The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1903-02-05
Under The Dome.

Members of the Legislature who served
in tile session of 1899 or 1901 were glad
to see Mr.. NJ S. Willard, who represent
ed New Hanover at both sessions, in
the House yesterday. He was here on
private business. Mr.. Willard is one of
the NEST equipped legislators who has
served in the North Carolina Legisla-
ture in a generation. He had knowledge,
application, sense, and a spirit of pro-
gress. There is a crying need always
for such men in public life.
Mr. Moses H Cone, President of the
Cone Export and Commission Company
and Director in number of cotton mills
in the State. is in the city. A reporter
of the News and Observer
asked Mr.. Cone yesterday what his opin-
ion was with reference to the pending leg
islation forbidding child labor and regu-
lating the hours of labor in the cotton
mills of the State. Mr.. Cone said
Il do not think it is in the interest Of
the development of the State along indus
trial lines to have any legislation on the
subject. / do not think that any of the
proposed laws in themselves are wrong
or will be harmful, but they are pretty
sure to lead later on to others that l
think will cripple some of the branches
of the business. AS understand it there
is a proposition to limit the number CT
hours in the cotton mills to &c per week
and to restrict the employment of child
rem to twelve years of age and over.
These laws, do not think, will effect any
mills that signed the agreement two years
ago to this effect, as l have been unable
TIC find that any of the signers of that
agreement have violated it. The ProXim-
ity Manufacturing Company of Green's
boro, of which | am a large owner. runs
its mills only 60 hours per week and we
do not employ any children under twelve
years of age, and We have provided at
our expense a school building with ac
commodations for the children of the viii
lage, and the school is run under the SUI
peryision of the Greensboro Superinten-
dent of Public Instruction as a graded
school, the same as the Greensboro grad
cd schools I believe conditions similar
to this will eventually be adopted by all
of the up-to-date and prosperous mills.
In some lines of cotton manufacturing
there has not been much prosperity in the
last few years, specially spinning, and
these mills are not in a condition to pro-
vide schools and teachers and to meet the
competition with such mills as ours, for
the best labor of the State will regulate
these questions and I think that with this
and the advancing tendancy of ciVlliZa-
ton the question can safely be left to it.
self. The mills of New England, to my
knowledge, are crippled by various laws
and I think that as North Carolina is just
beginning, in my opinion, to get on its
feet as a manufacturing State, particular
" in the cotton mill line, that 1t Will be
to the interest of this State to have 1t
said that North Carolina interferes as lit
tie as. any State in the Union, or IN tact
less with subjects of this kind. / do not
think there is any call for legislation on
this subject upon the part OF the people
most directly interested. l have had sew
eral mills I am connected with to investi-
gate the matter and do not think the de-
mand for this legislation comes from the
labor of the State. The only possible eX-
cuse for any legislation on this subject
would be that it is combining to young
children and if the State will provide
schools for these young children, which /
am in favor of. that will of itself take
care of the question. Also if the State
will nrovide that children under certain
age must go to school, which l am also
in favor OF.
The Institution for the Blind Will en-
terrain the members of the General AS
sembly tonight at 1880 o'clock with con-
cert
IF the multitude of petitions for tenn
,,oronce LEGISLATION that have been sent
TO Raleigh mean anything, they mean
that the people are in earnest dpoU'
closing the saloons in North CaEollha.
Tho members of the Legislature should
beware how they should ignore the Will
If the people. The political future OF
most OF them Will be determined by me
support they give the LONDON Dill
Greenville Reflector
Representative Kicks, of Nash, has
been on visit to his home. The Rocky
Mount Motor quotes him as follows:
'Tn reply to a question as to what
LEGISLATION was probable regarding the
whiskey question he said he thought a
COMPROMISE bill would be reported, the
effect of the bill being not to drive dis
tilleries out of the rural districts, but
restrict it's sale to towns of 500 popula-
ton and putting the burden of getting q
majority of the registered vote upon the
advocater of the open saloon or dispeH-
sary. Representative Kicks said that
the Legislature was overwhelmingly in
favor OF some temperance legislation;
that on a test vote, the occasion being
q fill introduced to prohibit the sale OF
whiskey in Watauga county, the vote
resulted ninety-six for, four against"
The question of Child Labor" is to be
heard this afternoon by the Committee
on Manufacturing. The meeting will be
held in the Senate chamber at 3 o'clock
and it is expected that the meeting will
be one that will attract an interested
audience.
a Temperance Party.