The Jersey City news., 1906-02-05
OPPOSE CHILD
NIGHT LABOR
Consumers League Wants
the Age Limit Raised to
Sixteen Years
MEETING HELD IN NEWARK

WORK THAT HAS BEEN ACCOM-
PLIsHED AND THAT LAID OUT
JERSEY oITY PEOPLE INTER-
EsTED.
The inability to protect children III TIA
State against night labor was severely
criticised at the annual meeting Of the
Consumers League of New Jersey by
Owen R. LoVejoy. assistant secretary oI
the National Child Labor Committee.
He expressedshis amaEement that peopk
will allow little boys and GIRLS TO bs
taken from their homes at might to Labor
i'm the glass factories of this State. He
was happy to think that the State
Labor Department looks upon the prema,
ture employment of children as an uD
mixed evil, but he said the only deftct iA
the law was the failure to protect chill
dren against night labor. a bill is al
present being prepared by the New Jer-
sey Child Labor Committee intended to
prohibit the labor of children under 1d
years at night.
THE mere statement of such a pro
gramme," said Mr.. Lovejoy. should be
sufficient to guarantee its adoption. for
it is difficult to conceive a defence for
system which would take litAle boys and
girls out of their home and bed to labor
at hours which nature intended for sleep.
Yet it has its champions who defend il
either on the. ground that industry win
suffer if child labor at night Is prevented,
or that the children themselves will suf-
fer hardship.
1T can be defended on neither ground.
Children cannot be employed at night 10
the factories of New York or Ohio OF
Massachusetts, yet the textile and other
industries are not being crippled in those
States. Some glass manufacturers con-
tend that the glass industry cannot live
without such employment. Yet it L
AOu1ASt ltfelt AhutO 6UI liHuO4St III UOIrl
of which States the industry IS more ex
tensIye than in New Jersey. children can
not work at a ght under 16 years Of age.
yet now giasshouses are constantly beng
built and the industry grows more rapid-
~ than here
Fortunately leading glass manufac-
turers confirm our contention that young
children are not essential to the suecers
of the industry. The editor of the Ma
tional Glass Budget recently said that
the Introduction of modern machinery
and automatic devices has changed mod.
ern factory requirements to such an ex-
ten5 that it can truthfully be said that as
a rule the glass factory of to-day which
still requires the work of the small boy
is operated in the crudest. most prini-
tive. most expensive and antiquafed
manner
1T is not denied that an old, worn-oui
factory, operated by methods in use a
quarter century ago, would suffer by the
restriction of young child labor, but be-
lieve it can be shown that no well-equip.
ped. up-to-date factory, eeonomicaHy
managed, will suffer any loss. On the
other hand, the industry as such will im-
prove by such legislation. A glass manu-
facturer in Pennsylvania last year OBJ
jected to child labor legislation by say
ing: This will compel us to introduce
new machinery that win do away with
the labor of young boys This is pre-
cisely the confession we seek. We want
whatever will at the same time protect
the children and advance the processes
of industry.
Many manufacturers in your State
will not oppose a law to raise the age
limit for night work to Is years. a
leading manufacturer said to me but a
few days ago when approached with this
proposition: When the present law
o.l ~ 4 4
fought il. l am frank TO say. But i
came TO the conclusion that was wrong.
My self-interest said let us get all DUE
of the children we can," but l determined
that / had no right to let my poeketbcok
get between me and humanity And il
you propose the law you suggest | wiz
not oppose it. Children are more precious
than glass"
Miss Butler quoted figures to show the
low wages the women and children re-
+ ceive in these shops for their services.
A good way to abolish this condition
of affairs" said Miss Butler, lis for purA
chasers to demand the consumers label
on their goods. and thus protect them
selves against the danger of infection
from the SweatshopS."
In reading the report of the treasures
for the past sixteen months Mrs. Brict
Collards stated that the receipts were
1858. Is and the expenditures $620.S9
leaving a balance of 1929. Miss Flor
ence ID. Dale, the secretary of til
league. told. in her report, to what ex
tent the league had been successful in
obtaining shorter hours for clerks in de
partment stores She said that whit
some of the leading houses had banded
together to give their employees shorteu
hours by closing their stores at $50 il
the evening there We're many who could
not be induced to come to any agreement
on the matter. Miss Dale said it wal
gratifying to learn that the principa
shopkeepers did not compel their clerki
to remain at their posts so late at night
during the recent holiday trade She
said the public was being educated t.
tho fact that no one wants a Christmas
present so badly that they must buy
at ! ! O'clock at night and from chil<
of IA years or under.
IA The secretary reported that the leagur
would send delegates TO the tuberculosis
exhibit. which is soon to be brought t,
Newark under the auspices of the Boar
of Trade.
Mis- Augustus Crevelng Mrs. Bpsr,
Collarl and Miss STarv r E'rrev weri
elected to the executive committee.
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