Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1905-05-18
FACTORY LAWS
VO Be ENFORCED
Labor Commissioner Announces
a Squirt Of Activity In His
Department
YOUNG CASE MAY BE APPEALED
Regardless of Litigation tho State is
Not Paying ovcroharges Now Such
az pobson Allowed Young For State
nindins-caso Began During shaw'a
Administration.
Special to Times Republican,

Special to mcs-Republican
Des Moines, May ls.--State Labor
Commissioner E. ID. Brigham Is de-
tion law Is to be enforced and If there
are any defects In 1t he wants to know
1t before the next session of the gen
eral assembly. Two informations
were fled In the police court yesterday
and 1t Is understood that the case
against the Dempster Manufacturing
Company for failing to put dust blowers
on the emery wheels will be fought by
that company. in which case the law
will be- given a last. II the case is
fought 1t will be the first test the law
has had and those interested in labor
Legislation and labor movements are
anxious to ascertain whether or not
the law viii stand. The other case was
against the Walsh Printing Company,
but 1t is understood that this firm will
not fight the case. The complaint In.
their case charges them with failing
to protect or remove the set screws
In shafting. The bill which Is now d
law, was introduced by Senator May
tag. This is the pioneer work in the
enforcement of this law" said Com
missioner Brigham today. "and l pro-
pose that Its enforcement shall not go
by default. ] give every opportunity
for the proprietors to live up to the
law. They are notified when they are
not living up to 1t and II they don't
Immediately comply we offer to send
an expert to show them just what
changes are necessary to be made to
meet the requirements of the law. But
when they don't manifest any interest
ia the matter ataall then we prosecute
know that a great many proprietors
OF factories are so busy with the man
agement of their business that they
haven't the time to look up the matter
and find out whether or not they are
living up to the factory laws or not.
For that reason it has been my policy
to call attention to the matter and
offer our help. In the great majority
of cases they at once make the necesA
sary changes"
e@SSNA
previous intention was to, take up the
"Lafe Young case" today. The advice
Of, the attorney general will be asked
and it is possible that he will be In
structed to appeal the case to the SUI
preme court The attorney general has
authority to appeal the case without
the action Of the executive council, but
he naturally would not care to act
unless advised or instructed to do so by
the council after laying the facts be-
fore it. This is the case In which Mr.
Young was acquitted by Polk coun-
ty Jury of overcharging the state $4,-
1888 as state binder. 1t is quite pos
sible that little comment would have
been aroused over. the case had the
bare announcement of the result OF
the jury been made, but the two lead
ing editorials of column and hair
each, which bore the ear marks OF
coming from the pen of Lafe Young
and in which Mr.. Young was spoken
Of in the third person have aroused
considerable curiosity, though the ac-
ton of the executive council in order
ing an appeal to the supreme court
would not be influenced in any way.
The $4,000 which Mr. Young claims
was expended foolishly by the state In
investigating was not spent on his
case alone but on investigating every
office in the state house, tho be 1t SAID
to the credit Of the state, his was the
only suspicious one found. The rec
ords do not show that it was thru his
action that the case came to trial but
thru the orders of the executive coun-
ell. The case was started under the
administration of Governor Shaw.
Mr. Young says the same foreman has
been making out the bills against the
state in the state bindery both before
and since his term. But he never be-
fore and never since Mr.. Young's time
made out the bills the way he did
when Mr.. Young was state binder.
Many of the pamphlets which en-
tered in the controversy were OF
twenty pages. These are printed IN
what are termed signatures. In 4
twenty page pamphlet sixteen pages
are printed on one sheet of paper and
four pages on another sheet. Each OF
these sheets is called signature. The
sixteen pages are laid inside the four
pages and the two seWed together ana
Mr.. Young insisted on calling the
four pages cover and charged SU
cents hundred instead of 15 cents
hundred. On the witness stand PAM
phlets were presented to witnesses
where the outside colored cover had
been torn off and they testified that
it was still covered. They asked what
it would be with the colored cover on
and they didn't know. In one case
pamphlet the separate sheets of which
| were folded and laid one on top of
each other and stitched thru the back
with wire was presented to the wit
nesses. There We're five of the sigma
lures. There was no outside sheet of
paper surrounding the whole and yet
witnesses testified that the pamphlet
was covered and then the charge was
for each of the separate signatures in
stead Of the whole pamphlet. The in