New-York tribune., 1907-03-03
LABOR OF CHILDREN.
Factory Inspector argues against
Making Age Limit Is Years.

~. re Editor OF TIE Tribune.
s,-. There has been much said and written
-sl.,e IN regard 10 child labor IN this country.
"a do not write now IN the hope of enlighten-
A., ,be readers Of The Tribune as 20 the general
,-..s,gs of the subject. but win endeavor 20
,rrow some light on certain phases of the
.,.- IRON, my point Of view, which is that of
/. factory inspector acting for the State Of New
T.-sev position ] have held for several years.
No ore viii dispute the statement that the
,oin, of view has a great deal 10 co in forming
a judgment on this or any other subject Ger
,.,n writer's and speakers when taking hold ct
she child labor question. have assumed that any
,sbor Of children is wrong in Itself. thus taking
,be ground that only TO adults should fall the
.,sk Of being wage earners. It was only few
,oors ago that a man OF knowledge and ex-
,o,,snoe. and " no at the time acted as spokes-
~, for many other men appeared before
COMMITTEES OF the Legislature Of New Jersey and
made a long and labored argument in favor OF
r-ohibiting females under eighteen years OF age
s-on working IN factory or workshop. Per-
hans the speaker thought. from his standpoint.
,ba, he was right but his argument failed 10
convince the committee
Or take an ordinary householder in town. or
q merchant. or a professional man living in
c,tv. who has a son fourteen years old. The
,,s is 10 him a veri1able youngster. and no
more III 10 be in any sense a breadwinner than
- he were but seven years old. But II the same
TAD had been the son Of farmer ana oroueht
M On farm as othsr boys. he would very prob
ably hive become. ever AT the age Of ten or
twelve years helper and worker at various
tasks suitable to his years and 20 which he
would Re assigned in order that the father and
his hired man might have full sway on i'm
portant duties
A far different case 10 consider is that or
Sammy White or of John CGingeTS McCahe. a
boy of fourteen years, born TO parents
who are poor in every sense Of the word. neither
the father nor the mother of vigorous mentality.
the former. moreover. badly Handicapped by
physical defects. lacking in education. so that
he has always worked as common laborer at
low wages. a frequenter Of Erogshops. and lv-
ing in a quarter far from respectable. Then
i9ok at the wife. woman as ignorant as the
husband. a dirty, slovenly heusekeeper. the
careless. goddess mother of ive children younger
than the boy in question. What may the point
cf view be Of such mother toward her chill
dren? Not the same as shat OF the prosperous
tradesnan OF lawyer. BY no means, Long be-
fore this time she has through sheer desperation
at the load depressing her kept the boy from
school - mind the younger ones at home while
she went out 10 do washing. or has allowed him
20 roam the street as a newsboy else pick up
q living in ways that are very questionable.
win such a mother hesitate TO put her child at
work in a factory az twelve OF thirteen years
of age? Not at all. She viii even declare under
oath that he Is past fourteen years. and never
vince. So much from her point OF view.
Another type Is the poor but honest. God-fear-
ing widow. bereft Of the support OF her husband
who was a skilled workman. and who is strug-
Cling best she may 10 maintain a number OF
small children; or perchance a father, a steady
worker with good habits and morals. but get
ting q small wage. who welcomes the day when
his son or daughter go work and thus
contribute 20 the general welfare OF the family.
The point OF view Of those two may easily be
guessed. and for good cause.
We hear great outcry that child labor must
stop, because children working for small wages
are doing mems work and thus taking the bread
out OF mems mouths and forcing them into idle
ness. il IS a false cry. and has been used as
well against women working in factories because
their wage is often less than that OF men. II
the truth were told feel sure that the savage
gFoNl about children comes from the poorest
ana meanest Of workmen. men who are 6llad
win jealousy and hate OF any one whom they
Imagine are below them in a social or racial
way II such men had their wav ,vo,,,eD a.,
chlianen IN factories would have no chance
Their places being taken by men and tbev not
american born. but from Hungary. Italy. Rus.
s!a or elsewhere
but the outcry against child labor has hea,
teken up By many earnest. well meaning nao,la
VINO nave organized societies OF power ana IN
"uei'oe ana which maintain quite a star ~
workers and rostrum speakers. No one can snd
70 ". Win the motives that actuate these naor,e
-n sntE action that is meant TO ir,nro,A ~ .
80 MSo.4Siloh OF tne children Of the counfrx- fo- sL
s .Seo ls great especially in certain sac,;o,, ~
ILL ~-.lA, however, that there is danger Of zeal a..
.t-lllls discretion when II is sought to -o;eo
80 el1ploghlent age Of children in Factories So
s"urleeh years 70 sixteen years II thar ba 5ona,
I. means mai the school laws must he rbarc,aS
- NAT chlldren sha! be Obliged IA atte,,S
- Ogi 80, SHAl lney are sixteen years Old 7 tb5nt-
= vii De most unwise. Take the cases 7 ~
49, SIae aooEe ot Sammy White or s.r,inrper''
Nc Soe- Ahey are only types OF a class asS a.
!. 20 81 ss one reinforced uahappily OF late b,-
= eleal NUMBER OF foreign born children ,,bossa
gelehtS are often poorer than our natives n
@'se the employment age Of such chilAre, -, =
ee no less than hardship OUiu
AS for the matter OF age oualiaca,io, +, -
era, lock at the matter in this 80, " rs gen %
oLoiaeEliy bright boy girl has attended stcai an
ieeDlsfly from seven TO fourteen years of ,t
y ~ill suiice 20 give fair English a5,,ca .;a5 a.
CONeiing, 80 far as arithmetic is concerned co-
son = ana decimal fractions. percentage etc rbs,
y ne enid wishes 20 go beyond the zramn,s,.
'0i'Ooi INTO higher grades. well and good buf 20