The Marlboro democrat. [volume] (Bennettsville, S.C.) 1882-1908, 1901-02-08
CHILD {. LABOR Q r RILI,.
Killea Sin 1 tho House onssa ast
L ss6. ss ThQssdoy.8 S VI
Bis sip MAJORITY ADAMS TIT.
/. Ssssstrong 9 Arguments Made for
n saAnd Il s sAgalnat Itho Bill, Ex
Ssgsss II tt,sa,fpass ,fass 'fomot Which II,
,,,,, &. We Pdnt. \.

~ n " 38 " I Ih v 3 II S. ff rs
Tho child lsbor bill was defeated in
the House Of ofRepresontativos on Thurs.
day by a vote Of 66 to, 80. Tho bill
provided that ohildren undor twelve
years Of ago should not work in .'faoto-
rios, minos and textile manufacturing
establishments NJ
Tho fight on tho bill began when Mr..
Weston called itiupS as q spooisl order
Thursday morning J, Mr.. Kuoker mov
ed to strike out tho enaoting words
"A motion toconiiuuo the bill was yo
ted down by largo majority, aud tho
dobeto went on.
Mr. Guntor Of Aikcn said that somo
think wo arc trying to Introduce now
methods and that wo should stiok to the
old But this is progressive ago and
South Carolina should keep hor faco
TO tho front Forty years ago South
Carolina suffered uudor negro slavery
Today ,eho 3isi suffering as morciless
slavery by allowing 5000 childtcn -.un-
dor l 2 years Of ago to be slavos in cot.
ton factories. Tho cotton mill presi-
donto who arc here fighting tho bill ad
nit that tho ignorance of, tho cotton
mi llpoople exceed their expectations.
He read from Col. Orr's circular letter to
sustain his position.
In the discussion before tho com.
mitteo on commerce and manufacturers.
who represented tho cotton mills of
tho piedmont 1t was the cotton mill
president or suporintond ent and one
little prcachcr. The operative was not
there represented. South Carolina is
bohind other Statol. She is lagging be
hind Russia, England, Franco aud
States in this government.
orithe CRANKY mill in Columbia 70 sre
obildren working as vari' able slavos III
hours day 80 put money into tho
oeffers Of the ocrporation. He appeal.
ed for tho ohildrento be kept out of
tho noise aud the groase and sitting at
mosphore of tho mills.
4. In roply to Mr. Galluohat he said
that 30 Siatos in tho Union had laws
prohibiting ohildron from working in
the mills unless they atten ied schools
six months in the year. In Massaohu.
setts q regular eystem,gof registration
is omploye ed.
nv. r. B. A. Robinson Of Anderson
opposed tho BILL He said his people
want to be ]etg alone, 1t sis option
with thefparents whether or not they
would work children. int tho4 mills.
prhore'ar number of widows in cot
toG mill districts in this vicinity who
depend upon the labor of their chil
dren. He would be glad if tho little
tots, did.not have o go out.in th,. fros-
ty morning to pick cotton. But sotno
body has TO labor. Nobody has the
tight TO tell him what he must do with
his own children unless he should abuss,
them. Who is making the groatdst'
stiidca Of progress, the old countries
mentioned BY Mr. Guntcr or tile u ~
ted States ofAmorisa. h ~ B III S55}}aAE
MIR. John MoMaster next secured t,sSlSss
aoor. & This question oanla up:inih sss
land 10 years boforo tho Amerioanreyb5
luton. When Watts and Others mea. a..
toned machinery to spin otton,s in, tho
,1orlh Of England prose wonderful
msnuia stories. In. the2oonrso ofS time
women and children were leased to tho
factories, and tho outrageous way lin
which they were treated led to labor
ogiiation and labor epaction in 1900
II il q epeoious argumontto ask Am /
my brothers. keoper." Mr.. MoMastor
charged that Mr.. Ellison Smytho had
said before the committee that when he
went to Anderson 20 years ago he found
the people tho most illiteratol he had
ever seen. DR.. Curry in visiting tho
shipyards at Norfolk had il quired who
were tho skilled laborors who rooeiyed
the big pay aud had found out that
they were northern mon. All tho big
pay men in The ills come, from tho
north whcro they have laws of this
kind. G. He doesn't want. q class legisla.y
tion. He doesn't want rich 7 cotton
mill ownor GLASS and a poor people,
Glass. He wants people Of one kind,
a people who cap read and yrlto and
mako good citizens. b
Mr. NJ. r. Smith Of Cainden favored
tho bill. Every South Carolinian 10
proud of the States adyanoement. But
wo now have a great problem to faco, a
problem which, evsry manufacturing
State has had to face and}to aolyo. He
spoke particularly upon tho political as
spcot Of the question. Tho report OF
the State superintendent shows that al
though last year 500, 900 was spent for
tho education tf white ohildren and
5000, 600 for the Negroes thoro w6r,
100, 900 Negroes in the schools and but
|t125, 900 whites Under tho leadership
OF thoughtful Negroes, that,r4cob be.
coming educated. The white ohild
must DO taught to 'thinks Of itself or
eventually lose it's citizenship. The ore
donoy of the mills is toward commercial
protection and Rophblioahism.@ These
people should bo taught upon Tho prin-
cipl,s Of Democracy. TheHeg ohildron
arc not at work by their own will. They
arc put there by indolont' parents who
loaf around through tho week and on
Saturday draw their ohildron's pay and
spond It r;otously. These people arc to
bo tho future oitizens. The girls TO
mako tho homes, the Fboyp 70 fcasttthe
ballots, and it ID tho duty Of fthis'as-
sombly toflegislato for future genora.
tions. AS { to; the petitions which had
boon circulated hero, they amount to
nothing. It would not require much
work to got tho operatives to sign them.