Wheeling majority. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1907-192?, 1916-01-27
: CHILD LABOR ::
SUFFER THE LITTLE CHILDREN TO COME UNTO ME
"A SERMON BY J.A.C.F. AUER-

the pamphlets which l have read
through.
Whenever shipbuilders build boil
er which has to stand to sertain pres
sure, they test it for a pressure much
greater chan the one for which it was
supposed to have been built. They
call that "the margin of safety" Why
should there be such margin? Well
ii all things were normal the margin
might be unnecessary, but the stokers
may fire up too hard, the safety-VAlve
might be out of order Through one
reason or another the boiler might
have to stand more pressure than the
one for which it was originally intend
Cd. Moreover the boiler will become
older, the iron plates become thinner
and thus the margin of safety is very
necessary.
h This same thing holds true both O.
the human body and mind. We. create
enough physical and mental energy
for our daily use. If no more should
De asked from us than what we arr
supposed to give on the average, We
might be able to get along on wha
We create daily, but this is not so. IL
Tue IuSa dlQ O1-F11lOp wv
nay be and are suddenly called upoI
o stand a double or triple menta
stress. Illness attacks our body-we
seed a power of resistance greatly II
Excess of what would be ordinarily
necessary This is particularly true
when We pass through what is tech
,ically called one of the low places Of
ife; from IA to Is, and from "A to SO
the adolescent and climax periods
when our bodies offer less resistance
than usual. For these reasons nature
has stored up in US stores of reserve
strength. We seldom use this reserve
strength, but sometimes we have to
You may be running fast, you are very
gone, strength which is stored up is
coming to your assistance. James il
his Psychology calls it getting Sc
cond breath. Those stores Of reserve
strength may artifcally open through
the use of alcohol, opium, hashish
hemp; even coffee or tea will do it.
IF you do not give your child a
chance to store up his reserve
strength Increased pressure will mean
his ENTHUSIASTICALLY, mentally OF
both. Yes, more than that, the de
crease of the power of resistance is
sure to bring on moral weakness, es
pecially if the surroundings are I'm.
favorable. Moral strength, to my way
of thinking, depends largely upon OUT
reserve resources.
It is natural that weaknesses will
show themselves more plainly than
anywhere else in the adolescent per
iod or the climacteric. A child who
must work. beyond his strength. who
cannot gather the reserve strength he
needs is in the greatest danger at the
ag of IA of booming mentally diseased,
or bodily, or morally weak. If he
should pass this period the dan
ger of the climax period will be before
him. The fact that in Chicago 10000
girls each year turn to immoral life
is largely due to the fact that at too
early age they have to do work which
is too hard for them. A weakened
body is a ready prey to temptation.
Now the state has come to see, part
~ at least, the danger Of allowing
to work 1t has paid no attention to
the physical anu MORAL COuS6QucuCS01
to be sure, but it has realized at least
the danger of having citizens who
were not trained mentally. The exam
pie Of country like Portugal where
80 per cent of the nation could Meth
er read nor write was far from en-
couraging. Consequently the state
forced children to go to school unit
they were between ~ and 16 years
of age, dependent upon the state II
which they were living. OF course
this did not prevent child labor. In
mum Der of states Tour own stat
among them a child might work be
core or after school. This surel.
seems like burning the candle at boil
ends. l remember what whole da,
Of being confined in a school room
meant to me. i was tired when even
ing came, tired mentally and conse
luently body, for mental tiredness-
invariably, let US not forget that
brings about bodily tiredness If thi
day in school, instead of being follow
ed by recreation is followed by 5 or
hours of work in factory, sometime
in the terrible atmosphere of glass
| houses, one may imagine how tire
such. child must be. And let us nc