The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1910-01-31
CHILD LABOR WAS
THEME OF MR..
{. v. LORD
Says There Are Serious Abuses
In Vermont
NOT OFTEN RECOGNIZED
People as a Rule Think There are No
Violations of the Law as They
Do Not See Them

Social Science was the subject for
the afternoon at the regular meeting
of the Fortnighly Saturday, Mrs.
Warren f. Putnam, chairman of the
committee in charge. The feature
of the meeting was a very interesting
talk by Everett w. Lord, secretary
of the New England National Child
Labor committee on Child Labor in
New England" Mr.. Lord through
his own personal investigations and
his earnest work along this line was
especially qualified for his talk.
He spoke in general of conditions
Throughout the country in regard to
child labor and what the women's
clubs had done to better these con-
ditions. He spoke especially OF the
Investigations in the south and said
that condtons Vermont had not
been found to be so bad but that
they would continue to become worse
unless Vermonters woke up to real
ization of what actually exists.
He went on to say that the only
state in the Union able to boast a
law forbidding the employment of
children under 16 years of age unless
they have had nine years of school.
ing, is Vermont Upon investigation
however, this law has been found to
have many loopholes and the officials
are extremely lax in enforcing 1t.
There is no law to prevent child
dren under IA from working in the
factories during the summer vacation
and after they have once entered II
is extremely difficult to get them out
in the fall The failure to prove the
age OF the child is another point in
their favor and this failure allows a
child of almost any age to secure EN-.
ployment.
Mr.. Lord also pointed out the com
paratively easy matter OF the child
being allowed to leave school upon
application 1t Is not necessary fol-
him to prove his age and his word is
taken as conclusive evidence. OF
course in many instances this it MOI
true but in many towns of the state
the principal and authorities cater t
local sentiment and with no stat,
authority to prevent, this is only nat
ural Another abuse in Vermont is thu
lack of protection from night work
The law preventing the employment
of children after s in the evening il
not strictly enforced because of The
lack of proper authority to enforce il
These facts are causing the in
coming of many small manufactur
ers from other states where law
protecting women and children ar,
more strictly enforced. Here the,
are unhampered by restrictions
They can employ cheap labor an,
this leads to the immigration OF for
eigners who are not the kind of cit
zens We need.
MIR. Lord gave many interesting
facts revealed by his own investiga
tons in this state and went on to sa
that what Vermont needs is factor
inspector in order to remedy tn
abuse There is a crying need of
labor department in the state an
some state authority to enforce labo
laws. Without these remedial mea:
ures, Vermont is in danger Of bein
flooded by the lowest class of cit
zens brought into the state to be en-
ployed in the factories.
Vermonters are in ignorance OF tn
7 true conditions in Vermont, said Nj
a Lord, because of the lack of informi
e ton and until her citizens experienc
i an awakening, such as that of Louis
I lana some years ago, conditions wi
become gradually worse.
The national child labor commi
tee has taken steps to bring about
uniform Legislation throughout tn
8 country to protect child labor an
!, now there is a bill before congress
O for the establishment OF a FEEDERS
a Children's Bureau at Washington
- Such steps show that the who
: country is awakening to realizatio
. of its duty to its children who are
4 be the citizens of the future al
a. whose lives need protection for II
IL good of the country.