The Munsey Magazine, May 1909

This issue of Munsey's Magazine (May 1910, Vol. XLII, No. II) contains a feature article by William Allen Johnston titled "The Cost of Human Life: The Commercial Value of a Man, as Measured by the Wages Paid in the Dangerous Trades." Illustrated with photographs of workers in hazardous conditions, Johnston examines why men accept dangerous occupations despite minimal compensation for the risk. He profiles ironworkers earning twenty-four dollars weekly while suffering injuries from falling, struck by hot rivets, and collapsing structures; sand-hogs working in compressed air under riverbed tunnels, prone to caisson disease; and submarine divers receiving higher wages due to varied mechanical skills rather than danger alone. Johnston explores the psychological and economic factors determining occupational choice, arguing human life receives no economic premium in industrial wage structures. The article includes period verse by Richard H. Titherington and Pears' Soap advertising.