1914-07-13aag

“With from twenty to thirty men a day flocking to his office in search of work, some of them bringing along wives and children, Mayor Allan states that there is absolutely nothing he can do for the unemployed, unless they are actually starving”

Hamilton Times.  July 13, 1914.

In July, 1914, the city of Hamilton, along with the rest of Canada and the United States, was still reeling from the effects of a deep economic repression, a recession well into its second year.

Unemployment was very high, and many of those without work thought that the mayor could somehow provide some relief work for them.

Indeed, the local municipal government had provided some temporary work for a small number married men with children. Single men or married men without dependents were not so accommodated.

There were many, many more seeking work than the city could hire, but still a steady stream of job seekers besieged the mayor’s office.

A Times reporter at the City Hall on July 13, 1914 noted that:

“In half an hour this morning, nine men pleaded with the Mayor for jobs, while three others asked for transportation back home. His Worship has tried on various occasions to secure work for married men, but has been informed by the Board of Works that instead of taking men on, a number will have to be let out soon, through lack of work within the department.”¹

^{1 “}A Bad Outlook : City Can Do Little for Unemployed at Present”

Hamilton Times.   July 13, 1914.

In fact, one job seeker at the City Hall became very frustrated and agitated about the situation and a serious incident occurred:

“Half a dozen officials of the Board of Works were scared almost stiff, and the whole City Hall stirred this morning when John Morrison crept up the large plate glass door of Assistant Engineer Hollingworth and crashed his hand through it.”²

² “Suffragist Method Appealed to Him : A Masculine Smasher Operated at the City Hall This Morning”

Hamilton Times.  July 13, 1914

Eugene Whitby, an employee in the Board of Works office, ran out of the building to summon a policeman. P. C. Sharpe soon arrived and placed the irate man under arrest, charging him with causing willful damage to public property.

When Morrison answered the charge, the Times reporter was present :

 “When he appeared before Magistrate Jelfs, the prisoner looked pale and thin and admitted he had not had work for a long time. He had applied at the public office of the Board of Works several times for a job, and had been turned down.”²

Morrison offered no defense for his action and was fined $15 or a month in jail. Given his financial situation, the latter option was chosen.

Two days later another job seeker incident occurred at the City Hall, one of a non-violent, although rather odd nature.

The details follow from the Times of July 15, 1914:

“Two clerks at the city hall whose duties bring them in contact with hundreds of laborers out of work and seeking jobs, had a unique experience today.

“Early this morning, the two noticed a young person attired in ordinary workingmen’s clothes, walking along the corridor to the engineer’s office. The pair of municipal employees rubbed their eyes when they noticed the steps the ‘man’ was taking, and they were even more astonished when, after hesitating outside of the door of Engineer Macallum’s private office, the party turned and asked them where a man could get work.

“With a cap pulled down, the eyes were turned away rather suddenly when the clerks, too surprised to speak did nothing but stare, for there was no doubt in their minds that the party was a young woman attired in man’s costume.

“The stranger, seeing that she was attracting attention made a quck get-away, but not before a number of citizens had gathered around and agreed with the clerks that ‘he’ was a ‘she’ all right.”³

³ “Woman Dressed in Man’s Togs : In Order to Get Work at the City Hall : Disguise Was Not Sufficient to Hide Sex”

Hamilton Times.  July 15, 1914.

One of the engineers in Mr. Macallum’s office later told the man from the times that it was not the first time such a case had happened. In fact, he had almost given a job to such a person not realizing that ‘she’ was a ‘he.’

The engineer did tell the reporter that he thought “foreigners” were beginning to get desperate for employment but added that he personally had “great admiration for a woman who would undertake such methods to secure a job, though she is taking chances with the law.’ ” ³

The Unemployment situation would in a very short time be eased substantially, and in a manner few would have anticipated.