and this was but increased the more open mining developed. Since the ore lay close to the earth's surface, the soil was merely scraped away, making it easy for steam shovels to scoop up tons of ore in rapid tempo. Getting the ore out became vastly cheaper, but it contributed greatly to the seasonal factor, to which the areas concerned had to adapt themselves gradually. Another major factor in unemployment was the big stream of immigration, which adopted the mining area as its habitat. When the striking miners lost their battle in 1907, it was chiefly due to the strikebreakers, who continued to hold the jobs when the strike was over. They were for the most part illiterate, and their opportunities to learn English were almost non-existent. They were not farmers and did not want to become farmers. Their only goal was their pay envelope, and Sunday meant nothing to them and they would gladly have worked seven days the week rather than six. Of such fundamentals of the American way of life as health care and sanitation, the status of women, etc., they understood almost nothing. It is clear that due to such groups as these, wages went down and the standard of living of all workers suffered. Employers could not be expected to offer higher wages when men were willing to work for less. When one lumber foreman was asked how much he paid his men he replied that it depended on how many men were available for the work. As long as these immigrants continued to arrive in an unbroken flood, so long did the labor force remain greater than the demand and the wages offered remain low. This surplus also tended to cause more seasonal unemployment in industry than there need have been. The problem of unemployment naturally became more critical. There was no need for employers to worry about the availability of workers for the next day, for it was clear that when more help. was needed that help would be available. Why, then, keep men at work the year round? Further, the majority of the laborers were single men, and always available for work when needed. Had the majority been family men the picture would have been different, for employers would have had to take better care of their men, lest they find themselves without them when they were most needed.

The 1916 Strike: Year after year the conditions indicated remained approximately unchanged, although the outbreak of war in 1914 brought temporary relief, for war in Europe brought a complete stop to the influx of immigrants. It did not take long before the consequences became apparent in the Minnesota mining region as a decrease in the available labor force. The growing demand for steel required reactivation of many mines considered

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