The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-03-10
Afternoon Session Devoted Largely to Reports
 From the Field
LOVEJOY TALKS ON
 WORK IN THE MINES
Dr. McKelway Thinks the Associa- tion Has Cause to Congratu- late Itself on Work of
 the Past Year

The seventh annual conference on child labor, under the auspices of the national committee, convened yesterday afternoon at 2:3o o'clock at the Orpheum theatre. The first meeting was marked by good attendance, and the opening formalities having been completed the conference then heard the reports from the field.
 The meeting was called to order by Dr. E. J. Baldwin, chairman of the Alabama child labor committee, who presided over the session. In opening the conference Dr. Baldwin took occasion to speak with praise of Birmingham. and introduced Judge N. B. Feagn, who, in the absence of Mayor Culpepper Exum, made the wei come address in7~behalf of the Magic City, as follows:
 Feagin's Speech
 "Mr Chairman and Ladies and Gentle men-I am commissioned by our honor able Mayor to welcome you to the city of Birmingham, to open wide her gates to greet you, to give to you not only the key to the city, but also the keys to our homes and to our hearts and to vouchsafe to each of you a right royal southern hospitality. The police have been instruct ed to give you the freedom of the city; the blind tiger has been ordered to open his den and bid you enter within-your badge will be your passport. Here you can see for yourself whether prohibition prohibits.
 We bid you a more hearty welcome from the fact that you come to us-a great industrial community-with the highest and holiest message that philan- thropy has given to humanity in this the twentieth century Your message we un- derstand to save preserve and protect by law the child life of the state
 From you we learn that the child is a most precious priceless product of the state; that the wlsests economy of the state Is the care. the protection and the culture of the child; that the latent powers of the child when appealed to and called into play, when the hand the head and the heart are trained for good and useful citizenship, then he child's possibilities for a better life broadens-becomes more real that no method Is surer of bringing better tomorrow than by doing today the best possible thing for the neglected and the dependent child.
 All Lands Represented
 We have here representatives from almost all the races of men, men from every state in this republic, from near ly every nationality in Europe, from Greenland's icy mountains to India 2 coral strands; men with bold. bravo spirits, full of energy and enterprise; all eager to accumulate a competency.
 We deem your coming suspicious in that you will teach us not to sac rifice the child-life of this community in mad cupidity to coin wealth; that life-a well-ordered life-is more valu- able than material wealth. that tho child is father to the man; that an educated, well trained child gives us noble manhood and splendid wom- anhood. These are a nations most valuable asset-its greatest honor and glory.
 Teach us to avoid the history of P1ttsburg as shown by the recent sur vey, where the strong in their desire to get rich quickly exploited the child for self aggrandizement, where the exceedingly rich live in close prox- imity to the exceedingly poor. more or less indifferent to their want and wretchedness
 Save us from becoming a great com mercial and industrial community where little or no care will be taken of the wear and tear of our human machinery-our helpless childhood. We have done much here for new community, for better childlife.
 Yet, with all our charitable organ izations and all of our philanthropic work for the child our laws are inad- equate to protect the helpless child from his ignorant, drunken or brutal parent. or from some oppressive and cruel employers who exploit the child for his personal profit.
 Our legislature Is in session and think keenly alive to the necessities for a better child labor law. Our governor is to be with this conference tomorrow and will preside over the meeting discussing The Conservation of Childhood.' He is in deep sympathy with you along these humanitarian lines and will approve the best child la bor law our legislature may enact.
 The time is propitious for getting for Alabama the best child labor law of any state In the union. May your meeting and your discussions here place Alabama foremost among the states of this republic in passing g