The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1912-02-20

| measures created much discussion.
Mr.. Gillian. OF Petersburg, wanted
the Dreamer bill amended so that IL
/ would not prohibit the employment
| OF women and children. for more than
| ten hours out OF the twenty-four in
| mercantile establishments Mr..
| Creamer entered vigorous protest,
/ and the House declined TO aecede to
! Mr.. Gilliams amendment, Mr. Watts.
+, of Roanoke. wanted to amend the bill
! SO that IL would not apply TO Satur
| days, declaring that the law would
| virtually bring about the closing of
| the stores at o'clock on Saturday
| evenings. with the result that the peo-
/ pie. who had no other opportunity to
| do their shopping except Saturday,
could not he served.
MIR. Dreamer suggested that the
| operation of the bin was not to close
| the stores but to shorten the hours
| and that If the employers desired to
keep their stores open late they could
permit their employees TO come on late
and work Them for ten hours from
such starting time.
Mr. Oliver desired an amendment
that would cut out the operation Of
[ the act from towns OF less than 1000
! people and country districts, which
! amendment was agreed TO.
byrd Defends children.
! Mir Byrd took the floor when his
/ bill was called. 1t Is a measure TO
| regulate the employment of children
| in factories, mercantile establishments.
! workshops and laundries and as mes
| sensers, or IA selling or distributing
| newspapers or other periodicals.
The bill, among many other features
! of interest, prohibits the working of
| children at night. or longer than ten
/ hours daily. Mr.. Montague. of Alex
1 andria, desired to get in an amend
/ ment, permitting the working of chill
dren at night provided that the time
| limit OF ten hours was observed. sir.
! Byrd declared that he was utterly
/ opposed to the amendment--that 1t was
| the very idea of the law to prohibit
| night work.
Mr.. Moncure declared that there
! were certain manufacturing interests
which employed in connection with
| their adult forces n few boys, and ne
wanted L. know If those boys were
to be turned out nf their employment.
| Mr. Byrd replied with emphasis that
the question was not what the manu-
! featuring interests wanted, The child
| who had to work for living should
he given the opportunity to earn that
living during day light hours. lie
! cared nothing for that sordid sort of
/ civilization which sacrificed child tie
! To the needs of the manufacturer, and
| II there were any manufacturing in
| terests In the State which must rely
| upon the sacrifice OF the child he
| would be glad to see them get out. lie
preferred the State to be poor than
! to be enriched in such fashion. The
| House voted with a great chorus OF
noes on the Moncure amendment,
and the bill stands in this regard al
| IL was introduced by It's patron.
| With the Dreamer nil the meaure
| was amended so as not To lhciuoe'
| In so far as mercantile establishments
were concerned. towns of less than q
600 tnha bitants or country districts.
- Coleman And the judses---
At this point Mr.. Coleman, of Nor
| folk, sought to have the bill which
| provides for an increase OF $500 year
| in the salary Of Supreme Court judges
| ordered to its engrossment. Mr.. Cole
| man, on Saturday. when the meas
tre was reached on the calendar MADE
a somewhat critical remark AS To the
| character of the work done by The
court, and objected to the engrossment
| of the bill To-day his desire was 10
| undo his act of Saturday, but the
House declined to hear him. voting by
| s6 TO 80 to let the matter stand tof
| the time.
No Right to Veto Amendments.
message was received from Gov
ernor Man returning to the House the
constitutionai' amendments to resun-
NIT to a vote of the people the ques-
ton as to whether or not city commits
sioners OF the revenue and city treas
urers should be permitted to succeed
themselves. The governor stated that.
acting under n decision of the attor-
,toh No
had neither approved nor disanproved
of the measures to submit the ques-
tions to the people on the ground that
the machinery for the submitting of
amendments to the people was com
plete in itself and that the governor
had no aver in the premises.
Eight Hours u Days Work.
1t was 1.40 o'clock when the House
finally got settled down to its calen-
dar and the first measure before 1t
was the Templeton bill fixing the bus
mess hours of the Offices of hte va
rious departments at the seat of gov
Iernment. MIR. Stephenson. of Bath.
made a short but humorous speech, in
which he said that the House had just
bee, engaged in discussion of keep
ing children under fourteen years of
age from being worked more than
ten hours each day. This was. how
ever, a Dill 10 require people more
than twenty-one years of age to work
eight hours a day for the State gov
eminent, making the hours from nine
until FIVE, with the exception of Sat
urdays when the offices will close at
| +. NJ.
Mr.. Throckmorton sought to amend
the bill by having the Saturday clos
ing time be fixed at noon. but the
House voted Overwhelmingly against
him. The bill was then put on its
final passage and, with the exception
OF the Richmond delegation, the
House was unanimously for the meas
ure.
At two o'clock the House adjourned
fnntilaa 0icloeks
+ AFTERNOON Session.
When the House reconvened at 4
o'clock yesterday afternoon In it's sec
ond session for the day the bill Of Mr..
/ White, of Rockbridge. before the body
| on a motion of Mr.. Oliver to recon-
slider, created the most heated debate
of the day. MIR. Weaver, of Warren.
had the iioor. Mr.. Whites bill is to