356 



BIOLOGICAL PROBLEMS 



TABLE II. WOMEN TURNING ALUMINIUM FUSE 



BODIES 



they had to apply seven cutting or boring tools in 

 succession to each fuse body. In the November to 

 December, 1915, period these women put in 66.2 hours 

 of actual work per week out of a nominal 74.8 hours, 

 and, taking their relative hourly output as 100, their 

 total weekly output came to 6620. After January, 1916, 

 the twelve-hour day was replaced by a ten-hour day, 

 and in the May to July period recorded in the table the 

 women were putting in 54.8 hours of actual work, or 

 11.4 hours less than before. In consequence, their 

 hourly output went up to 134, and their total output 

 was 7343, or n per cent greater than in the twelve- 

 hour-day period. Shortly after, Sunday labour was 

 abolished, and in the November to December, 1916, 

 period the women put in only 45.6 hours of actual work. 

 However, their hourly output so much improved that 

 theTr total output remained almost the same. That 

 is to say, they produced 9 per cent more fuse bodies 

 than in the twelve-hour-day period, in spite of the fact 

 that they were working 20 J hours less per week. 



These and other data which were obtained indicated 

 that within certain limits a reduction in the hours of 

 labour leads to an increase, not only of the hourly 

 output, but of the total output. The correct inter- 

 pretation of this result is an interesting and important 

 one. It has been suggested to me by more than one 



