The Hattiesburg news. (Hattiesburg, Miss.) 1908-1917, 1912-06-13
THE TEN HOUR Law
CAUSES SERIOUS
SITUATION
MATTER is GIVEN CAREFUL CON.
slDERATIoN BY MISSISSIPPI
PINE ASSOCIATION.

Inc meeting OF the mississippi Pine |
Association held in Hattiesburg Mon
day, was attended by about forty
mill owners. Plans were discussed
by which the saw mills could enable
their men to make living and them
selves comply with the ten-hour Law.
1t was reported there is great dissat-
isfaction prevailing among employees
as well as the employers, regarding
the law passed by the last legislature,
which, it is asserted, will absolutely
prohibit any man working for a man
ufacturer to labor more than ten
hours in twenty-four. In some
plants the workmen claim that their
personal rights will be curtailed when
the law becomes operative.
H. H. Gust, T. L. O'Donnell, V. NJ.
Scanlan, e. ]. Peck and ]. f. Wilder
We're named as a committee to inves-
tigate, and to devise some plan for
meeting the conditions created by
the new law, so as to best conserve
the interest of both employer and en-
ployee.
Mr. P. NJ. Ikeler, president of the
Yellow Pine Manufacturers Associa-
tion, in presenting the question to
those present said in part:
THE foremost question before us to-
day is the consideration and discus
sion of the 10 hour law that was en-
acted by our last State legislature.
Whether or not we shall make test
case of the constitutionality of that
law.
$50 far it seems to be almost the
unanimous opinion among lumber
manufacturers that there is no other
recourse. Not that they object to
the 10 hour law, but to the way the
law is written. We are unable to
see how we can run our mills without
violating the law.
First we will take night men. Our
kilns must be kept steamed from six
p. M until seven a. M, which makes
thirteen hours work. If we put on
two shifts, then we have to make the
salary so low for 6 1-2 hours work
that the men cannot earn a living
for their families.
"Our locomotive engineers work day
begins when they leave the mill. They
must leave in time to get the men to
the woods in time to make ten hours
and bring them in after they have
made their day which would give the
engineers a 12 hour day. 1t very often
happens that when we are little
short of men we do more or less car
loading at night, which is usually done
by contract.
1--WE usually allow five men foul
hours to load a car OF flooring, which
they usually accomplish in about
two hours, and are always glad tc
get this extra work to do. Under the
ten hour law we cannot do this with
out being liable to indictment, for the
reason that loading of cars and the
firing of kilns could not be considered
work of emergency by the courts.
"If our State legislature was In ses
sion so we might go before 1t ant
make an effort to have the law 81
amended that we could run withou
violating it, and at the same time no
work an unjust and an unnecessar.
expense on the mill operators, 1t Il
not likely that any move would b
made to test the law.
"This law also works a hardship o.
a number of manufacturers who hav
within the last few months purchase
timber at from $500 to $3.50 stun
age. This timber has been bought o.
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