Los Angeles herald., 1906-08-04
WOULD NOT LIMIT
HOURS Of LABOR
NEW YORK JUDGE CALLS IT
CLASS LEGISLATION
Law Regulating the Employment Of
Women and Children Declared to
Be an Invasion Of constltu-
tlona Rights
BY Associated Press.

By Associated Press.
NEW YORK, Aug 3.-The state law
Of New York restricting labor by wo-
men and children to ten hours a day
and sixty hours week in a factory,
was declared today by Justice Olmstead
in decision handed down in the court
of special sessions to be an unwarranted
invasion of constitutional rights The
ruling was concurred in by Justice
Mexican and Deuel.. Judge Olmstead
held that the law was class legislation
Justice Olmstead said in his decision:
ITO labor and employ labor are in
herent and inalenable rights of our
citizens, and cannot be taken away In
whole or in part unless upon the broad
ground of public good, which must be
apparent and cannot be predicted upon
legislative dictum.
1T may be stated as a well settled
legal proposition that the right to
labor and contract for that labor is
both a liberty and property right
When, therefore the Legislature enacts
statue such as that under considera-
ton it must be admitted that it has
infringed in the enactment the rights
which are very clearly accorded by the
constitution to Individual citizens.
Why Statute Was Enacted
"The people, therefore, are called upon
to Justify this invasion, and there is
but one plea in justification--that the
statute was enacted to protect the COM
fort welfare and safety of the whole
people, and the Individual must suffer
this curtailment of his granted rights
in the interest of the common good
"The present constitution of the state
Of New York was enacted in 1894 and
became effective January 1, 1895. AL
of the rights which adults possessed at
that time were confirmed by that docu-
ment.
"One of those rights certainly was the
right to contract for her labor and work
when and where she pleased, without
reference to the position of the hands
upon the dial of the clock.
'1t was not until four years after
that the. law sought to place the limita-
ton of consideration upon them
What was the legislative intention ir
doing this? The attorney general finds
and urges no other reason than that the
general welfare of the state demand:
that the progeny of women of the fac
tories shall have mothers with health.
bodies. to the end that the state ma,
have sturdy citizens.
What Of the Housewife?
Does the state look merely to the
children of the factory women for its
future good citizensg Why should the
housewife, the woman who tolls al
home, at mercantile houses, in offices
or she who tolls not at all-the society
woman-be exempt from Legislative in
reference, injunctive or mandatory, fol
the same reason?
"Some of them may be mothers OF
future citizens, and it should be of as
great interest to the state that their
progeny should have proper birth and
breeding to conserve its welfare. If this
question of future citizenship is the
only excuse for the assumption of po-
lice power, what becomescof the rights
of the non-child bearing women, con-
siderable class%
, Attorney General Mayer announced
tonight that he would appeal from the
decision of the court.
II will carry the case if need be-
he said, ''to the supreme court of the
United States, so long as the question
of the constitutlonality of the state law
has been raised.'