Daily Arizona silver belt., 1909-03-02
lBy Staff Correspondent

I \
 | PHOENIX, March 1.-The labor or ganizations are very much in favor of
 the passage of Morgan s council bill defining the liability of corporations for the injuries sustained by employees while in their service, which it is claimed by the leaders and attorneys for the unions will result in the protec- tion of labor, the elimination of certain 1 ignorant alien classes, and offer recourse in court for damages not now possible. It is cited that very few suits for dam. ages. have been won> in the Arizona courts, particularly by miners from their employers.
 l This bill will leave it to the jury to | determine the extent to which contrib utory negligence of an employee shall | figure in the award. It is claimed that the mining companies are bringing in a cheap, undesirable class of foreign
 laborers, and killing them of at the rate of two to four a week in some camps. These men are incompetent to perform the work assigned to them and often times their acts result in injury not only to themselves, but to fellow laborers. It is claimed for the Morgan bill that it will result in forcing the corporations to employ only competent men, giving good American labor the 1 opportunity to secure work where it is now sometimes crowded out by aliens, especially in the case of hazardous oc- equations. Members of both houses who are neither radicals nor affiliated with the corporations, but who usually take the safe middle ground, are very much in favor of this bill.
 Another measure which appeals to all as meritorious is Morgan bill, | which fixes the hours of labor for w0- men in laundries at eight hours a day. At present women and young girls are | compelled in some laundries to work 1 ten, twelve and fourteen hours day, in hot, steamy and unhealthful ironing rooms. The atmosphere itself is sur ! charged with poisonous germs where the ventilation is poor and the air stag nant. Many cases of tuberculosis orig mate in these surroundings. The mod ern laundry is perhaps as clean and sanitary as the average dry goods store, but only a small per cent are modernly equipped.
 In Phoenix Mexican girls are work ing long shifts in the Chinese wash houses, and their lives are shortened many years. You can see them drag home late at night, chilled in their damp garments, miserable and prema- turely old from over exertion. White employers are more humane, but as MT. Morgan contends as long as we arc go | ing to have Chinese laundries to com pete with the modern establishment, there must be laws to protreet our American girls and women and the American laundries.
 Apparently there will be no legisla tion nor appropriations at this session for an Arizona display at the Alaska Yukon Pacific exposition. Woolf of Marieopa has already introduced two bills which have been killed without consideration. The first provided for the appointment of commissioner for the collection and arrangement and dis play of minerals and ores of the terri tory at Seattle, and sum of $lO,000 appropriated. This was No. A. Woof came back later with No. ll4, which fared no better than No. 44--in fact it was inferred without ceremony under suspension of the rules the same day it was offered. It only asked 5000 to be appropriated. Evidently the legis- lature does not believe that the adver tisement will be worth the price, or else that they have many other ways | tn spend the money. It is upderstoOd