Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1913-02-01
La Toilette Eight-Hour Bill
Again Under Discussion.
BEFORE Committee TODAY
Measure Will Be Referred to a Sub
committee.
STYLED A VICIOUS MEASURE
Witnesses Testify That Proposed
Law Would Work an Injustice to
Merchants and Employees Alike.

| Characterization OF Washing ton laun-
dries as health resorts ~enlivened the
| hearing before the Senate District COM
| mlttee this morning on the eight hour
| bill for woman wage workers in the
! District Of Columbia The statement
! was made by George F. Page repre-
sentinS a local laundry, that he had
never heard a single complaint from d
| woman employed i'm. his laundry as to
health conditions: that no woman en-
ployes in his establishment were inter
ested i'll or wanted an eight-hour work
| ing day. and that one woman who. he
said. had, been in his employ for more
! than ten years Informed him this morn
ing that when she came to work for
him ten years or more ago she weighed
ninety-six pounds. whereas she now
weighs 165 pounds. Mr.. Pages state
ment contributed not little to the en-
tertainment OF the members of the
committee and the. roomful of wit
nesses present at the hearing.
Hearings on the measure were concluded
today. and the announcement was made
that the bin will be referred to sub
committee for further action before Its
submission to the Senate.
Miss Josephine Goldmark OF New YORK
was the first witness heard by the COM
mittee at today's session, her statements
being confined principally to citations
from findings of the supreme courts OF
California Illinois and Ohio In laws limit
ing the hours of employment for women
in those states. In every case Miss Gold
mark showed the supreme courts OF the
states upheld the constitutionality and the
reasOnableness of the laws upon which
they had been called to pass.
In the course of her remarks Miss
Goldmark cited the words of the Califor-
MIA supreme court. which said that 1.-THE
eigh hour wage day does not end the
work of woman Wage-earnerS. who. at
the end OF their period of wage employ
ment. must go home and devote several
hours 10 domestic labor. in many cases
as arduous as the work for which they
receive wages.
Hotel Work Impossible.
Miss Florence p. Buckingham. 49,;
Adams Mill road, who is secretary of
the Y. w. c. A.. gave the statement of
the housekeeper inca Washington hotel as
to hours of employment for woman work.
ers in the hotel.
Chambermaids it was stated. were re-
quired to work from 80 o'clock am. to
pm, and after an hour off were re-
Quired to work two hours more. One day
in each week, 1t was stated, the maids
were required to work from o'clock a m.
off in the afternoon. For such work. 1t
was stated. the girls received SO a month
| and board. Four girls sent by the y. w.
G. A. to the hotel in question worked a
few days and quit declaring that they
could not work under the conditions and
hours of work in force.
Miss Grace COulOn, who stated that
she has been a laundry worker for
thirteen years. beginning when she was
| thirteen years of age, told the commit
| tee that the lot of the laundry worker
| in Washington is not a hard one.
| though some days during rush sea
| sons the girls were compelled to work
as much as twelve to fifteen hours per
| day. without extra pay for the over
| time.
| Joseph 1. Weller pleaded for the ex-
emption of stenographers and Office
employees from the operation of the
| hours is to be the limit of days
work for women and girls in the DiB-
| trict of Columbia practically all female
| stenographers outside of the govern
of employment
Retail Merchants Ignored.
Harry King, proprietor of Kings Pal
ace. engaged in a series OF verbal tilts
with Senator Works of the committee
with Miss Obenauer Of the Department,
charge that Commissioners Judson and
Johnston. after promising the retail mer-
! chants a hearing on the eight-hour bill
gave the measure their Endorsement with
ont having afforded the retail merchants
any opportunity to present their side OF
the case Mr.. King characterized the
bill as "a bad and vicious measure" anc
| declared that not a single clerk or en-
ploye in any retail mercantile establish
ment in Washington was interested In the
bill desired its passage.
He stated that Washington retailers
under present conditions are barely able
to earn q to Z per cent on the volume Of
their years business and declared tina,
The measIrc as IL stands is obnoxious &c
| Washington retail merchants well as
to their employees.
man. who is interested in two Washing
ton laundries. pleaded with the commit
! tee for at least a ten-hour day, saying
conditions in Washington are such as &c
make il impossible for laundries to bs
operated at profit under restrictions
such as would be imposed il the hours OF
work for women should be fixed by law
at eight. or forty eight per week. A six
ty-hour per-week law. he said. would bt
! satisfa Glory to Washington laundrymen
with the privilege of working their en-
poyes greater number of hours in rusi
seasons. He stated that figures he hat
obtained showed the minimum wage OF
woman laundry workers in Washington i,
$50 per week. the maximum being 81:
per week. with a ten-hour day, six day:
pcr week.
Bills Endorsements.
Miss Constance d. Leupp. appearing fo
the Consumers League of Washington
Ill