upation is not more definitely specified,
1,859,223. Then there are 1,075,655 domestic servants, 121,942
launderers, 77,413 hotel and restaurant employes, 24,000 soldiers,
14,000 messengers, and enough in other occupations similar to the above,
in that very many persons can engage in them without special training,
to make it certain that at least three fourths of the members of this
division, or a little over three million persons, belong to the class of
unskilled workers, among whom, as we have already seen, the attempt to
limit competition and force up wages has not, and cannot possibly have,
more than a limited and doubtful success. Nevertheless, to a very great
extent, the unskilled laborers of the country as well as those working
at minor trades are organized for mutual help and protection; and while
they cannot increase much the rate of their wages without drawing a host
of competitors, they can do much in the way of protecting themselves
from injustice and extortion, as we have pointed out in the preceding
chapter. It may be possible, indeed, that certain changes in the future,
as the requirement of greater skill and efficiency in all kinds of
labor, may make combinations in this class of occupations easier and
more effective. Our domestic affairs, for instance, are constantly
growing more complex, and require greater skill in their operation.
Housekeepers are prone to think the "servant girl" problem serious and
perplexing enough already. It remains to be seen what they would say if
a "Cooks' Protective Union," a "Chambermaids' Sisterhood," or a
"Laundresses' Amalgamated Association," should assume control of the
wages and hours of labor of their domestics.

To sum up, we find that as a whole the 4,000,000 persons engaged in
rendering professional and personal services are in general not
increasing the cost to the public of their services by combining
together to limit competition; and that so far as we can determine, it
is not probable that many of them can do so in the future, even if they
are so disposed.

There remains yet one important class of the community to be considered:
those engaged in agriculture. Can the farmers of the country fall into
line behind the manufacturers and miners and railroad owners, and force
up the price of their products by killing competition, to correspond
with the increased prices which are demanded in many other lines of
industry? They have one thing in their favor in that the