Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1905-11-10

as of the other north central states
Of the American union, are becoming
more and more the seats of industrial
| establishments In which there Is q
tendency to employ children under
conditions of factory labor. to say
nothing OF the larger centers.
"An earnest initiative for securing
attention to the Importance of child
labor legislation in Iowa was taken by
the Iowa Federation Of Women's Clubs
which In turn was stirred to action by
| the National Federation of Womens
Clubs. For the past three years
women's clubs throughout the country
have taken an active part In the move
mcnt for suitable code of child labor
| laws In every commonwealth. In their
biennial convention at st Louis. Miss
ourI, In May, 1904, the General Fedora
| ton tof Women's Clubs undertook to
state national program Of child labor
| legislation. The program adopted ny
| that federation and commended to Its
members was as follows: "a No child
| under sixteen shall be permitted to
work at night between p. m. and Z a.
m. (2) No child shall be regularly
employed who cannot read and write
simple sentences; and (3) That In
| those states In which these two pro-
visions are not already secured, an at
tempt should be made to secure the
enactment Of the Child labor law as
outlined by the National Consumers
League In the hand book Of 1904 and
the News Boys law. The Newshoys'
law here commended aims to secure
for the hoy not his displacement from
THIS favorite occupation for boys but
some regulation OF his hours and of
the environment thrown about him In
his work.
"trhe interest OF the women's clubs
for child labor legislation has been
! extensively seconded by resolutions
adopted by the severai medical ASSOC
citations against child labor and the
testimony furnished by these associa
tons against the evil effects of child
labor. Among. the other centers OF
influence, that may be mentioned for
the development OF a child labor law
In every commonwealth of THE coun-
try are the trade unions. who have
constantly stood for the limitation OF
child labor thru nearly hundred
years OF their history, and the spe-
cially organized active societies for
the promotion OF legislation OF this
character, among which the national
child labor committee must be named
as the most conspicuous and the most
powerful. The purpose OF this COM
mittee Is. not to take the place OF any
other organization, but rather to act
as a supplement to the work OF all
others. harmonizing and co-ordinating
the efforts In various comm onw ealths
In order to evolve as uniform a stand-
ard OF law as may be possible. 1t
needs no argument to show that laws
regulative OF child labor II uniform
in the various sections Of our country
and In adjoining conmonwealths will
increase Immensely the possibility and
the probability of their faithful en-
forcement, for every one knows how
prone every employer Of labor is to
quote the lowest admissible standards
In competition as reasons for doing
what his own conscience and better
Judgment would condemn. 1t Is pre-
cisely this namely the need of estab
fishing the minimum plane OF COM
petition, that furnishes the ground
work for amy successful advocacy OF
child labor legislation, or any other
Legislation restrictive or regulative OF
the conditions of labor.
1.-THE personnel OF the national child
labor committee, organized in New
York City, April 18th, 1904. deserves
a moments notice. 1t Is made UP of
representative citizens, officials and
civilians from various STATES of the
union, representing all sections OF our
,%..r, n OF nv
central 1t includes In It's lists Amer
States Grover Cleveland President
Eliot OF Harvard University, and the
Hon. A. ]. Cassatt, president of the
Pennsylvania railroad: practical phil
anthropissts like Miss Jane Adams.
John Graham Brooks. and Edward 7,
Devine; and representatives OF the
labor movement like Edgar Il. Clark
of lowe.
"The active secretary Of this COM
mittee is Professor Samuel McCune
Lindsay of the University OF Penn
sYlwania. DR.. Lindsay during the past
year has made several trips to the
west, ON two occasions visiting the
state of Iowa for consultation with
Iowa citizens, leaders of public opin-
Ion, and those interested I'm the cause
which he represents The outcome OF
these conferences was the appointment
Of am Iowa child labor committee on
the initiation OF the national child
labor committee, whose object is to be
the promotion Of interest in the for
mutation of LAW which shall win Its
way to place in the statutes OF Iowa.
The writer Of this paper Is under the
impression that the movement for
proper child labor law in our COM
monwealth Is meeting with favorable
support from public opinion. Although
the bill before the last assembly did
not succeed in passage, 1t Is not to be
understood that there was amy PRO-
nounced, widespread or tdeep-set op-
position. The objections and diff
culttes encountered were objections
and difficulties arising IN consequence
Of difference OF opinion and judgment
as to matters of detail
"1>he governor Of the State and many
OF our public men are heartily In ac-
cord with the purpose of the humani-
tarians behind the present movement
to place on our statute books reason
able limitations and restrictions upon
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