Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1905-03-10

D&44A4 ALN NIB
VI Ethor statistics is already do
ms re SAID that he had been connect
eu win the department as clerk for
- - years During the early part
VI tue Year and well into early sum-
~ sreat deal Of time is taken up in
ii'i''''iiS the work of the year. in IRE.
'i'a ana having printed circular let
ttrs, pamphlets. blanks. etc That
throu&h the month of August he made
| Il 'ouf personally through the >lrio,,s
sections of the State in order tn :,c.
quaint the department with IN. exi>t-
ii'S conditions. About the first of Sen.
TENDER the work begins in earnest =.
the returns from the blanks sam ON,
begin 10 come i'll from which the st,.
| tlstlcs are compiled. He said that In.
| correspondence of the department ax-
tends all over the world and into every
state in the United States. There v-arr
thousands of letters pouring in tina,
must be attended to ana which took
Il large amount Of time. He said that
he getting out OF the report WIS the
biggest part of the work and that dur
49, t'4N past liIstl he Ilttu MANY
weeks put III as many as 80 hours. Mai
or House said that if the clerk were
taken from this department to attend
TO the duties of the inspector Of facto-
ries II would cripple the work of the
bureau to a great extent.
He said that there is no sentiment on
the part of the people to have this Of
flee changed or abolished. White in
some respects the bureau MAS not ar-
cOmplishing the results III some p;irtic-
ular lines that he wished. still he was
%!.td to say that the results that it had
accomplished have greatly increased
IL the estimation of the people. The
working men seek the reports and are
anxious to see the work of the depart
ment advance. To do away With eth
er of these departments will create
feeling and strife. 1t would be a big
miStake.'
Mr.. Nichols.
Speaking absolutely. the coalitions of
the child workers III this State are
still bad. Judging by comparison with
some other states. they are not so very
bad and by comparison with most of
the Southern states | am proud of
them.
On the other hand. the present con-
Gition of the child workers in the
southern mills compare fairly with
what the conditions We're in this State
70 years ago. and they We're as bad as
bad can be.
Nothing has caused the difference
between the conditions. then and now,
between the fairly good and the very
bad save enforcement of the laws.
Nothing but enforcement of the laws
will prevent Il relapse into those bad
conditions which did prevail here 20
years ago, and do prevail now in the
south.
trade uniunlst about this bill, it does
not matter much what YOU say to him.
YOU simply set him to talking about
the children that are in the mills, that
ought to he in the schools.
We recognized that New England
competition with Southern mills with
no restrictions on labor conditions in
the South We're factors which had got
to be Teckoned with, and we began
about 4 years ago to assess ourselves
/; small fraction Of our earnings to de-
fray the expense Of investigation. ana
popular agitation in those states in
favor of laws which should change for
the better conditions which pcrvcrt
and dehumaniZe the lives of those lit
tie workers.
In our minds this problem assumes
hut this one form: Shall the State of
Maine. ut the price of $500. repuiittc
its established policy Of more and more
taking the children out Of til" factories
and putting them into the schools. and
adopt = policy Of more and more TAX
ing children out Of schools and putting
them into the Mills
That such would be the effect of tn"
abolition of this office. is in our minds
lature which enacted the laws, ana cs-
tabiishcd tn" Office have any doubt
about it either.
We are hot ready to declare that the
policy Of South Carolina is right. ana
that the interests of our State are bet
ter served by destroying the efficiency
Of the law which has caused much of
the difference between the present con-
ditions of the child workers in this
State. ami those of 20 years ago. Shall
the rhiid's opportunities for develop
ment into what its Maker intended it
should be. be sold in this House for
$500. cash in hand? 1t is a bad bar
gain. unless We need the money very
much, and | don't understand that VIC