WITH THE SEASONS
The field of agriculture is large and covers many lines of activity. In
the different branches wholly different kinds of work must be done, and
the work changes from season to season. In general farming, for example,
in the spring comes preparation of the land by clearing, plowing,
harrowing, disking, rolling, and planting; through the summer, growing
crops must be cultivated and given other attention; and in the late
summer and fall comes harvesting, which is begun with the fall-planted
winter crops by midsummer harvesting of the small grains and hay.
LIVE STOCK
Handling pure-bred stock requires a variety of interesting work. As
profitable general farming nearly always includes live-stock production,
more or less work is required in this branch. The horsepower of the
place must have attention; barns must be kept in order, feed and fodder
prepared and sometimes fed out to cattle and sheep in pasture and much
care must be given to hogs if brood sows are kept. Other profitable side
lines are followed on almost every farm and are frequently specialized,
as with pure breeds of cattle, hogs, sheep, goats, rabbits, and hares.
PLAN No. 1062. HORTICULTURE
The farm orchard, though it may be for the use only of the owner and his
tenants, must be properly handled, pruned, and sprayed. Garden truck,
berries, and small fruits must have early and constant attention. In
commercial orcharding trees of different varieties are now frequently
interplanted, such as apple, peach, and apricot. In the different
seasons the fruit grower is occupied with the various employments of
pruning, cultivation, spraying, thinning, gathering, storing, and
marketing. Summer, fall, and winter varieties may be grown, the latter
to be sold as the big crop and stored by the buyer, or by the orchardist
himself, to supply the markets through the winter and spring, or even
until they compete with next year’s summer apples in the market. Various
side lines of labor naturally accompany orcharding, such as growing
small fruits and berries, and some farming, possibly trucking, between
the rows in young orchards. Bees, poultry, and swine are not only
profitable, but help in keeping the ground clear of insects, and in
other ways.
PLAN No. 1063. BEEKEEPING
Bees not only produce honey, but render service in promoting crop
farming through fertilization and by aiding in the control of parasites.
Beekeeping is most interesting and exceedingly profitable, and while
usually managed as a side line with orcharding, or some other branch of
farming, it may be made so profitable and conducted on such a large
scale as to be a business in itself. Many retired professional men
devote themselves to it, as the work is light and is done only in
spring, summer, and fall, when the weather is inviting for outdoor work.
One Indiana man is reported as having a $20,000 honey crop this year.
PLAN No. 1064. DAIRYING
Possibly no occupation has more possible lines of interest and is more
adapted to your condition than dairying. The handling, feeding, care,
and management of the herd and calf nursery, and in cases of pure-bred
herds, the study of pedigrees, blood lines, and breeding are all most
interesting, as are also the scientific milking, handling of dairy
products, and marketing. The dairy occupation of butter and cheese
making, as well as the feeding of live stock for meat, and much other
work continue through the entire year. The agriculturist, if a
specialist, can conduct a small dairy and can co-ordinate, for example,
butter making or other lines with his specialty, thus enabling him to
run his “agricultural factory” the year around.
PLAN No. 1065. OTHER FARM SPECIALTIES AND TRADES
Other branches of farming require active all year employment, and,
though too numerous to mention here, attention should be called to
forestry, the nursery business, large poultry projects, the growing of
rabbits, hares, birds, and pigeons on large scale, and the production of
medicinal plants, now receiving so much attention because of the war’s
interference with production abroad. All these occupations call for much
labor of a frequently changing nature. They are interesting and provide
opportunity for selection of employment suited to your disability.
Hauling products to the station or, if near enough, to the market
demanding a fresh supply of fruits and green vegetables is one line of
work. The truck farmer operating large fields of potatoes, onions, and
other crops not requiring placement daily on the market finds a great
variety of work to be done and usually carries on one or more side
lines. One of the most successful combinations of specialties includes
raising poultry, growing small fruits, and keeping bees, but one making
a specialty of any one of these branches would unquestionably develop
profitable minor lines which would give employment when the main line
did not supply it.
Small trades or manufacturing may accompany your farm project, as you
will find time for these in rainy weather and in winter. In many
localities the broom corn, grown between the rows of early potatoes, or
as a regular crop, may be made into brooms on the farm in the winter.
Crates, boxes, and barrels for fruit and vegetables are to be made, and
buildings, fencing, and gates demand attention. During much of the
dormant season of the year, in many sections of the United States, land
is most advantageously plowed, prepared, and planted to winter grain and
other crops in some sections up until Christmas. Other land is simply
broken (not harrowed), to be in readiness for early spring preparation,
and in order that it may improve more rapidly under winter rain,
sunshine, freezing, and thawing, natural processes which release plant
food and kill insect life and fungus development.
PRODUCTS
To enumerate what workers in the numerous agricultural occupations
produce in their varied general farming operations, with rotation of
crops, varying in different sections, to enumerate the meat products
derived from properly handled live stock, the minor crops of garden,
orchard, truck, and berry patches, and the various specialties of
horticulture, poultry, and bees, not to mention “specialty farming”
products, would fill a book. In fact, the reports and statistical data
on agricultural products and their importance to the sustenance and
clothing of the population, as well as to industry, fill many books
annually. To enumerate these products would be but to remind you of the
foods on your tables, of every article of clothing which you wear, and
of many raw materials of the world’s industries.
WORK FOR ALL
General farming provides work for those of all ages, from the youngest
children with their “chores,” up through every member of the family to
the farmer himself, who must be general manager for directing his own
labor and that of all who are associated with him. There is work for the
weak as well as the strong, for the disabled as well as for the fit.
OUT OF DOORS
The year around, considering all occupations in agriculture, probably 75
to 90 per cent of the work even in winter is out-of-door work. Very
little is done in shops or factories; more is done in dairy buildings
and in cheese and butter making factories; there is some indoor work in
animal feeding, minor manufacturing, blacksmithing, and making farm
repairs, and probably more indoor work might advantageously be
undertaken. More shop and repair work, such as is now taken to the town,
might be done on the farm. But agricultural work is and must always be
largely outdoor work, and it is on that account particularly healthful
and enjoyable.
NORTH AND SOUTH, EAST AND WEST
Agriculture in some form is coextensive with the area of the United
States. There are the crops suitable for and produced in the North and
the South, the East and the West, varying according to the length and
warmth of the seasons of growth, and as influenced by soil, climate,
rainfall, and adaptability to different plants and operations.
AGRICULTURE A MACHINE INDUSTRY
Inventive genius has given us a tool, an implement, or a machine for
every purpose in the new agriculture of to-day. America produced nearly
35,000 farm tractors in 1916, 62,742, in 1917, and 58,543 in the first
half of 1918, a total of 150,955 in 30 months, yet the demand for them
is so great that the Department of Agriculture is seeking a plan for
equitably distributing them throughout the States. Better and greater
crops are produced by modern methods, and production per man has been
greatly increased. This introduction of implements and machinery has
made it possible for disabled men to take up many lines of farming with
every prospect of success.
PERMISSIBLE AND DISQUALIFYING DISABILITIES FOR AGRICULTURAL OCCUPATIONS
If you determine that it shall be so, your disability, whatever it is,
will become a serious handicap in farming, as well as in any other
employment. But you do not need to make up your mind that way. If you
determine that it shall not be a handicap, you can find employment in
agriculture, in which you can become 100 per cent efficient.
Your disability is only one condition, and it is probably not the most
important condition to be taken into account in making up your mind what
branch of farming you can best take up. But considering the disability
alone, without taking account of other things, such as, for example,
past experience in farming or in other work, certain agricultural
employments may be designated as difficult for men with certain
disabilities.
Few, if any, disabilities are absolutely disqualifying for any given
employment in all cases. Men with all sorts of disabilities have in fact
undertaken successfully all sorts of work. It may nevertheless be
helpful to designate for each of the principal agricultural employments
those disabilities which seem generally to constitute serious handicaps.
With exception of a few disabilities, such as total blindness, loss of
both arms at the shoulder, and serious paralysis, it will be found that
disabilities do not generally disqualify men for any considerable number
of agricultural occupations, and that without exception even of these
serious disabilities there is suitable employment in agriculture for
every disabled man.
To save space in making up the following table of disabilities, the
so-called “disqualifying” rather than the “permissible” disabilities
have been designated for each employment. It should be borne in mind
that where one or two or a dozen disabilities are designated as
“disqualifying” this designation by implication indicates all other
disabilities as permissible, and that a list of permissible disabilities
would in fact be interminable.
For convenience in making up the table of disqualifying disabilities, a
“Key to Disabilities” has been prepared, in which the principal typical
disabilities are classified as injuries to the head, body, arms and
hands, legs and feet, and miscellaneous disabilities. By reference to
the Key each disability is identified by a letter and a number. “A”
disabilities, for example, are injuries to the head, and “B”
disabilities injuries to the body; “A1” is blindness in one eye, “A2”
blindness in both eyes, “B1” abdominal wound, “C1” amputation of one or
more fingers, and other symbols are to be interpreted accordingly.
In the chart showing disqualifying disabilities agricultural employments
in different branches of farming are listed, and for each employment
certain disabilities are designated as disqualifying. In the case of the
“general farmer,” for example, the disqualifying disabilities designated
are “A2, 5, C9, D9, E12” which by reference to the Key are to be read
“blindness in both eyes, deafness in both ears, amputation of both arms
at shoulder, amputation of both legs at the hip, and serious paralysis.”
As regards other occupations, a similar interpretation is to be given to
the chart.
Neither the list of disabilities in the Key nor the list of occupations
in the chart is exhaustive, but the lists are perhaps sufficiently
detailed to serve as a general guide for the disabled man in choosing
one or another branch of farming as most suitable for him.
PLAN No. 1066. KEY TO DISABILITIES
A. _Head:_
1. Blindness, one eye.
2. Blindness, both eyes.
3. Bronchitis, asthma, hay fever.
4. Deafness, one ear.
5. Deafness, both ears.
6. Injury.
B. _Body:_
1. Abdominal wound.
2. Gastritis.
3. Heart trouble.
4. Hernia.
5. Injury ribs, collar bone, etc.
6. Intestinal trouble.
7. Kidney trouble.
8. Lung trouble.
9. Spinal trouble.
10. Stomach trouble.
C. _Arms and hands:_
1. Amputation, one or more fingers.
2. Amputation, one hand, either arm.
3. Amputation, both hands.
4. Amputation between wrist and elbow, either.
5. Amputation between wrist and elbow, both.
6. Amputation, elbow and shoulder, either.
7. Amputation, elbow and shoulder, both.
8. Amputation at shoulder, either arm.
9. Amputation at shoulder, both arms.
10. Ankylosis of fingers.
11. Ankylosis of wrist.
12. Ankylosis of elbow.
13. Ankylosis of shoulder.
14. Injury.
D. _Legs and feet:_
1. Amputation, one or more toes.
2. Amputation, one foot, either leg.
3. Amputation, both feet.
4. Amputation, between ankle and knee, either leg.
5. Amputation, between ankle and knee, both legs.
6. Amputation, between knee and hip, either leg.
7. Amputation, between knee and hip, both legs.
8. Amputation at hip, either leg.
9. Amputation at hip, both legs.
10. Ankylosis of ankle.
11. Ankylosis of knee.
12. Ankylosis of hip.
13. Injury.
E. _Miscellaneous:_
1. Cancer.
2. Chronic appendicitis.
3. Eczema.
4. Epilepsy.
5. Gas Poisoning.
6. Inflammation of veins.
7. Malaria.
8. Nerve wounds.
9. Neurasthenia.
10. Palsy.
11. Paralysis, partial.
12. Paralysis, serious.
13. Rheumatism.
14. Shell shock.
15. Tuberculosis.
10. Varicocele.
WHY TAKE TRAINING?
Because it is necessary. Even if you grow up on a farm, you can learn to
farm better than your father and your grandfather farmed. Something new
in farming is discovered every day--new methods of treating soils, new
methods of growing old crops, and new crops that can be grown profitably
on old farms, new methods of planting, cultivating, and harvesting, and
a thousand other new things that save labor, time, and money, improve
products, secure better markets, and generally make farming profitable.
If you have lost a leg or an arm you will need special training to
accustom you to work with artificial appliances, and you may find it
advantageous, even if you grew up on a farm, to take up some new line
with which you are not familiar, some line in which your handicap will
not be a handicap. But, especially if you have been disabled and have
never farmed before, you will need training to make you a successful
farmer in spite of your handicap. The Government will provide just that
sort of training you need, and will help you find out what that training
should be.
OVERCOMING YOUR DISABILITY
You may be without practical farm experience. Never mind that. Go after
it, and with vocational training you will get it.
The most serious disablements, even the loss of two members, even
blindness have not prevented efficient application to some of the many
agricultural specialties. Some disabled farmers have deemed it unwise to
undertake work in the field because of amputation of both legs, or even
the loss of one, not realizing that a sabot which will prevent sinking
in the ground may be adjusted to an artificial leg, making it possible
to travel with comfort over plowed or soft soil. Besides, we now have
the tractor, and implements with such light draft as to permit of riding
even if using horsepower. You can “come back” at some sort of farm work
as many other men have done.
DEVICES TO BEAT THE HANDICAP
Special tools and implements and certain appliances for the handling of
agricultural machinery have been used by disabled men most successfully,
and are being suggested by the inventive genius of the disabled
themselves. You may benefit thereby in your effort to return to civil
life as an efficient and self-supporting man.
EDUCATIONAL REQUIREMENTS
You who have grown up on a farm have acquired a practical education that
is invaluable. Of course school training and even advanced courses are
valuable and will greatly assist you, but it is our desire to impress
you with the fact that you can succeed though your schooling has been
meager.
TECHNICAL TRAINING
Either with or without agricultural experience you will find in the
agricultural colleges and high schools opportunity for advanced study.
The agricultural colleges report gratifying increase in the application
of city-bred boys for courses. If you are a city boy you will have no
handicap of undesirable or old-fashioned ways of farming to overcome,
which are often difficult to eliminate. Books, specific knowledge, and
scientific training rightly applied mean efficiency and success.
METHOD OF TRAINING
Methods of training will of necessity vary with the vocational course
adopted. There will be training in various specialties, and opportunity
for making yourself proficient in more than one line of work. Following
your primary training you will be given opportunity to engage in
practical work. After completing your course and returning home, you may
continue your training in a local agricultural high school, or in
special classes, such as are now being formed in numerous locations.
Instructors can always be secured for special classes meeting in the
evening or on two or three afternoons each week in the winter time when
activities on the farm are at a minimum. These classes and the lectures
secured now and then have been the inspiration to many to take regular
agricultural courses in high schools or in State colleges, and you may
thus arrange to take advanced technical training.
WHAT YOU WILL LEARN IN TRAINING
You will be given opportunity to learn the essential things in the line
you have chosen, and taught ways and means of overcoming your handicap.
The extent of the course as to training and also its duration will
depend solely on your needs and desire. The more you undertake the more
you will accomplish and the greater will be your efficiency and your
ability to go “over the top” as an agriculturist, or as a specialist in
some selected line.
PLAN No. 1067. IS THERE A DEMAND FOR LABOR?
The demand for efficient farm labor is second to no other labor
requirement in the world, even in ordinary times. You may be assured
that the opportunity for permanent employment is excellent. State
agricultural colleges can not supply the demand for farm managers,
herdsmen, dairymen, orchardmen, and men who have studied the production
of small fruits and vegetables and have had practical experience in
these lines. The agricultural colleges give special courses in forestry,
floriculture, poultry raising, beekeeping, and other lines, and those
who have taken even short winter courses easily find employment at
advanced wages.
OTHERS HAVE MADE GOOD
Many disabled men are following agricultural pursuits. Before the war we
had examples in hundreds of men with only one arm or one leg who were
farming successfully, and reports from Italy, France, England, and
Canada inform us that hundreds of disabled boys, retained and
readjusted, are now successfully adapting themselves to agricultural
work.
Getting back home to work again should be, and doubtless is, your
greatest ambition, hence the importance of reaching your decision at the
earliest possible moment and applying for the training which will be
provided for you.
On arriving at your home you will find the attitude of your old friends,
your own family, and your former employers all that you could possibly
expect in their desire to assist you. The disposition of your fellow
workmen will be to give you every encouragement and to lend a helping
hand whenever and as long as you need it. They will take a justifiable
pride in you and your determination to be a man among your former fellow
men in civil life, and to help produce for the world the food which will
prevent in some measure hunger and starvation in the war-afflicted
countries, and will provide adequately for our own needs.
OPPORTUNITY FOR ADVANCEMENT
In agriculture you will win out in proportion as you develop efficiency.
You will be your own master, and will achieve your own advancement. You
may reasonably expect to acquire independence for yourself and for your
family. The good farmer normally improves his condition from year to
year. Only the poor farmer fails, and the way to avoid failure is to
take the training that will make you a good farmer.
MORE TRAINING IF YOU NEED IT
If, perchance, you have taken insufficient training and desire more
instruction after you first try out on the farm, you will be permitted
to return for that. If you reach the conclusion that you desire training
in another of the many agricultural branches, or in any other line, the
Federal Board for Vocational Education has the courses in readiness and
will gladly give you further opportunity of re-educating yourself.
WHAT IF YOU DO NOT TAKE TRAINING?
The matter of training is up to you, and so also will be your occupation
and success in life. You may succeed without training, but you are more
likely to do so if you have been retrained and readjusted to the new
conditions which will confront you in earning a livelihood. You have
been too much a man “over there,” too brave and too ambitious to do your
part, to do otherwise now than exhibit by a manly endeavor your ability
to come back to the noble position of an efficient, self-supporting, and
respected citizen of the United States.
PLAN No. 1068. WHAT THE FARMER SHOULD KNOW.--TOPICS OF VOCATIONAL
INSTRUCTION AND TRAINING FOR DIFFERENT BRANCHES OF FARMING
Farming is not a vocation. It is rather a thousand different vocations.
No man can in the course of a lifetime engage in all of these different
vocations, and no one farm is suitable for the development of every
branch of farming.
For the individual farmer operating a given farm the vocational problem
is partly one of individual preference on the part of the farmer, but it
is largely one of developing to the best advantage the natural and
acquired resources of the farm itself, which may be large or small,
especially suitable for growing field crops or garden crops, for stock
raising or dairying, for orcharding or small-fruit growing, or for some
combination of these branches. On some farms the farmer will most
profitably become in a greater or less degree a specialist--a corn or
cotton planter, a dairyman, a stock breeder, a fruit grower, or a truck
gardener. But in other cases his farm may be suitable for general
farming. It may embrace a garden, an orchard, pasture land, and
cultivated land suitable for field crops. Even in such cases the general
farmer will, however, probably select certain specialties among those
for which his farm is well adapted. The specialty farmer, on the other
hand, will probably develop side lines not necessarily associated with
his specialty, producing at least his own vegetables, fruit, poultry,
eggs, milk, and butter for home consumption.
The general farmer must know how to care for his animals, how to prepare
the soil for his crops, how to plant, cultivate, harvest, and rotate his
crops. The specialty farmer must acquire a fund of technical knowledge
pertaining to his specialty. For the fullest development of their farms,
in accordance with their individual preferences, no two farmers perhaps
will require precisely the same sort of training. There is a fund of
information relating to breeds and types of animals, feeds, propagation,
diseases, pedigrees, and other matters that is of special interest to
the stock breeder and of comparatively little interest to the beekeeper.
But nearly every farmer should know something of the care of animals,
and many farmers who do not propose to become apiarists will wish to
know enough of the care of bees to enable them to keep a few hives.
In the following chart the topics of instruction and training of special
value in the different branches of agriculture are indicated. In
proportion as a farmer engages in one or more of these branches, the
training which will be of value to him will be determined by the
requirements of the several branches in which he engages. In determining
upon a specific course of training in individual cases, past training
and experience, personal preferences, capacities and disabilities, and
future prospects as regards character and location of farm to be
operated and other conditions of future employment will naturally be
taken into account.
CHART SHOWING SCOPE OF TRAINING FOR DIFFERENT BRANCHES OF AGRICULTURE
_GENERAL FARMING_
Selection of feed crops and stocks.
Planning crop areas and rotations.
Maintenance of stock with minimum purchases.
Maintenance and improvement of soil fertility.
Farm management and accounting.
Production of supplies for family consumption:
Vegetables, fruits, berries, poultry.
Eggs, meat, milk, butter, cheese, honey, etc.
Stock feeding for market.
Sale of surplus products.
_STOCK RAISING_
Breeds and types of animals.
Selection of stock.
Points in judging animal merits and defects.
Breeding principles.
Blood lines.
Prevention and control of diseases.
Feeding and watering:
Balanced rations.
Selection of feeds.
Determination of amounts to be fed.
Times and methods of feeding.
Water supply.
Pasturing.
Improvement of soil and pasture.
Buildings for shelter and housing:
Size, number, character, sanitation, and care of buildings.
Keeping records of mating, breeding, pedigrees, feeds, costs, incomes,
etc.
Improvement of herd or flocks.
Marketing.
_DAIRYING_
Breeds of animals.
Sanitation of barns, sheds, cows, milk room, utensils, clothing, and
hands.
Cooling and handling of milk.
Bacteriology--souring milk, ripening cream.
Food value of milk products.
Testing.
Feeds.
Keeping records.
Maintenance of herd.
Marketing.
_POULTRYING_
Broods and types of poultry.
Breeding principles.
Hatching problems:
Selection of eggs.
Use of incubators.
Care of chicks and brooders.
Construction and adaptation of houses, and pens.
Sanitation of houses, pens, and yards.
Pests and diseases.
Feeds.
Fattening and dressing poultry.
Marketing.
_TRUCK GARDENING_
Kinds of gardens:
Kitchen.
Market.
Truck.
Varieties of vegetables and plants.
Breeding and propagation.
Garden planning with reference to topography, surface drainage, and
economy in cultivating and harvesting.
Soil treatment:
Adaptation.
Propagation.
Fertilization.
Preservation and improvement.
Cultivation.
Irrigation.
Pests, insect and fungus.
Spraying.
Buildings for team, implements, tools, crops, fresh vegetables,
surplus fertilizers, seed, and supplies.
Implements and tools.
Marketing, storage, and canning.
_ORCHARDING_
Varieties of trees.
Propagation of soil.
Interplanting.
Root and branch pruning.
Culture.
Propagation of trees.
Spraying materials and apparatus.
Grafting and budding.
Transplanting.
Diseases and pests--prevention and control.
Side projects--berries, bees, poultry, and pigs (for economical use of
land, fertilization of flowers, control of pests, etc.).
Canning, packing, storage, and marketing.
_SMALL FRUIT GROWING_
Selection of varieties.
Plant breeding and propagation.
Planting, replanting, and terracing.
Rotation.
Fertilization of soil.
Diseases and pests--prevention and control.
Spraying materials and apparatus.
Side projects--kitchen garden, poultry, bees, pigs.
Marketing, storage, canning.
_BEEKEEPING_
Importance for cross fertilizing clover, fruit trees, berries, garden
plants, and many farm crops.
Hives.
Taking honey.
Care of bees:
Swarming.
Dividing colonies.
Wintering.
Prevention of diseases.
_CROP FARMING--SPECIAL_
Selection of crop or crops, taking account of topography, climate,
soil, etc.
Selection of seed.
Equipment--use of tractors.
Planting, cultivating, and harvesting.
Providing labor for cropping and harvesting.
Character of buildings required.
Farm management and accounting.
_LANDSCAPE GARDENING_
General layout of property.
Location of buildings.
Selection and inspection of shrubbery, trees, flowers, and vines.
Lawns--how made, kept, and improved.
Roads and walks.
Fencing and gates.
Parks and civic centers.
_FARM MECHANICS_
Blacksmithing--maintenance and repair of tools, implements, and
machinery.
Carpentering--construction, maintenance, and repair of houses, barns,
sheds, pens, coops, silos, fences, and gates.
Cement work--construction, maintenance, and repair of foundations,
cellars, chimneys, walks, and posts.
Machine operating of farm tractors and other machinery.
_SCIENTIFIC SPECIALTY WORK_
Chemistry--application in analysis of soils, feeds, fertilizers, and
products.
Botany--application in plant breeding, propagation, and culture.
Entomology--application in prevention and control of diseases and
pests.
Scientific specialty work in connection with farm drainage; hygiene;
building construction, lighting, heating, and ventilation; soil
maintenance and improvement; and farm accounting and management.
CHART SHOWING DISQUALIFYING DISABILITIES FOR SPECIFIC AGRICULTURAL
OCCUPATIONS
Farmer, owner, or tenant, inactive, none.
Farmer, general, A2, 5, C9, D9, E12.
Farmer, grain, A2, 5, C9, D9, E12.
Farmer, stock, A2, 5, C9, D9, E12.
Farmer, small, A2, 5, C9, D9, E12.
Farmer, truck, A2, 5, C9, D9, E12.
Farm manager, A2, 5, C9, D9, E12.
Farm superintendent, A2, 5, C9, D9, E12.
Farm foreman, A2, 5, C9, D9, E12.
Farm mechanic, A2, B9, C3, 5, 7, 9, D3, 5, 7, 9, E12.
Farm seed specialist, A2, E12.
Farm hand (workers), A2, B9, C7, 9, D7, 9, E12.
Farm tractor operator, A2, B3, C3, 5, 7, 9, D7, 9, E4, 9, 10, 11, 12.
Farm truck driver, A2, 5, B3, 4, 9, C3, 5, 7, 9, D3, 5, 7, 9, E4, 9,
10, 11, 12.
Farm blacksmith, A2, B3, 4, 9, C3, 5, 7, 9, D3, 5, 7, 9, E4, 10, 11,
12.
Grape grower, owner, none.
Vineyardist, A2, C9, D9, E12.
Helpers, A2, C9, D9, E12.
Orchardist, owner, none.
Orchard superintendent, A2, C9, D9, E12.
Orchard sprayer, A2, C7, 9, D9, E12.
Orchard pruner, A2, C3, 5, 7, 9, D3, 5, 7, 9, E12.
Orchard planter, A2, B9, C3, 5, 7, 9, D9, E12.
Orchard thinners and pickers, A2, C3, 5, 7, 9, D3, 5, 7, 9, E10, 11,
12.
Orchard tractor operator, A2, B3, C3, 5, 7, 9, D3, 5, 7, 9, E4, 10,
12.
Orchard truck driver, A2, 5, B3, 4, 9, C3, 5, 7, 9, D3, 5, 7, 9, E4,
9, 10, 11, 12.
Small-fruit grower, none.
Superintendent, A2, 5, C9, D9, E12.
Cultivators, A2, C9, D9, E12.
Pickers, A2, C3, 5, 7, 9, D9, E12.
Planter, A2, B9, C3, 5, 7, 9, D9, E12.
Sprayer, A2, C7, 9, D9, E12.
Tractor operator, A2, 5, B3, C3, 5, 7, 9, D7, 9, E4, 9, 10, 11, 12.
Truck driver, A2, B3, C3, 5, 7, 9, D3, 5, 7, 9, E4, 9, 10, 11, 12.
Salesman, A2, 5, E12.
Animal husbandman, owner, none.
Manager, A2, C9, D9, E12.
Accountant, A2, C3, 5, 7, 9, E12.
Correspondent, A2, C9, E12.
Stock inspector, A2, C3, 5, 7, 9, D9, E12.
Stockman, A2, C3, 5, 7, 9, D3, 5, 7, 9, E12.
Sheep breeder, A2, C9, D9, E12.
Shepherd, A2, C3, 5, 7, 9, D3, 5, 7, 9, E12.
Flock master, A2, C9, D9, E12.
Swine breeder, A2, C9, D9, E12.
Swine herdsman, A2, C3, 5, 7, 9, D3, 5, 7, 9, E12.
Cattle herdsman, A2, C3, 5, 7, 9, D3, 5, 7, 9, E12.
Cattle breeder, A2, C9, D9, E12.
Horse breeder, A2, C9, D9, E12.
Horseman, A2, 5, B3, C3, 5, 7, 9, D3, 5, 7, 9, E4, 12.
Barn man, A2, C9, D9, E12.
Trainer, A2, 5, B3, C3, 5, 7, 9, D9, E4, 9, 10, 11, 12.
Groom, A2, C9, D9, E12.
Veterinarian, A2, 5, C9, D9, E12.
Veterinarian assistant, A2, B3, 4, 9, C3, 5, 7, 9, D3, 5, 7, 9, E12.
Dairyman, owner, none.
Dairy manager, A2, E12.
Herdsman, A2, C3, 5, 7, 9, D3, 5, 7, 9, E4, 12.
Milkman, A2, C9, D9, E1, 3, 4, 12, 15.
Milkers, A2, C3, 5, 7, 9, D9, E1, 3, 4, 12, 15.
Tester, A2, C3, 5, 7, 9, E1, 3, 10, 11, 12, 15.
Butter maker, A2, C3, 5, 7, 9, D3, 5, 7, 9, E1, 3, 4, 12.
Cheese maker A2, C3, 5, 7, 9, D3, 5, 7, 9, E1, 3, 4, 12.
Deliverers, A2, B9, C3, 5, 7, 9, D3, 5, 7, 9, E1, 3, 4, 9, 12, 15.
Machinist, A2, C3, 5, 7, 9, E12.
Feeders, A2, C7, 9, E12.
Cleaners, A2, C7, 9, E12.
Laborers, A2, B9, C7, 9, D7, 9, E12.
Tractor operator, A2, B3, C3, 5, 7, 9, D7, 9, E4, 9, 10, 11, 12.
Truck driver, A2, 5, B3, 4, 9, C3, 5, 7, 9, D3, 5, 7, 9, E4, 9, 10,
11, 12.
Nurseryman, owner, none.
Business manager, A2, 5.
Office help, A2, 5.
Cultivators, A2, C9, D9, E12.
Shipping clerk, A2, E12.
Nursery chief, A2, 5, E12.
Nursery foreman, A2, 5, E12.
Packers, A2, C7, 9, D7, 9, E12.
Workers, A2, B9, C7, 9, D7, 9, E12.
Tractor operator, A2, B3, C3, 5, 7, 9, D7, 9, E4, 9, 10, 11, 12.
Truck driver, A2, 5, B3, 4, 9, C3, 5, 7, 9, D3, 5, 7, 9, E4, 9, 10,
11, 12.
Gardener, market, owner, none.
Gardener, kitchen, A2, C9, E12.
Gardener, market, A2, C9, E12.
Gardener, landscape, A2, C9, E12.
Gardener, cultivators, A2, C9, E12.
Gardener, pickers, A2, C3, 5, 7, 9, D9, E12.
Gardener, manager, A2, 5, C9, D9, E12.
Make-up market man, A2, 5, C3, 5, 7, 9, D9, E12.
City market man, A2, 5, E12.
Poultry keeper (specialties--squabs, ducks, geese, turkeys, game
birds, exhibition poultry):
Owner, none.
Poultry manager, A2.
Poultry feeder, none.
Poultry workers, A2.
Egg handler, A2, C3, 5, 7, 9, E12.
Incubator specialist, A2, C3, 5, 7, 9, E12.
Beekeeper, owner, none.
Apiarist, A2, C3, 5, 7, 9, E4, 10, 11, 12.
Helpers, A2, C3, 5, 7, 9, E4, 10, 11, 12.
Trucker (specialties--cabbage, head lettuce, onions, potatoes, seeds,
celery, etc.):
Owner, inactive, none.
Owner, active, A2, C9, D9, E12.
Truck manager, A2, 5.
Gardener, A2, C9, E12.
Cultivators, A2, C9, D9, E12.
Workers, A2, C9, D9, E12.
Make-up marketman, A2, C3, 5, 7, 9, D9, E12.
Floriculture (specialties--roses, etc.):
Owner, none.
Cultivators, A2, C9.
Florist, A2.
Market clipper, A2, C3, 5, 7, 9, D9.
Salesmen, A2, 5.
Cannery:
Canner, owner, none.
Manager, A2, 5.
Accountant, A2.
Dealers, A2.
Packers, none.
Broom maker:
Manager, A2, 5.
Makers, none.
Packers, none.
Basket maker:
Manager, A2, 5.
Makers, none.
Packers, none.
Wicker cultivators, A2, C9, E12.
Wicker workers, none.
Meat curing, A2, 5, C3, 5, 7, 9.
PLAN No. 1069. OCCUPATIONS IN THE ELECTRICAL MANUFACTURING INDUSTRIES
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
This monograph was prepared by Terrell Croft. Acknowledgment is due to
Dr. John Cummings of the Research Division for editorial assistance.
Thousands of men are now employed in the electrical manufacturing
industries--in the shops and factories where electrical machines,
devices, and equipment are made. The number of workers so engaged must,
it is believed, increase materially in the future because of constant
expansion in the applications of electricity. For illustration, consider
the extent to which electric welding, electric-motor drives, electric
heating and electric lighting are now utilized as compared with the use
which obtained 10 years ago. Or again, consider the devices using
electricity in the household to-day--vacuum cleaners, motor-driven
washing machines, electric stoves, sadirons, and many others--as
compared with the number in use a few years ago. The demands of electric
communication, also, require an army of workers for the manufacture of
telephone apparatus alone.
The ever-extending use of devices which utilize electrical energy means
that there must be to supply them a corresponding enlargement in the
manufacture of such electrical equipment as generators, switchboards,
and transformers. Electrical manufacturing companies must, it would
seem, expand rapidly, and for this reason the opportunities which they
offer should afford excellent prospects for disabled soldiers who have
had previous training in, or who have a liking for this field of
endeavor.
The purpose of this monograph is to indicate briefly the opportunities
presented in those occupations which are peculiar to electrical
manufacturing. Electrical machinery and device factories often embrace
foundries, paint shops, pattern shops, blacksmith shops, tin and press
shops, and other shops, in which are performed certain processes
necessary for the production of the electrical product in which that
concern specializes. But in so far as the vocations are concerned, the
work of the men following the occupations of these shops is not
materially different from that of mechanics following the same vocations
in similar shops in other industries. The general requirements of a
mechanic in a machine shop are about the same whether the machine shop
is part of a harvester factory or of an electrical machinery factory.
Hence in this monograph will be treated only those manufacturing
vocations which are wholly electrical. For convenience they have been
grouped into the following classifications:
Engineering and drafting.
Coil winding and taping.
Coil impregnating and painting.
Coil placing and connecting.
Assembling.
Inspection and repair.
Testing.
By way of preface, it may be pointed out that there are certain general
features of the situation which confront a disabled soldier, which
should be examined carefully by him before he makes a break for a job.
CONSIDER THE FUTURE AND PLAN ACCORDINGLY
The tendency of the average man is to base his actions only on
conditions which confront him now. He does not think about the
conditions which he may have to face ten or fifteen or twenty years
hence. Before you take a job think about how it is going to work out as
you grow older. What will you be doing when you are 40 or 50 years of
age? It is possible to make definite plans for the future and follow
them consistently and the disabled soldier should weigh very
thoughtfully the opportunity for schooling and training without cost
which the United States Government through the Federal Board for
Vocational Education is prepared now to offer him. Statistics show that
on the average a man with some theoretical training has ultimately a
greater earning capacity than another man of equal ability but without
such training. Every disabled soldier who for any reason has not been
able to become posted in the elements of the calling which he wishes to
follow, should avail himself of the chance now presented to him to get
such training as he needs.
DISCUSS THE SITUATION WITH A FEDERAL BOARD ADVISER
Just how and where training may be obtained without cost you may learn
by talking with the vocational adviser of the Federal Board for
Vocational Education. The adviser may, also, because of his experience
in this special work, be able to assist you in selecting the calling for
which you are best fitted, and at which you can most certainly succeed.
The training need not necessarily be obtained at a technical school.
ELECTRICAL MANUFACTURING COMPANIES MAINTAIN TRAINING COURSES
Training courses are conducted by many companies for their employees,
who are sometimes permitted to attend on the company’s time. Often the
training given in these courses is of great value, enabling the student
to increase materially his earning capacity. Some of these training
courses have been in operation many years and are now highly developed,
thoroughly organized, and very effective. In them both theoretical and
practical instruction are given.
EMPLOYMENT DEPARTMENTS
A number of the electrical manufacturing companies operate employment
departments, which render valuable service to prospective employees.
Such departments study carefully each man’s qualifications and endeavor
to place him in the job for which he is best suited. Obviously, it is to
the interest of both the employer and of the employee that the employee
shall follow a line of work for which he is best fitted.
CONSTANCY OF EMPLOYMENT
Under normal conditions the demand for electrical equipment of all sorts
is very steady, and this tends to insure continuity of employment.
Furthermore, practically all of the electrical workers in the electrical
manufacturing industry require special training, and for this reason
employing companies use every means to insure continuous employment for
each worker so that their organization may not be broken up. Finally,
the call for electrical equipment will probably be exceptionally heavy
in the immediate future to provide for reconstruction needs. All of
these features tend to insure stability of employment.
MUTUAL BENEFIT FEATURES
Many companies maintain associations, supported largely by the companies
and partially by the employees themselves, whereby medical attendance
and monetary benefits are afforded in time of sickness. Some of the
concerns have building and loan associations through which employee
members can borrow money at low rates of interest for the construction
of homes.
PLAN No. 1070. ENGINEERING AND DRAFTING
Although the engineering department and the drafting department in an
electrical manufacturing concern are usually distinct organizations,
the drafting division commonly operates under the direction of the
engineering department. In the engineering department are developed
the designs and specifications for the electrical apparatus
which the company produces. The engineers make the computations,
prepare--ordinarily in the form of a sketch--the preliminary design for
the device, and write out the specifications for its production. This
information is submitted to the drafting department, which completes
finished detailed drawings. Often a draftsman who matures a design or
directs the work of a squad of junior draftsmen must be an engineer.
Although a technical-school training and a number of years of experience
are necessary for any man who is to assume responsibility for electrical
design or drafting, there are frequently opportunities for those who
have had comparatively little training to start in as assistants or
helpers.
HIGH-SCHOOL COURSE ESSENTIAL
While it was formerly the practice of many concerns to accept in their
engineering departments only college graduates, it has been found that
many of the tasks do not require or justify this training. For
reasonable progress in design engineering, the candidate should,
however, have at least the equivalent of a high-school education. As
noted above, some companies maintain training courses or schools, in
which high-school trained apprentices are given, on the company’s time
and without cost to them, courses covering the essentials of design
engineering along special lines.
FIRST DUTIES AND AFTER
Under the direction of an experienced engineer the beginner will
probably undertake first the making of computations for designs already
under way or the checking or reckoning of data from curves of tests
which have been made on apparatus which the concern has built. The
beginner is often called upon also to plot graphs from values which are
at hand or which he himself reckons. As the candidate develops
efficiency, he may be expected to assume responsibility for the design
of certain parts of machines or devices. Then, later, after a number of
years of experience and study, he may become sufficiently conversant
with the principles and processes involved to undertake the design of
equipment on his own responsibility.
Only a man who is of a studious temperament is fitted for a vocation of
this character, because to be successful at it one must study both in
and out of working hours. The worker must become familiar with the
principles of electricity and magnetism, and be competent to make such
calculations as are required to the end that available material shall be
utilized in proper proportions to provide desired results and
performance in the machine being designed. However, the essentials of
this theoretical training can be obtained by any man who is competent to
handle formulas, and who is willing to devote a reasonable amount of
time to study. While mathematical processes are the tools of an
electrical designer, a good mathematician is not necessarily a good
designer. To be a good designer, the individual must have also a
practical temperament and an eye for proportions. He must be able to
design a device so that it will give maximum results at minimum cost and
upkeep expense.
DESIGN ENGINEERING IS ALMOST ALL DESK WORK
Although the designer must sometimes work over a drafting board, or go
to parts of the shop where machines are either in process of
construction or under test, design engineering is largely desk work. Any
man who can see, think, and write may, assuming that he has the
requisite temperamental and educational qualifications, develop into a
designer. Loss of hearing is not by any means an insurmountable
handicap.
SALARIES AND HOURS
Engineering department employees practically always receive their
compensation on a weekly or monthly salary basis. Beginners who have not
had a college education may receive from $60 to $80 per month at the
start. After some experience, which equips them for working without
constant supervision, they can expect from $80 to $125 per month.
Ultimately, salaries will be determined wholly by the capacity of the
individual and may range from $2,000 on up indefinitely. Often designers
conceive patentable ideas which, if practicable and adopted, may result
in substantial salary increases for them. The usual day is eight hours,
but in some shops the engineering department works only seven and
one-half hours.
IN THE DRAFTING DIVISIONS
For drafting in the engineering department the qualifications are
somewhat similar to those for design engineering. Draftsmen are,
however, ordinarily not so well informed or so well paid as engineers
and frequently an able man is promoted from drafting to engineering
work. When a man starts at drafting, if he has had no experience, his
first task is likely to be that of tracing--he copies, in ink, on a
sheet of transparent tracing cloth, a drawing which was made in pencil
on drawing paper by a draftsman. In thus tracing a design, he can become
familiar with many of the mechanical principles of the devices, and
also with the drafting-room and machine-shop practices of the concern
which employs him. By observing and asking questions he can learn much.
After he has become a proficient tracer, he may be required to “work up”
dimension drawings from rough sketches, or to design minor details. Thus
he can progress, step by step, until his accumulated experience enables
him to perform the work of an experienced draftsman. A man who has had
previous drafting experience may not have to start in at the bottom, but
may begin with such work as he is qualified to undertake.
To enable him to become a good draftsman, a man should be able to see
well, and he should have the use of both hands. One hand or even both
hands may, however, be artificial. Men who have had previous shop or
electrical construction experience, but whose disabilities disqualify
them for further rough work, may adopt the vocation of design draftsman
with entire success.
Many draftsmen with the equivalent of only a common-school education
have been able by application and attention to business to advance
themselves very satisfactorily. On the other hand, the equivalent of a
high-school education with an elementary knowledge of algebra,
trigonometry, mechanics, heat, and the other scientific subjects
involved, is of very material benefit. If a man’s education is deficient
he can often correct this by attending a night-school.
Draftsmen ordinarily receive weekly salaries. A beginner in a drafting
department with little or no previous experience may expect from $50 to
$70 per month at the start. A competent design draftsman will receive
probably from $100 to $200 monthly. Some receive considerably more. The
work is wholly indoors and over a drafting board.
PLAN No. 1071. COIL WINDING AND TAPING
In many electrical devices, coils of insulated copper wire-magnet or
armature windings of one sort or another are required. Consequently a
large number of coil winders are employed in most electrical factories.
Coils are usually wound on forms in accordance with specifications
prepared in the engineering department. The “form,” upon which the coil
is thus wound, is clamped on the head of a winding lathe operated by
power. In this form is a groove, in which the convolutions of the
winding are wound. The groove is of such size that it insures the
correct number of turns in the coil so that the finished coil shall be
of correct dimensions. When the attendant presses a treadle, power
furnished by a belt causes the form to revolve, and insulated copper
wire from a spool mounted on a rack is guided by the attendant and wound
into its place in the groove. After the required number of turns, the
form is removed, and the coil is taken from it by the attendant who then
starts winding the next coil. Frequently it is necessary to produce a
large number of identical coils. Where this condition obtains, automatic
devices of one sort or another, to reduce manual effort and to render
the processes automatic in so far as possible, may be employed.
TYPES OF COILS
Some of the different sorts of coils wound in the different factories
are: Field coils, armature coils, transformer coils, and magnet coils.
Coils of different types may range in size and weight from a few inches
long and a few ounces in weight to a couple of feet and several hundred
pounds.
CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT FOR COIL WINDERS
The work on some coils requires little physical effort and may be done
by young women, but where the wire from which the coil is wound is of
relatively large diameter or where the winding is intricate men are
employed. Some lifting is necessary, and the use of both hands is
essential. The loss of one eye, of a leg or foot, or of hearing is not a
material detriment. The work is wholly indoors. Coil winding is often
piecework, sometimes under a premium system and sometimes not. The trade
is not generally unionized. The usual day is nine hours, although an
eight-hour day prevails in some localities. A coil winder may expect to
receive from $14 to $22 per week.
PLAN No. 1072. COIL TAPING
Wrapping a band or strip of cloth or tape around coils which have been
wound as described above is known as “coil taping.” Where the coils are
of small weight, little physical effort is involved, but where they are
large and heavy it is necessary that they be lifted to a bench or vise,
on which they are held while being taped. In some factories the lifting
and placing of coils is done by laborers. Young women do most of the
taping.
PLAN No. 1073. EMPLOYMENT FOR THE BLIND
Often hundreds of coils of identically the same size, shape, and
construction are to be covered. Then the tapers become so adept that
they can do the work without looking at it. For this reason taping
affords an opportunity for men who have lost their sight. Experience has
shown that where they are given the proper preliminary training the
blind can compete on equal terms with others. Certain electrical
concerns have given this fact careful consideration.
WAGES AND HOURS FOR COIL TAPERS
The coil taper may expect to earn from $12 to $20 a week. Often this is
piecework and under a premium system. The work is wholly indoors. Some
shops work eight hours, but a nine-hour day is the rule.
PLAN No. 1074. COIL IMPREGNATING AND PAINTING
After the coils have been wound, and before or after they have been
taped, they must usually be impregnated or saturated with an insulating
compound. The last process in finishing the coil ordinarily consists in
painting it.
In impregnating, the coils are placed in a large steel cylinder, which
is then hermetically sealed by bolting its removable top fast to it.
With a power pump the air is exhausted from this cylinder. The
impregnating compound--a sort of waterproof paint or varnish--is then
forced in and is caused to permeate every interstice of each coil. The
compound is then pumped out of the cylinder, and the impregnated coils
are removed. To render them waterproof, some coils are painted with a
brush instead of being impregnated, but before painting they are heated
in a drying oven, which drives out all moisture. Where the coils are
light in weight, little physical effort is required, but where they are
heavy considerable exertion may be necessary, although cranes and hoists
are usually provided.
SHOP TRAINING NECESSARY
Proficiency in work of this character must be acquired in the shop. The
beginner starts as a helper, and as he accumulates experience, he may be
promoted to a squad boss. Ultimately, assuming that he has proper
qualifications and experience, he may become a foreman.
CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT
The work is wholly indoors, under temperatures which, although not
excessively high, may be somewhat above normal. The odor of the solvents
and materials used in insulating and painting is offensive to some, but
does not appear to affect others.
QUALIFICATIONS
This work can be handled by men having minor physical defects. The loss
of one eye or one leg will not disqualify. The loss of an arm or hand
would not be an insurmountable obstacle provided the member is replaced
by an artificial one.
WAGES AND HOURS
Wages are often paid by the piece under a premium system. A helper may
expect to receive from $12 to $17 a week, an experienced man from $16 to
$24, and a foreman from $22 to $37. Usually the day is nine hours, but
may be eight and a half. The work is wholly indoors. The trade is seldom
unionized.
PLAN No. 1075. COIL PLACING AND CONNECTING
After the coils have been wound and impregnated or otherwise treated,
they are arranged in place on the iron cores of the electrical machines
under construction which have been designed to receive them. The placing
of a magnet coil in an assembled device which requires but the one small
coil involves but little skill and labor. But the arranging, placing,
and connecting of the large number of armature coils which are necessary
to complete an armature winding of a direct-current or alternating
generator or motor requires considerable skill, experience, and
ingenuity. The connections in such cases may be quite complicated.
Connections between coils are effected by soldering together the ends of
the copper conductors. However, the man who makes these connections need
not be competent to plan for himself the scheme of connections, inasmuch
as he is supplied with a diagrammatic blue print from the engineering
department. This indicates how the coils should be connected. He must be
competent to read and understand this print. On all but the simplest
machines and devices the coil placing and connecting is done by men.
In some shops coils are placed in the armatures by one group of men and
are connected by another group who receive slightly higher pay.
CONDITIONS, WAGES, AND HOURS
Ordinarily physical ability involving the use of both hands is required.
The loss of one eye, or of a leg or foot, or of hearing is not a
material detriment. Usually the men work standing at benches. The work
is all indoors. The day is usually nine but sometimes eight hours. A
helper may expect to receive from $10 to $18 per week, a journeyman from
$18 to $24, and a foreman from $25 to $40 per week. Some shops are
unionized, but most of them are not. This is often piecework on the
premium system.
TRAINING
The elements of these vocations are taught in some trade schools, but
most of the individuals now following the work obtained their knowledge
through actual experience in a factory. It requires several years of
shop training to become thoroughly proficient. A man may start as a
helper and gradually acquire the skill necessary to place himself in
the journeyman class. He has always ahead of him the possibility of a
foremanship.
PLAN No. 1076. ASSEMBLING
After all of the components of an electrical machine have been produced
in the different departments of the factory, they are sent to an
assembling department for arrangement into the finished product. The
coils are usually in place in and connected on each separate component.
But the different members must be bolted or otherwise fastened together
as required. The rotating members--armatures or rotors--must be mounted
in the bearings, and such electrical junctions made between them as may
be necessary. Then the machine is made ready for operation and test.
Where the device is small and simple the work of assembling is
correspondingly uncomplicated. It then involves little physical effort
and may be done by young women. But where motors or generators,
transformers, or similar equipment of capacities of from 5 horsepower up
are to be handled, men are required for the work. The assembling
department affords a good starting place in the factory for a man who
has had some electrical experience. While much of the work requires no
theoretical training, a man who already has, or who acquires through
study, a knowledge of the theoretical elements involved, will be able to
progress accordingly.
QUALIFICATIONS, TRAINING, AND EXPENSES
Ordinary physical qualifications are necessary. Some lifting is
required, although cranes are usually provided for handling heavy
pieces. The work can be learned only in the shop, and often a man must
have gained experience in the particular factory in which a certain
device or line of devices is manufactured before he becomes proficient
in their assembly. An individual without previous experience may start
in as a helper. Later he may develop into a skilled assembler and may
look forward to the position of foreman. In large factories there are
many foremen in the assembling department. Each foreman has direction of
the assembly of a certain type of apparatus.
WAGES, HOURS, AND CONDITIONS
A helper may expect to receive from $12 to $17 per week, a skilled
assembler from $17 to $22, and a foreman from $25 to $35. Frequently
this is piecework under a premium system. The work is usually nine but
is in some shop eight hours. This vocation is not as a rule unionized.
The work is indoors.
PLAN No. 1077. INSPECTION AND REPAIR
After electrical equipment has been assembled, it is inspected for
defects before it is submitted to an electrical operation test such as
is described below. Such inspection may comprise not only a checking of
the dimensions and quality of the mechanical parts of the machine, but
may also involve qualitative electrical tests. These are made to insure
that there are no faults in the insulation, or misconnections in the
windings. Frequently these inspection tests are applied before the
component tested leaves the department in which it was made. Thus coils
are tested to insure that they contain no short-circuits or crosses
before they leave the winding department. Complete armatures are
likewise subjected to an insulation test in the department where they
are wound; a voltage considerably higher than that which will be imposed
on the machine after it is in actual operation being connected to the
armature temporarily by the tester. This high voltage is obtained from
the secondary winding of a step-up transformer.
The mechanical inspection is made with micrometers, scales, gauges, and
calipers in the same way as is the inspection of any machine-shop
product. Checks for the proper connection of the coils in a machine can
be made by standardized methods.
TRAINING
Inspectors of special and complicated apparatus are usually men who have
“worked up” and received all of their training in the shop, because this
is the only way in which adequate training can be acquired. But for the
routine inspection of small parts little if any special training is
necessary. Theoretical training is not essential, but it is desirable. A
man without previous mechanical or electrical experience is not
ordinarily qualified to become other than a detail inspector. The best
inspectors are usually selected by picking adept men from the working
force of the factory.
OPPORTUNITY FOR DISABLED MEN
This vocation should afford possibilities for disabled soldiers who have
had previous electrical or mechanical experience, or who have a liking
for this work, but whose disablements unfit them for following their old
occupations. Inspection requires little physical effort. Some lifting
may be necessary to place the members to be tested and inspected in the
proper positions on the bench or floor, but this is performed usually by
laborers who have the assistance of cranes.
WAGES, HOURS, AND CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT
A man who has not had previous inspection experience may expect to earn
from $16 to $20 per week; an experienced inspector from $20 to $27; and
a foreman from $27 to $40. The work is all indoors. Sometimes it is
piecework under a premium system. The trade is not unionized. The day is
usually nine hours, but may be eight.
PLAN No. 1078. TESTING
Nearly all electrical equipment is tested before it leaves the factory.
That is to say, it is subjected to electrical and mechanical conditions
similar to those under which it must operate in practice, so that its
performance under such conditions may be predetermined. This is
necessary to insure that the product which leaves the factory will not
develop faults after it is in service. Where machines or devices are of
large capacity, each is tested individually. Where the output comprises
a large number of small, identical machines, as for example, automobile
starting motors, or circuit-breakers, only one or a few out of each
order which passes through the shop are subjected to test.
PLAN No. 1079. AS GENERAL APPRENTICESHIP TRAINING
Electrical testing is interesting work and affords a splendid
opportunity for a man to acquire experience which will be valuable to
him in almost any line of electrical work which he may subsequently
elect to follow. Formerly, the larger electrical manufacturing companies
would accept only university graduates in their testing departments. The
testing work was usually offered in the form of an apprenticeship
course, and as a stepping-stone to other more responsible positions. But
of recent years, some of the companies have accepted in their testing
departments men with only a high-school training or its equivalent. It
has been found that this plan is satisfactory, both from the standpoint
of the company and of the men themselves.
PLAN No. 1080. TESTING MOTORS
In testing a motor the machine is loaded by making it drive, usually
through a belt, an electric generator. The energy which this generator
develops is forced into the same circuit as that from which the driving
motor takes its power. Hence, the net energy required to conduct the
test is greatly minimized, being in fact equivalent only to the losses
of energy in the generator and motor during the test. By increasing the
load on the generator the load on the motor is increased
correspondingly, until it is carrying its full-load horsepower output.
Meanwhile, from properly connected voltmeters and ammeters, readings of
the voltage impressed on the motor, and the current taken by it at
different loads are observed. Simultaneously the temperature of
different parts of the motor are taken by means of thermometers, which
are bound to the machine with tapes or held with gobs of putty. The
speed of the machine at different loads is noted. From the readings thus
taken, the efficiency of the motor at different loads may be computed
and its other characteristics determined. If the efficiency and other
performance characteristics of the machine meet the specification, and
its temperature does not become greater than the limit specified by the
engineering department, the machine is painted and either shipped to the
customer or put into stock to await a sale. If it does not “come up” to
its specifications, the difficulty must be corrected.
PLAN No. 1081. TESTING GENERATORS AND OTHER DEVICES
The methods used for testing generators are somewhat similar to those
used for the motors. Other devices, such as transformers, potential
regulators, circuit breakers, switches, controllers, and one thousand
and one others, involve test methods of their own.
In every test the object sought is the same, namely, to subject the
device, before it leaves the shop, to practical working conditions. The
testing department records readings from instruments during tests and
“works these readings up” into the final test data. This working up
involves considerable calculation. Hence, in all testing departments
there are computers who spend practically all of their time figuring
results. They use slide rules for many of the operations.
SPECIAL TRAINING COURSES
As is the case in some other lines of work, companies may maintain
training courses in which test-department candidates are given
instruction in the essentials of the work which they are to take up.
Such courses afford a splendid opportunity for men who have had only a
high-school training. They are for the most part operated on the
company’s time, but they may be supplemented by night courses, to which
the man must devote his own time several nights a week. Many of the most
successful and best known electrical engineers and electrical factory
men in the United States started their practical careers in the testing
departments of electrical manufacturing companies. It appears to be a
relatively easy matter for a man who has had a thorough test-course
training to obtain a new position with advanced responsibilities and
salary. The new work may be construction or erection with some
organization other than the concern with which he obtained his testing
experience. Usually the testing work is so arranged that each tester
spends only a few months on each class of test, so that after completing
the course he is reasonably familiar with many different kinds of
equipment.
QUALIFICATIONS
In this work, although a man with little theoretical knowledge may be of
value, no man can learn too much for his own advancement. Ability to
study and read and thereby keep in touch with advances in the art is a
material asset. The work is relatively light, but some lifting and
pulling may be required. The loss of a leg or an arm or an eye is not
necessarily a detriment. Good hearing is essential, because a man must
often depend upon sound to ascertain whether or not the apparatus on
test under his charge is operating properly. This branch affords
splendid possibilities for high-school trained men to become conversant
with electrical equipment.
WAGES, HOURS, AND CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT
If a man has had some previous electrical experience so much the better.
The starting salary will probably be around $16 or $18 per week. A
tester of some experience will probably receive from $20 to $27 per week
and an experienced foreman from $35 to $47. The work is nearly always
indoors, although some tests must be made outside. The trade is not
generally unionized. The day is eight or nine hours.
PLAN No. 1082. COMMERCIAL OCCUPATIONS
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
This monograph was prepared by F. G. Nichols, Assistant Director for
Commercial Education of the Federal Board for Vocational Education.
Acknowledgment is made for material furnished by Mr. Wm. A. Barber, Mr.
Albert G. Borden, Mr. L. B. Elliott, Mr. Leighton Forbes, Mr. J. E.
Fuller, Mr. Frank L. Jones, Dr. Roy S. MacElwee, Special Agent of the
Federal Board for Vocational Education, and Mr. Edward A. Woods.
Acknowledgment is due to Dr. John Cummings, of the Research Division,
for editorial assistance.
INTRODUCTORY
Commercial occupations include certain occupations which have to do with
the administrative, executive, clerical, accounting, stenographic and
selling side of business. Definite courses of training for these
employments have been worked out and are being offered in many
high-grade schools. It must not be assumed that by a commercial course
is meant merely training for bookkeeping and shorthand work. On the
contrary, the range of commercial occupations open to men is very broad,
as is indicated by the following partial list of such occupations:
I. Common commercial employments.
Bookkeeping.
General clerical work.
Stenography.
Retail selling.
Telegraphy and wireless operating.
II. Professional commercial service.
Accounting.
Salesmanship.
Advertising.
Foreign trade service.
Secretarial work.
Life insurance salesmanship.
Office management.
Banking.
Commercial teaching.
[Illustration: Plan No. 1082. Keep thy Shop and thy Shop will Keep thee]
The occupations listed in group I will appeal to men who have had a fair
general education and who are willing to devote a few months to
intensive courses of training. Men who take such courses may enter upon
employment at a reasonably early date after beginning their study, and
may subsequently, if they desire to do so, take up evening school
courses to prepare themselves for some one of the employments specified
in group II. This second group of employments will appeal to men who
have had a good general education, some special training, and possibly
some business experience. For the average man a longer period of
training will be required to fit for one of these commercial professions
than will be required for group I employments. However, men who have had
considerable business experience may find it possible to complete their
training in a comparatively short period.
Men who have had a good general education and who are willing to devote
considerable time to preparation for a profession may well consider the
possibilities of commercial teaching which has been included in group
II. There are thousands of schools in the United States employing
teachers of commercial subjects. Since such schools are in competition
with business, as well as with each other, the demand for commercial
teachers is more active than for almost any other class of teachers, and
salaries are correspondingly higher for such teachers.
Telegraphy and wireless work referred to in group I may appeal to some
men who have had railroad experience and who are not physically able to
undertake the kind of work they have been doing in the past.
MODERN BUSINESS DEMANDS
The modern development of business has created new demands for office
help. It is not long since the greatest need of the average business
office was for bookkeepers and stenographers. While such workers are
still in great demand, the work of the office has been divided and
subdivided to such an extent that new types of workers are required for
many clerical positions.
PROMOTION
The up-to-date business man regards every office assistant as a possible
future executive. In the employment of such help he is constantly on the
alert to discover aptitude for executive work, so that he ultimately may
have at hand promotion material from which to recruit for the high
positions in his business. While it is still desirable to train men for
definite tasks and to place them in office positions where their
services are required, this is not the chief end of business education.
Men will not only be fitted for immediate usefulness, but they will be
prepared for rapid promotion to the higher places in business
organization. In other words, business education has an immediate market
value and gives to its possessor a chance to win his way to the more
desirable positions at the top of the business ladder.
BUSINESS AND VOCATIONAL READJUSTMENT
Commercial enterprises, except those connected with the prosecution of
the war, have been at a standstill for the past two years. Now that
restrictions naturally resulting from the war and those that were
imposed by law, have been removed, the period of readjustment will
begin. Whatever may be the immediate situation as regards the supply of
labor and the demand for it during this comparatively short readjustment
period, it is certain that the demand for trained men will develop with
the restoration of normal conditions. Men who are forward looking will
realize that vocational training secured during this transition period
will pay big dividends in later years, and will guarantee an economic
status above that of the man who hurries back into the first opening he
finds, and begins work regardless of his diminished competitive ability.
This business readjustment period should be also the vocational
readjustment period for all men who have suffered physical injuries in
the service of their country.
EDUCATIONAL REQUIREMENTS
In considering what vocation to prepare for, men should keep in mind
their future needs. They should not be content with a training that will
merely fit them for permanent employment in the common office routine
positions. On the contrary, they should aspire to a training that will
enable them to grow into the higher executive positions in connection
with large business or to launch out for themselves in a business
enterprise.
There has never been a time when education has counted for more than it
does now. Therefore, educational qualifications and requirements should
be seriously considered in connection with the selection of a vocation.
This does not mean that only those who have had the advantages of high
school or college training should be encouraged to prepare for business,
but it does mean that those who lack this educational background should
be willing to devote a longer time to training than may be required of
those who have been more fortunate in the matter of educational
advantages.
PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE
It is highly desirable that every man cash in on his previous experience
as far as possible. For example, a man who has been identified with the
telephone business and who, by reason of a disability caused by war
service, finds it impossible to continue in his former occupation, may
be trained for a different position in the telephone business where his
disability will not be a handicap. The general knowledge of the
business, gained through years of contact with it, will be helpful in
his new work. Then, too, his old employer will be likely to find a place
for him in his organization where he can render excellent service,
though it be of a sort entirely different from that which he was
rendering prior to the war.
Business training prepares for positions in every kind of business
organization. Whether the man’s previous experience was in the
telephone, railroad, manufacturing, retail, wholesale, or mining
business, it matters little, since training for an office position will
open the way for him to gain a footing in any kind of business, and will
put him in the way of promotion providing, of course, he shows that he
is entitled to it.
REALIZE YOUR AMBITION
In the selection of a vocation a man’s personal preference is quite as
important as his previous experience. Many men have found their work
uncongenial and have desired to make a change, but the opportunity to do
so never seemed to come their way. Such men may have hoped for training
that would fit them for another type of work. This vocational education
offer that is made by the Government may be just the chance for which
they have been waiting. It is to help men plan wisely for the future
that this monograph is written. All men may face the future with full
confidence that the right kind of training will insure for them an
economic status equal to or better than that from which they enlisted
for their country’s service.
EMPLOYMENT POSSIBILITIES
Since business training fits for occupations common to all lines of
business, it is not likely that there will ever be too many men
available for high grade office positions. The danger is that men will
be satisfied with inadequate preparation for growth beyond the routine
or clerical types of positions, and will thus continue in competition
with younger workers in this field. It is only by taking full and
complete training not only for immediate employment but as well for
future promotion, that men can hope to avoid this competition.
PREFERENCE AS TO LOCALITY
No locality is without need for men with business training, hence men so
trained may hope to market their services wherever their preference may
dictate. Certain types of commercial education have of course a better
market value in one section of the country than in another, and men
should have this in mind if they are willing to work only in some one
particular section. In the main, however, business opportunity is
universal.
MEN AND WOMEN WHO HAVE MADE GOOD IN SPITE OF HANDICAPS
At the end of this monograph is a tabulation showing the case histories
of 133 handicapped, or rather disabled, men and women who have made good
in business. These individuals were trained by the same schools that are
being used by the Federal Board for Vocational Education in its
commercial re-educational work for disabled soldiers and sailors, and
they represent only a fraction of the hundreds of victims of industry
who have been retrained for success in life, regardless of seemingly
unsurmountable obstacles. All disabled men should study this tabulation
carefully and emulate the plucky people whose cases are reported
therein.
PLAN No. 1083. PART 1.--COMMON COMMERCIAL EMPLOYMENTS--BOOKKEEPING
Among the oldest and most universal of office positions is that of
bookkeeper. For men who require work that does not call for physical
activity this vocation offers excellent opportunities of earning
immediate incomes while at the same time paving the way for advancement.
REQUIREMENTS
Men who elect this calling should be able to write a good business hand,
be accurate and rapid in handling the usual arithmetical computations,
be neat and painstaking in their work, understand the fundamental
language of business, be familiar with the common business forms, and
possess a thorough understanding of the universally employed
double-entry system of bookkeeping.
LENGTH OF COURSE
The time required for completion of a course of study that will insure
the possession of the above qualifications will depend upon the man’s
previous education and experience, but should generally be kept within a
period of six months. Many will make adequate preparation in much less
time.
WHERE TRAINING MAY BE GIVEN
Excellent courses are to be had in a large number of approved private
business schools, and men may be trained in their home environment or in
large commercial centers where employment is to be sought, as they may
elect.
WHY TAKE TRAINING?
While many so-called bookkeeping positions are open to men without
training, it is highly desirable that a comprehensive knowledge of
bookkeeping be secured, as it is only by this means that promotion can
be expected. The posting clerk, or entry clerk, will always remain an
unskilled laborer in competition with untrained boys and girls unless he
is fortified by such a knowledge of the science of accounts as will
enable him to become the head bookkeeper, the cost accountant, or the
auditor. Such a man may, by additional training in evening school,
qualify for the profession of accountancy and establish an independent
business of his own.
SALARY
Men who know accounts and possess the other desirable business
qualifications can be placed in positions with a salary range of from
$10 to $30 a week.
PERMANENCY OF EMPLOYMENT
The all-round bookkeeper in any establishment is indispensable to the
business, and is rarely released when business depression calls for
retrenchment in the pay roll.
DISABILITIES
The possession of mental faculties and one hand, with fairly good
general health are all that are absolutely essential to success in this
occupation from the physical standpoint. Men with two artificial hands
have succeeded in this work, but the absence of both hands is such a
handicap that one so afflicted should rarely undertake work that
requires so much writing. It should be emphasized, however, that no
difficulty is experienced in learning to write well with the remaining
hand, where one has been lost, regardless of previous habits in writing.
A simple device for enabling a man to do with a stump what he would
ordinarily do with his left hand is available to all who care to use it.
It enables one to hold a ruler or blotter; to steady a book or sheet in
place while writing is being done; and to perform all the usual
functions of the left hand. When the right hand is gone the left is
trained to do what the right has done before, and the right arm stump
becomes the supporting or auxiliary arm.
EVENING SCHOOL OR PART-TIME INSTRUCTION
Those who must get to earning at the earliest possible moment may be
placed at the completion of the fundamental part of the course,
continuing their study in evening school or in other types of extension
classes where such are available. Or it may be possible in some
localities to secure for such men half-day employment which will leave
half of the day free for school work.
PLAN No. 1084. GENERAL CLERICAL WORK
Expert filing and indexing positions offer an opportunity for those
whose handicap is of such a character that it is desirable for them to
secure employment that will not require contact with the public.
QUALIFICATIONS AND TRAINING
The qualifications for this kind of work are accuracy, carefulness, and
system in doing things. Training in the various indexing and filing
systems in use is essential. Text material has been prepared by the
manufacturers of filing cabinets, and courses of study, including
practice, are offered by many schools in different parts of the country.
PROMOTION
Such positions rarely lead to promotion such as will appeal to the
ambitious man whose handicap is of such a character as to warrant the
selection of different and more promising occupation from the viewpoint
of salary or independence.
LENGTH OF COURSE
Short intensive courses of from six to ten weeks will enable a man to
qualify for this kind of office work.
CALCULATING MACHINE OPERATING
For a long time adding and listing machines have been in use in banks
and large business offices. More recently calculating machines which are
capable of performing mathematical work beyond the plain addition of the
ordinary adding and listing type machine have been placed in business
offices. The volume of figure work of this kind is particularly heavy in
billing, cost, and pay roll departments in many lines of manufacture.
Even small manufacturers regularly employ help for the figure work
exclusively. Owing to the greater accuracy and speed made possible by
the use of the calculating machine, such work is no longer handled by
paper and pencil methods.
OPPORTUNITIES AND SALARIES
Opportunities for young men in this line of work exist in great number
in all large cities, and there are many chances for positions of this
kind even in the smaller manufacturing towns. The salaries for such
positions range from $16 to $25 per week according to the degree of
responsibility involved. There is an opportunity for advancement for
young men of fair educational qualifications who possess a determination
to learn the work which is just ahead and many young men aspire to
positions as head of billing, pay roll, or cost departments, where the
responsibility is considerable and the salary proportionate. Many such
positions exist where a salary of $35 to $40 per week can be earned.
Many large concerns have a practice of promoting men who show special
aptitude for mathematical work in connection with the calculating
machines to departments other than those mentioned.
QUALIFICATIONS
The necessary qualifications are simple for the clerk who is to handle
figure work with a calculating machine. He should have a fair mental
equipment with at least a common school education. A high school or
business school course will be an advantage. He should also possess a
natural liking for arithmetic. The full use of one hand, preferably the
right, is essential to success in operating such a machine.
TRAINING REQUIRED AND LENGTH OF COURSE
To operate any key-driven type of machine speedily and accurately one
must devote considerable time to intelligent practice. The process is
not unlike that of learning to operate the typewriter. In the operation
of this type of machine both hands will be required for the manipulation
of the 81 keys. An intensive course of from 10 to 12 weeks is required
to develop the necessary manual skill and master the special rules for
performing the various mathematical calculations.
On the crank-operated calculating machine, all work is direct, i. e.,
all operations are handled exactly as they are handled with paper and
pencil so far as rules are concerned. Anyone who can handle a pencil can
readily operate this type of calculating machine. Speed and accuracy on
this type of machine are largely independent of manual skill on the part
of the operator. One who possesses a good common school education and
some aptitude for arithmetic will need only two or three weeks of
practice in order to handle successfully all figure work in the average
office. Such machines have an unlimited range in practical work,
handling such work as estimating, engineering problems, and statistics.
OTHER OFFICE MACHINES
Much important printing and duplicating are done on privately-owned
machines, and skillful operators are always in demand for this work.
Such an occupation may appeal to the man whose handicap makes him shrink
from continual contact with the public, and who has his hands and fairly
good general health.
Salaries are not large, usually from $10 to $15 a week and there is no
natural line of promotion leading to more responsible positions.
However, skill in this work, combined with a little capital, may enable
a man to establish an independent business of his own by purchasing the
necessary machines and advertising to do work for the general public.
Short unit courses of from 6 to 10 weeks will suffice to acquire the
requisite manipulative skill for this work.
Where there are no schools giving instruction for this occupation
arrangements can be made for securing training as an apprentice in the
factory of the manufacturers, or in the offices of firms equipped to do
this work for themselves, the training being under the direction of the
Federal Board for Vocational Education.
Employment opportunities will be found only in the larger cities.
However, an independent business may be established even in
comparatively small towns.
The above statements regarding duplicating machine work apply to the
operation of the addressograph and similar office devices, such as the
Hollerith machine card puncher, the photostat, and the tabulating
machine.
PLAN No. 1085. STENOGRAPHY
No less important than bookkeeping is stenography with its exceptional
record for serving as a medium through which men may advance to high
grade executive positions. Stenographic work requires somewhat more
physical activity than does bookkeeping, but a skillful male
stenographer, though somewhat physically disabled may count on
employment owing to a constant demand that has never been fully met. In
no other occupation is one thrown into such constant and close contact
with the business executive to whose advantage it is to promote an
employee who has shown capacity for more important and profitable work.
As a stepping stone to big things a stenographic position has no rival
in the list of business occupations.
Many prominent men might be named who owe their success to some extent
to their ability to write shorthand. The list includes men high in
official positions, and prominent railroad executives who have reached
their high positions, through stenographic work. Their success gives
conclusive evidence of the importance of this kind of training. In other
lines, also as for example, in iron and steel, insurance, powder,
electricity, and in fact right down the line of big business in America
bright young men have, because they were shorthand writers, had the
chance to go to school to the best teachers of the business in the
world, i. e., the executive heads of their respective concerns. And
instead of having to pay handsomely for their instruction, they received
good salaries while they were learning and preparing to step up higher.
QUALIFICATIONS AND TRAINING REQUIRED
Taking character for granted, the necessary qualifications for
amanuensis and secretarial work are:
Good general health, eyesight, and hearing. Ambition, enthusiasm,
self-reliance, and determination. A mind of at least average activity
and alertness, improved by a thorough high school education or its
equivalent.
Training in English to the extent of becoming proficient in spelling and
punctuation, and acquiring a good working vocabulary.
Ability to speak and write with a fair degree of fluency.
A knowledge of the more common business papers, forms, and customs.
Accuracy and reasonable facility in the use of figures; familiarity with
the simpler methods of bookkeeping; and ability to write a presentable
hand.
For the broader field of professional shorthand reporting, the
requirements are more exacting.
The time required to master shorthand for amanuensis or secretarial work
is from seven to twelve months; for professional reporting, from one to
two years, during a considerable part of which time the learner is
usually able to earn a comfortable salary while pursuing his course in
advance shorthand.
WHERE TRAINING MAY BE SECURED
A number of good private business schools, located so as to be
convenient for those taking courses, are prepared to give any training
required under arrangements made by the Federal Board for Vocational
Education.
SALARY POSSIBILITIES
The salaries paid to amanuenses and private secretaries range from
$1,200 to $5,000 a year. Shorthand reporters, in law courts and
elsewhere, earn from $2,000 to $10,000 a year.
HANDICAPS
The possession of both hands is essential to success in this work.
Artificial appliances can scarcely take the place of the fingers in such
rapid writing with both pen and machine. Good eyesight and hearing also
are absolutely essential to success in this calling.
PLAN No. 1086. RETAIL SELLING
Large department stores and the chain stores offer opportunities for
profitable employment at better salaries than were commonly paid a few
years ago in the retail trade, and training for real salesmanship in
this field is now available.
Men whose disabilities indicate as suitable for them physically more or
less inactive types of employment, and who are not so injured as to make
intimate contact with the public undesirable, may find in expert
salesmanship opportunities worthy of their serious consideration.
Positions as department heads or buyers are open to men who meet with
conspicuous success as salesmen.
WHY TRAINING IS NECESSARY
The man behind the counter is no longer looked upon as clerk whose sole
duty it is to hand out that which is asked for. He is classed as a
salesman who has it within his power to build up the business of his
department by winning and holding good customers. Knowledge of the
well-defined principles of salesmanship and of his wares is quite as
important to the “inside,” or store salesman, as it is to the man “on
the road.” It is only by the right kind of training that such knowledge
can be acquired. For the disabled soldier to learn “by experience” would
require too much time.
WHERE TRAINING CAN BE SECURED
Training for this occupation can be obtained through part-time extension
day or evening courses in many cities. Then, too, many large stores
maintain educational departments where training on an apprenticeship
basis can be arranged for by the Federal Board for Vocational Education.
Men preparing for this work have the advantage of being able to earn
wages while they are taking training.
PROMOTION AND SALARIES
Success in this vocation will surely mean promotion. The usual promotion
stream for men who have received good training runs from stock keeper,
through junior salesman, salesman, assistant buyer, to buyer. Salaries
range from $12 a week for beginners up to several thousand a year for
department heads. It is also possible for men who have the necessary
capital to look forward to establishment of a retail business of their
own, if they prefer to be independent of an employer. Training for
success in developing a retail business should be even broader and more
thorough than that required for salesmanship in a store operated by
others.
LENGTH OF COURSE
A short intensive course of three or four months will serve to place a
man on an earning basis in some good modern retail establishment, and a
further period of six or eight months’ part-time extension study will be
needed to place him on a sound footing as a salesman.
HANDICAPS
A salesman should not be so wounded as to be repugnant to sensitive
customers. Any disfigurement which will attract the customer’s attention
will increase the salesman’s difficulty in making a sale. The loss of a
leg will not interfere with success in this work, nor will the loss of
one hand if an artificial hand is used. Cheerfulness, courtesy,
neatness, and tact are among the usual qualities that are required in
any occupation which brings a man into close contact with the public.
PLAN No. 1087. TELEGRAPHY AND WIRELESS OPERATING
While it is true that railroads to some extent are telephoning their
orders instead of telegraphing them, there is still a real demand for
men who are not only trained in telegraphy, but who have some knowledge
of railroad accounting and general railroad practice. Such men can hope
to secure good paying positions in railroad office work. There is always
a demand for telegraphers to fill commercial positions and it is quite
likely that this field of work may grow in the future. It should be
added also that the development of wireless service, and the enlargement
of our merchant marine will open up a new field for men who are skilled
wireless operators and whose knowledge of the practical art of sending
and receiving messages is supplemented by a good understanding of the
fundamental principles of electricity.
TRAINING NECESSARY
The necessary course of training for this vocation will include theory
and practice in sending and receiving telegrams and wireless messages; a
complete training in spelling and business English, business writing,
and business arithmetic--unless it is apparent that the man needs no
further training in these fundamentals; railroad freight office business
practice, including a thorough study of bills of lading, freight
classification, rating, etc.; instruction in railroad practice with
reference to freight charges, storage, and demurrage, and rejected and
unclaimed freight; fundamental bookkeeping, especially in connection
with the keeping of cash records, and the handling of collections and
remittances; and the making of monthly reports and balance sheets.
Practical work will be provided at first in connection with the school
course and later in offices on a part-time basis.
LENGTH OF COURSE
While much depends upon the individual, it is safe to assume that a
period of from 9 to 12 months will be required to master telegraphy and
the necessary business training that must accompany it to insure the
highest degree of success. For wireless operators more advanced
instruction in electricity will be required and a correspondingly longer
time will be needed. Those who wish to do so may, however, complete the
telegraphy portion of the course, accept a position, and continue their
study of wireless in extension classes. Men who have had railroad
experience, or some business training, or good courses in physics
including electricity, will be able to shorten somewhat the time
required for completion of the entire course.
HANDICAPS
No man should undertake to prepare for this vocation who has not the use
of both hands, good hearing, and at least a fair degree of general good
health. The other qualifications required are much the same as those
required for any type of office work.
PEN ART
Men who have special aptitude for penmanship and lettering will find a
wide field for the practice of this commercial art. Sign lettering,
filling in insurance policies, diplomas, and other important documents,
engrossing resolutions, teaching the subject, and supervising others in
this department of business education are among some of the occupational
opportunities open to men who excel in this line.
Training can be obtained in special schools, and positions for those who
are qualified will not be hard to find.