The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1912-02-03
CHILD LABOR CONFERENCE.

tNdkIOIdG SBIII0 Id0OF SOUIGTSUGS tU
Louisville, KY, on "The Unreason-
able Industrial Burdens OF Women
and Children"
The sixth annual conference of the
National Child Labor Committee met
at louisville, KY, on January 25, and
continued in session four days. Dur
ing the conference special emphasis
was laid on the relation of education
to child labor, and on the need of
uniform child labor law in all the
states.
At the evening session of Friday,
January 26, which was devoted to a
consideration of the unreasonable
Industrial burden on women and chill
.dren, the Rev. John A. Ryan, D. D., of
ST. Paul Seminary, st. Paul, Mimi,
delivered an address, synopsis of
which we subjoin:
A discussion of unreasonable bur-
dens implies a fairly definite concept
OF the burdens that are reasonable.
Despite the complexity of the matter,
and despite the tendency Of men to
give different estimates concerning
problems of this nature, group of
persons representing the various
important classes and viewpoints in
the community, and acquainted with
ell the facts of the situation, would
be able to arrive at practical meas
ure OF agreement. At least, they could
unite in setting up minimum limit
Of reasonableness. This minimum
standard would be of great practical
service in any movement for the
removal of the unreasonable industrial
burdens which now Cypress working
women and children.
Minimum Industrial Standard for
Women and Children.
Some of the leading provisions OF
sues a standard would in all probabil-
ity be the following:
/. Only in very rare cases should
married woman become a wage
Garner AS rule, the interests OF the
home, the family, and the race
given to the duties of the household.
The leisure that these leave to her
can be much more profitably devoted
to other forms of social service than
to wage-earning employment.
2. The work day of all women in
commercial and industrial occupations,
such as stores, factories, laundries,
offices, and business establishments Of
all kinds, should not exceed eight hours.
That this is a reasonable maximum Is
clearly indicated by such investiga-
tions as those referred to in Brandeis'
brief in the Illinois Ten Hour case.
and by substantially all expert knowl-
edge and opinion. The effect of long
hours includes grave physical and
moral injuries to the worker herself,
and to her future offspring Such are:
weakening of the general health and
predisposition of disease; harm to the
feet, eyes, and other organs both inter
nal and external; diminished power to
avoid accidents, and to resist moral
dangers owing to fatigue, injury to ma
ternal functions, and low vitality Of
offspring. Yet, in the majority of our
states, women work ten hours or more
per day; even when they are legally
restricted to ten, or nine, or eight
hours, the law does not extend to all
the important occupations.
g. During the school year children
should not be employed as wage
earners before the age of sixteen. The
exceptions to this rule should be con.
fined to rural populations, and to
other children who have completed
their fourteenth year, and who spend
part OF the day in school. In the first
place, the average child is not suffi-
ciently strong to spend full day in
commercial or industrial employment
before the end OF his sixteenth year;
in the second place, he has right to
be In school up to that time in coun-
! try as rich as America; and, in the
third place, national efficiency and the
interests of the. unskilled and under
paid workers of all ages require wide
extension OF industrial education,
which obviously cannot be had if the
child il to quit school entirely at an
earlier age than the one here speci.
fed. The first or these propositions
would be accepted by the majority oi
those having expert knowledge or the
situation, while the second and third
are almost self-evident to men of ordi
nary intelligence and good will. More
over, for all workers under eighteen
the work day should not exceed eight
hours
i Yet I'm the majority OF the states the
age limit is fourteen for those occupa
! tons I'm which most children are
employed. I'm nine states 1t is-to ou1
shame be 1t said-tweIve years. And