Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1910-01-18
President of American Civic Fed
GRAFTON Made Vigorous
Plea For 1t.
REGULATING CHILD LABOR.
Isaac n. SeIigman Advocated Uniform
Stntc Laws on the
Subject.

Washington, Jan. Isl. Horace
MacFarland. president of the Amerl-
can Civic federation, made plea for
state legislation to promote public con-
troll of privately-owned forests. be-
fore the conference on uniform state
legislation today.
Using every day three times as
much as We grow and wasting as
much as we use. we can see the end of
wood in the United States" he de-
clared. "Fourfifths of the timber
standing in the United States is
privately owned and all is being cut
destructively. The remaining one-fifth
is in government possession and If it
were cut clean there would only be
enough left to last the United States
10 years at the present rate of con-
sumption.
All the power to preserve these
forests rests with the sovereign states.
1t is for that reason that uniform
legislation for public control of
privately owned forests is imperative"
CHILD LABOR.
Isaac n. Sellgman of New York,
chairman Of the finance committee of
the national child labor committee,
made an urgent plea for uniform
state laws regulating child labor.
In part he said:
The Importance OF uniform legisla-
tion Is obvious. particularly where
states are within the same Industrial
area. While there may be some ques-
tlon whether the manufacturer who
is forbidden to employ children under
IA years of age is placed thereby at
disadvantage in. competition with the
manufacturer across the state line
who may employ children of IL years,
he is likely to believe he suffers.
"a system of uniform laws careful,
ly codified so that there could be no
misunderstanding as to their provl-
sions and as to the machinery of en-
forcement, would remove a consider
able percentage of the difficulty now
had by employers. employees, officials
and interested citizens In relation to
this entire matter -
eve recommend the establishment of
IA years 5s the minimum age limit for
all wage-earning employment. Below
that age we contend that no child
should be regarded as having any eco
nomic value.
Let us hasten to say. however, that
We don't regard the mere fact of hav-
ing become IA years of age sufficient
warrant for removing protection from
children. In the standards we rec
ommcnd they must also have attained
certain stage of physical develop
ment. roughly indicated, where more
complete scientific tests are not avail
able. by q height Of 60 inches and a
weight of so pounds.
"They must further have had SufIi-
cent educational opportunity to enable
them to answer reasonable tests of
mental development equivalent to the
normal development acquired by chill
dren in the first eight years of the
public school We maintain that no
child under 16 years of age should be
employed In any occupation at night.
or should be employed longer than an
eight-hour day or 4S-hour week"
SAVINGS DEPOsIToRs.
Pierre Jay. chairman of the delega-
ton of the National Association of Su-
pervisors of State Banks. strongly ad-
vocated the better protection of saw
ings depositors in state and other
banks particularly in the west.
He said that in % states savings de-
| posItors in regular banks were not
| protected any more than were check
| ing depostors and that In many in
| stances they did not have that much
| protection.
Our association believes savings
| deposItors," he said. ''who put theiI
money for safekeeping and investment
| In state banks and trust companies arc
| entitled, first. to have 1t kept separat,
| and distinct from thn N fhf
merchant and manufacturer who put:
| his funds In those banks for an en-
tirely different purpose. and. second. t.
! have 1t invested, not in the usual com
mercial loans. but in such mortgages
and bonds as are considered the safest
and best in the state in which the banl
! Is situated