Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1865-10-30
THE HOURS OF LABOR.
Hearing before the NasSachusetts State
Commisxiap

TIE Boston AdrertsSer OF Friday saws.
lbe commissioners appointed under n re-
solve of the last legislature, to consider the
,xpedieney of legislation upon the subject of.
the hours OF labor, held a hesring nj tAe state
House yesterday forenoon. The chairman OF
iee commission, Rev. William Il. Tilden, OF
Eoston, presided, and stated In his Opening
rtmarks that the hearing would be occupied
exclusively by statement of facts, and
any argument which gentlemen might de-
ere 20 submit would be heard al a subsequent
Mr. Robert Bowers, a dress tender IN one OF
The Lawrence mile, stated that the regular
hours OF work M Lawrence are eleven per day,
with three q uarters of an hour at noon for din.
ner. The rate paid per hour for overwork 4.
ahCut ten cents in addition 10 the regular pay.
which Is about seven dollars week whe-e a
great many children are employed, about three
months OUT Of the year are devoted 70 their
schooling. The average proportion of fthe wages
Of children 10 that OF the admits is one third
In respect TO the injurious effect Of the long
confinement upon the children, he said that any
one who would so to the gates of the mills and
look into the faces OF those children could see
II plainly. great portion of the children EN-
ploytd are as young as ten years. Many OF
these are worked nights. The proportion OF
wages OF the men To tEat OF the women is about
hree-fourths, and the price of board the same.
Mr.. Bowers then read extracts from LETTERS
received from medical authorities, in which
the stated that our factory operatives are over
worked, and that the effect upon the female
portion is highly injurious. The Intense tenn
p'Tature Of the rooms, the long confinement
ard lose OF needful recreation, cause thousands
l. go down TO premature graves. The time
gained by the reduction Of the hours OF labor
VIII not tend to increase vice and crime among
Tie operatives, hut on the contrary will i'm
lIoNe them intellectually and spiritually.
Many uncer the present system attend evening
schools. The law that prohibit employers from
working their female adult operatives over ten
hours day should not he made TO affect male
adults. The usual temperature in the spinninp
room is 80 degrees; in the weaving department
1t is about SO degrees in the wooden room about
~ degrees, and in the dress room ITO degrees.
Mr.. Bowers was requested 10 furnish statistics
on the points advanced by him.
John II. Hooper, of Medford, shipwright
stated that there were two branches Of work
known to shipwrights, viz: construction and
repairs, or, as they are called. old work aud
new work. For new work the time il ten
hours day, from seven O'Clock a IN. to six
O'Clock =. m, with an interval OF one hour for
dlnner-eXcept when the sun rises after seven
I'm the morning and sers before six at night
when the time rs from sun to sun. The short
est Gay Work between sun and sun would be
nfne hours and seven minutes. The rate of
wages was 81 per day. On old work in the
summer The days work was from eight O'Clock
a. m 10 nye O'Clock y. m, with an interval of
twenty minutes in the forenoon for lunch, and
one hour for dinner, making the time seven
hours and forty minutes The official time in
the navy yard was the average time OF the pri-
yate establishments in the vicinity The pro-
portion OF labor on old work TO that on the new
work was about oDe-third. Shipwrights on
repairs could command s. per day. For over
work they received double pay. The propor-
tiOn of those working by the day was about
three -fourths.
Mr.. Elizur Wright, of the commission, said
that so far as statistic were admissible, IL was
necessary that they should present the relative
proportion of occupation, mortality, etc, in the
various localities concerning which in forrna
tion might be had.
Mr.. Ira Stewart, from a committee of the
Boston Workingmen's Assembly, spoke of the
difficulty Of obtaining statistics and suggested
that the comT- issoners recommend an appro-
priaiion for the purpose of obtaining specific
statements.
be in vestigated by the State in the same manner
as the census is taken, and not by an unpaid
commission.
After some general discussion upon the beet
methods OF obtaining statistics. the commission
adjourned 10 Monday evening, October 81.