Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1901-10-09
POINTS ABOUT LABOR.
Labor Commissioner Finds De.
mand for His Fieures.-Forth.
coming Report.
Finds Conditions in s2s Factories
Very Favorable.-.lowa Short
on Laws.

Commissioners Asks for More
Money and Recommends
New Legislation.
Special to Times Republican.
Des Moines, Oct. 9.-The ninth bienni-
al report Of the labor statistician for
Iowa was filed with the governor today.
The report is in many respects COM
pleter than any of its predecessors. G..
F. Wennestrum, the labor commissioner,
states that he personally inspected 276
factories in Iowa during the biennial
term and his assistant, Arthur E..Hold-
Ier, visited fifty-two, in collecting sta
tistics regarding factories and manufac-
turing. The report covers statistics of
labor unions, strikes and kindred sub
jects, and it was intended that convict
IL Dor and Sunday labor should have
been included, but this was impossible.
Several papers are to be published in the
report as incidental to it, including a
valuable monograph on the Amana So
ciety and its social workings by Mrs.
Shambaugh, OF Iowa City; an article on
free employment agencies in the United
States, by Miss Kate b. Miller. OF In
dlanola; sketch of the Icarian society,
now extinct; monograph by Carroll ID.
Wright on Influence and Value OF La
bor Statistics" another by Wright on
the workings Of the department Of labor
at Washington: an article by Francis E.
Cook, OF ST. Louis, on the kindergarten
as an educational force: and an article
by DR.. Calvin NJ. Woodward. Of st.
Louis, on manual training versus trade
schools. The commissioner reports that
since he entered upon the duties of his
office the demands on the bureau for
statistical information have increased
materially SO as to trench very serious
ly onsthe duties OF the office, but this he
regards as a cause for congratulation.
ssss
That in the report which is of first i'm
portance is the results of the factory in
spection given. This is an innovation,
tho Its need was pointed out by the for
mer commissioner. The 1928 factories in
spected were mostly in towns and cities
of over 5000, tho perhaps 100 small In
stitutions were visited where from one
to three persons are employed. In the
towns and cities of Iowa there are at
least 1859 manufacturing establish
ments, employing 5s553 persons. There
are large number in which at least
500 persons are employed and in the
largest there are 100 persons congre-
gated. The capital employed in these
factories amounts to s102, as, ,103; the
wages paid in 1900 amounted to $23. .931,
6s0,' and the products were valued at
$164, Sit ,s77. Iowa is one OF the few states
without any statutory regulation of the
employment Of men, women and chill
dren in factories, and while conditions
on the whole are fairly good, yet the
commissioner found in his inspections
that conditions in large number OF
factories are dangerous and in numerous
instances intolerable. Out of 290 fac
tories with two or more stories which
were visited there were only twenty
with fire escapes. Sanitary conditions in
many were dangerous to the health Of
the employees and the communities In
which they are located. The larger fac
tories are better protected than the
small ones from dangerous machinery.
Statistics are given regarding heating
and ventilation, water closets, fire es-
capes, etc. 1t is pointed out that factory
inspection lessons damage suits and
hence should be welcomed by the em-
ployers. In regard to child labor 1T was
found that employers voluntarily re-
ported the employment Of 403 children
under IL years of age. In fact the num-
Der found was 6O4, but the commissioner
doubts not that the number is much
greater. But employers were reluctant
to give any information on the subject.
1t is strange that Iowa should be one of
the few states having no law prohibiting
child labor in factories. The state pro-
hibits employment of children under 12
In mines, but goes no farther. The COM
missioner recommends that the law be
extended to all establishments engaged
in manufacture and the limit be raised
from 12 to IA. This is the limit in four
teen states, while in four it is at II
years, and one is as low as 10 years.
On the general subject of factory in
spection Commissioner Wennestrum
says:
"It is not necessary for me to explain
or argue for the need of adequate regu-