Los Angeles herald., 1906-09-03

powerful for reform than any body OF
legislation, has greatly contributed to
this A court dressmaker cares little
about the amount Of the fine-the Gus
toners pay indirect taxation toward
this-what they do care about is the
fact that their names may appear
In the papers and that their prestige
among the best OF their clients may
suffer accordingly"
Miss Mary Paterson, acting principal
lady inspector Of factories, calls at
tention I'm her report to the prevalence
Of the practice Of biting and licking
cigars in cigar factories.
1T is undoubtedly the quickest way
Of finishing them," she says, "and
while discouraged by employers and
managers, the rules against It are not
really enforced"
Weight lifting by women and children
is referred to by Miss Martindale who
writes: ON revlsiting one factory l
was interested In seeing again the boy
who i'm June, 1903, had found carrying
a piece of clay Weighing SO pounds, his
own weight being n pounds. During
the two years which have elapsed he
has hardly grown, and he informed me
that he weighs at the present time 81
pounds, showing an increase of only
pounds. 1t is evident that the under
sized condition of many of the pottery
workers is owing to the excessive
strain to which many of them have
been subjected in their early years"
With regard to electrical installa-
tlons, 1t is stated that sometimes for
cheapness or owing to pure thought
lessness or deliberate neglect Of ele-
mentary precautions, most dangerous
conditions are contrived. At one sta
ton was found a passage-way four
feet wide between two rows of vertical
brick cells. Each cell contained 'isolat-
ing" switches working 10000 volts.
The safe width of the passage-way
to any one walking through it was
reduced to two feet. Certainly no one
walk in If he could avoid 1t, the penalty
for not walking straight being probably
sudden DEATH but the unfortunate
switchb board attendants duties would
necessitate his having to do so at GER
tain times in order to operate the before
mentioned isolating switches"
Such dangers are wholly unnecessary,
1t is stated but they exist, and strict
regulations are needed to suppress
them.
"In the course of about five weeks"
writes Miss Martindale, my attention
was drawn to no fewer than four ac-
cidents in which workers had been in
jured by their hair becoming entangled
in either overhead or low shafting, and
causing the scalp to be entirely or par
TALLY removed.
"In one of these accidents a woman
stepped on one Of the work benches
in order to reach the window. Her
hair became caught round a revolving
shaft. with the result that she was en-
tirely scalped. In another case a little
girl with loose hair was working on a
calender; her hair became caught in
the feed of the machine. and in trying
to disengage herself she injured her
scalp in a somewhat serious manner"
1T was in high-class silver printing
wedding cards, Christmas cards,
menus, etc.-that I found early this
year" writes Miss Squire, "a number
of little girls, aged thirteen and four
teen, employed in hand bronzing by
dry powder without any precautions
being taken. Several of the little girls
working there suffered from sickness,
giddiness, bad throats, ETC.; many of
them had not been examined by the
certifying surgeon, although employed
several months.
"I prosecuted for this latter offense,
and one of the little girls was so Ill
that she was unable to appear; the doc
tor attending her attributed the serious
condition, which necesitated an opera
ton, to the effect of inhaling bronze
powder in her delicate state. This girl
and two others who had suffered had
some form of nasal obstruction and be-
ing mouth breathers. were bad sub
jects for work in poisonous dust"