Mexico Missouri message., 1914-03-26

league. On the advisory board are
such well known men and women as
William C. Redfield. secretary Of com.
merce; Judge Julian w. Mack, Miss
Julia c. Lathrop and Mrs. Ellen Spen-
Ger Mussey. On its executive commit
tee are Miss Constance D. Leupp and
Mrs. Harvey w. Wiley. II was due to
the efforts Of the league that the bill
limiting women's work to eight hours,
six days In a week, was passed. The
league will now undertake to secure
the passage of a minimum wage law
and probably It will succeed in its ef-
forts
Talked Of Cutting Wages.
The eight-hour law has been in OPP
GRAFTON only a few days. Some of the
employers of the district took to the
new order of things gracefully. ad-
tusted their establishments to meet its
requirements and said never n word
about cutting wages. Other employ
ers growled, talked about the invasion
of the field of private rights and talked
openly about cutting wages.
Are wages being cut in the District
Of Columbia because women are not to
be compelled to toll ten or twelve
hours each day as was the case in
many instances In the past? Not bit
OF it. As soon as the members OF the
Consumers league heard from women
employees that they were in danger of
losing enough of their wages to make
proper living hard If not impossible,
the members of the league became &C
tive, Word of active intention also
came from some of the leading mem
bers of congress, and the message was
that II wages were not maintained at
a proper level a minimum wage law
would be passed at once, and there
was sort of grim suggestion that
the minimum might not be too much
of a minimum"
Some of the leading employers Of
the district who had intended to cut
wages and had voiced this intention,
gave in at once and told their en-
ployes that their envelopes each week
would contain just as much money as
they had in the past. This action prob.
ably will prevent congress from fixing
the minimum wage at as high figure
as otherwise would have been the
case, but having once thought on the
subject OF passing the new law, the
leaders decided to stick to the original
intention. The Consumers league will
see that they do not give way to a
second thought on the subject
Lawmakers Are Weary.
Congress is tired. 1t has been at
rest for a good deal over a year
There are in the present congress
men who have served through many
congresses, and so It Is that all
of the old members have been
hard at 1t in a legislative way with
few breaks. ever since the beginning
of the Taft administration. From that
time to this there has been an extra
session of congress every short ses-
sion year.
There is a noticeable listlessness In
both houses on all subjects, except
of course Mexico, which keeps men
keyed up to a high pitch while it iH
under discussion. Antitrust legisla-
ton has failed to arouse much inter
est 1t is evident that some members
of the dominant party think 1t is not
drastic enough and others think that
it is too drastic. They know nothing
definitely except that It will not be
| possible to tell what the bills will do
to business until they have been tried
out in the form of law.
Here and there In unexpected places
in the senate the Democrats are find
| ing opposition to this feature and that
feature OF the administrations anti
trust measures. The party leaders in
the senate are slowly and unwillingiy
coming to the belief that If the 1--WE
brother" bills are to be put through
| in the form in which Mr.. Wilson
wishes, It will be necessary to pass
| them under the dictation OF a caucus.
In Hands Of Committees.
The bills have been separated and
have been given for consideration into
the care of two committees of the
house and two committees of the sen
ate. judiciary and interstate com,
merce. The hearings are being con-
Quoted in the most leisureiy way. No
bombs are bursting in the presence
| OF witnesses, committeeman and on
lockers, and the proceedings generally
are several tones below the humdrum.
Languid inquirers are told that the
antitrust bills are going through.
When? "Oh, before long. and con-
gress will get away early"
In the house the antitrust measures
will be put through under a rule with
an allowance for a certain number
OF hours debate on each side. When
the measures once get out OF the COM
mittee the house will make short work
OF them. In the senate the proceed
ings will be longer drawn out. bat
there is evidence enough In hand TO
make the leaders believe that debates
will be closed and the votes takep In
one-third the time which II took some