Los Angeles herald., 1910-10-13
SWEATING BREAKS
LABORERS' HEALTH
Dublin Sanitary Officer Makes
Report Showing Linen Manu-
facturerS Are Underpaid

DUBLIN, oct. ia meeting of
leading manufacturers in the linen
trade of Belfast was held this week to
consider charges made by DR.. H. w.
Bailie, superintendent officer of health
for the city, in regard to sweating. DIR.
Bailie, in his report, which dealt ex-
haustively with the health of the city,
said:
'It is to be regretted that no i'm
provement has been noted in the rate
of payment given to outworkers in the
city. The increase of work during the
year has not been accompanied by any
Increase in this rate Of payment, which
is still in the great majority Of cases
far too low. In the last week Of De-
cember, for instance, a woman was OBJ
served embroidering small dots on
cushion covers. There were 308 dots
on each cushion, and for sewing these
by hand she received the sum of one
penny. She said that for a days work
of this sort she would have difficulty
in making sixpence. Nor is this an ex-
ceptional case. Quite recently our in
spector was shown handkerchiefs which
were to be ornamented by a design in
dots These dots were counted and it
was found that the worker had to sew
3S4 dots for one penny. Comment is
needless. other classes of work are as
badly paid.
1.-The finishing of skirts. which con-
sists of making the buttonholes, sew
ing on buttons and making small gus
sets at the wrists and sides of the
shirts, may be instanced. In each shirt
six or seven buttonholes have to be cut
and hand sewn, eight buttons have to
be sewn on and four gussets made.
This work is paid at the rate of six
pence for one dozen shirts. Nor is this
a cheap class Of :. goods, permitting
scamped work. The sewing has to be
neat and we'll finished and the button
holes evenly sewn, the shirts being of
the quality for which the buying public
has to give a good price. The making
up trades in general pay very poorly.
1t cannot be too freely or strenuously
insisted that such underpaid labor
must inevitably cripple and in great
part nullify the good effects of any
schemes of health reform. The under
fed, overwrought physique of the
sweated worker, with its weakened
stamina and lack of resistance to the
inroads of disease, is undoubtedly one
of the main causes of high death
rate. 1t is an obvious fact, too, that all
sweated work is ultimately paid to the
full by the state when the prematurely
incapacitated worker finds his or her
inevitable place in the poorhouse, hos
pital or charitable institution. Any ar
rangement whereby the payment Of the
worker would be placed on fair and
firm basis should therefore be well
coined by all seeking for economy in
administration, as well as the improve
ment of the health of the people"
At the meeting of the linen manu-
facturers. which was held in private
and was largely attended, keen resent
ment was expressed at DR.. Bailie's
charges, which, it was contended, were
not we'll founded, and discussion arose
as to the best means of refuting the
allegations in the most public manner
and as soon as possible. 1t was even
tually decided to appoint a deputation
to wait upon the members OF the pup
lie health committee of the corpora
tion, to whom the report of DIR. Bailie
has been submitted.