The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1905-01-24


life to many an orphan child. many .
poo widow who has a family OF chill
.dren to rear and educate. As soon as
a factory starts up this class of people
move from the desolate, worn-out
farm, where a bare existence by the
hardest work is eked out, to the mill
cottages and there they find-har5
work. it is true-but not near so har6
on the little ones, or the over-worked
mother as they mad experienced on the
dilapidated farm.
We are told thlt following close upon
the heels of this child labor ibil, viii
come one for compulsory education in
this state. We believe that every white
child IN North Carolina should be given
a r-udtnentary education But are the.
times ripe for compulsory education?
Are these children who are now max
and given an opportunity to 60 to
school at the factory schoo to be eorc-
ed to give up the bTead-winning occu-
patton and made to be idle except dur
ing the hours they are attending chool
The question arises: What schools will
they attend? Take them out of the fac
tories and they and their families will
| have to move from the factory towns,
from their comfortable cottages, from
the neighborhood of well conducted
schools back to the farms. What
awaits them there? Harder work,
T.
convenience in attending the district
| school, perhaps miles away from home.
When these families, with a o hard
worked widowed mother or an invalid
father are forced to leave the mill
villages, because there is no longer op-
portunity for work for the half dozen
lusty boys and girls, and take up their
residence in some dilapidated, tenant
house on a WORKOUT farm and the
children forced to give UP honest labor
that they may daily attend "a pubic
school some miles away what will be
the result but to add to h mighty
army Of the nations paupers?
In New York city they have compu.-
sorry education. Children are forced to
go to school whether their parents are
| able or not to give them a mouthfui Of
food before going. The law forces the
well-fed and the starving to attend
school. Mr.. Hunter. above quoted from.
says that in that city seventy thousand
children go to school hungry every
morning. What kind of citizens will
these children make? The mind forced
and the body starved! Education is
not adj that is needed to make good CIT
zens of the generation coming on.
Along this line We wish our readers
to carefully note the following remarks
made in the house of representatives
ker, of New York. They are worthy
Of consideration and We should ssk
ourselves if we wish to aid by state
! legislation in producing such a class of
citizens in our state. Men want work
and they should have it. From Mr..
To such let me read something Which
ought to convince even them that the
charge that men are starving because
my Il ~ Is INSdIl ltSS, cruel
libel. I read from the Public of Chica-
60, a p which I have heretof ore
commended to this House for lucidity
Of expression. Ir quotes the superin-
tendent of the municipal lodging houses
of New York City as saying that
on a recent Saturday might that had
followed a day when there was snow
~shoveling to be done, there a been
but POI applicants for lodgings, where
as am 0r6lpnrJy niohfc M -y~ho
ranges from 400 to 5OO."
AS The Public says:
Little jobs at shOveling snow had
put men in condition to pay for lodg-
1ngs. Having an opportunity to work
they sought no charity
Listen to what the superintendent
says of those who come to the lodging
house when a snCwstOrm has visited the
city:
W make it a point to see that they
are aroused earlier than 'ouhers-about
5 o'clock-so that they may apply 70,
a job at snow shoveling."
Mr.. Chairman, just imagine some OF
our ~self-satisfied people going out soor
after 5 ocIoc on a bitter winter'<
morning with only a piece of bread anG
a bowl of soup in their stomachs tC
face a day of snow shoveling and ever
that job has to be hunted for, and may
not De obtained unless you get there
ahead of some other poor wretch equal
ly as anxious to get it as you arA
Only the lazy and shiftless,' we arr
told, need ever want. Listen again &c
what this superintendent has to Gay
about these men. He says:
In spite Of the emarks made by mer
who do not know
And he might with almost equa
truth have said and who do not care
Perhaps he had some of our prosper.
ity' touters in mind
you ought to see how many of :hen
jump at h chance to work and hus.
tie On their clothes in the morning
He says
Most of them have not enough pro.
l~Uection as to clothes to take a street
cleaning job; but
He says:
still many of them try it and com,
back in the evening with their toes tee
up in newspapers. because they are fro
zan