150 THE HUMAN FACTOK 



and one-third as much as a woman in the United 

 States of America. In the case of heavy labour the 

 inefficiency of ordinary Indian labour is very marked. 

 In California there is a good deal of competition in 

 the matter of well-boring between the hand-borers 

 and the power-borers. It is admitted by both classes 

 that at depths of less than 100 feet hand-boring is the 

 cheapest and that at depths of more than 200 feet 

 power-boring is the cheapest. It is in dispute between 

 the two parties which system of boring is the cheapest 

 at depths between 100 and 200 feet. In India, how- 

 ever, it is found cheaper to use power-driven machines 

 even for depths of less than 100 feet. This is not 

 due to the fact that mechanical skill is readily avail- 

 able in India. On the contrary, such skill is notably 

 deficient. It is due to the fact that labour for heavy 

 work of this description is very difficult to secure, and, 

 when secured, is very inefficient. In the case of some 

 of the lower classes of labourers there is a strong dis- 

 inclination to do more work than their immediate 

 necessities demand. In the Thana district a man 

 who wishes to engage a daily labourer goes to the hut 

 of a Warli or Katkari and asks the man's wife whether 

 they have sufficient nagli (their ordinary food) for the 

 day. If she says " yes," he passes on to the next hut. 

 There was a depressing theory known to the older 

 economists as the "Iron Law of Wages," which 

 states that it is impossible to raise wages permanently 

 unless the efficiency of labour is at the same time 

 increased. The general truth which underlies this 



