The Figurama

The U.S. has many things to be thankful for on this Thanksgiving Day--and many things to worry about. Some of them were recorded in figures:

Workers

Factory workers were earning an all-time high of $70.80 a week, up $5.39 a week (or 9-c- an hour) over 1951. The average factory work week was 41 1/2 hours, up one hour from last year.

Farmers

The U.S. crop seemed to be the second best in history, below only the record of 1948. The total of crops and livestock production together is expected to be the highest ever. In the past fiscal year, 211,299 more farms were electrified, raising the percentage of electrified farms from 84.2 in 1951 to 88.1.

Prices

For the quarter ending in October, the Government's new cost-of-living index was up 0.1 point to 190.9 (October 1951: 187.4.) However, the "old" index (not adjusted to allow for such items as frozen foods and TV sets) was down 0.9. Result: a million aircraft and auto workers, with escalator-clause contracts tied to the old index, will take a 1-c--an-hour pay cut.

Negroes

American Negroes still were worse off than white citizens, but they were getting a better break than ever before. In 1950 the Negro wage and salary worker earned an average of $1,300, or 52% of the average for white workers. In 1939 the Negro earned only $400, less than 40% of the white average.

Foreign Aid

The U.S. shelled out more than 87 billion dollars on foreign aid during the last twelve years (including gifts, loans and Lend-Lease), or an average of more than $7 billion a year.

The Sexes

Women were more & more outliving and outnumbering men. By the last census, there were 1,431,000 more women than men in the U.S. Boys slightly outnumber girls among newborn infants, but this advantage is more than made up for by a higher death rate among males and by the fact that there are more women among immigrants. The male death rate is going up in relation to the female death rate: in 1930, 1,210 men died for every 1,000 women who died; in 1951, there were 1,333 male deaths per 1,000 female deaths.

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