The public ledger. [volume] (Maysville, Ky.) 1913-1968, 1919-11-19
KENTUCKY'S LAWS
ON WOMAN and CHILD
LABOR EXPLAINED
Many Hear Second Of University Lee
ture Series at Old Library Build.
ing Last Night-Mlss Jewell
Pleases Audience.

OF the FACULTY OF hentucky |
State University, deliver the second
Of a series of free lectures. Miss
JEWELS lecture on Woman and
Child Labor and in her ad-
dress she gave her audience some in
sight into Kentucky's laws governing
the employment of women and chill
dren.
Music was furnished by the High
School Glee Club and the round table
discussion following the lecture was
greatly enjoyed.
Miss Jewell said in part:
The question of child labor, involved
as 1t is in many other social questions,
is of more and more importance to us.
John Ruskin, whose hundreth anniver-
sary we celebrate this year, said,
There is no wealth but life," and
"That country is richest which nour-
ishes the greatest number of noble and
happy human beings" Now we can
not have happy, noble men and wo-
men IL we permit them when young
to be stunted in growth by child labor.
The child labor law of Kentucky in
comparison with child labor laws of
other states Is good law so far as
it goes. BY this law, children over
fourteen may work in factories, mills,
stores, bakeries, laundries and other
like places Of employment, and chill
dren over sixteen In mines, quarries,
tobacco factories, billiard halls, pool
rooms, places where liquors are man
ufactured, all specified dangerous oc-
cupations. Also children over sixteen
years of age may be employed in beg
ging, peddling. and morally injurious
exhibitions. In regard to street trade,
boys over fourteen and girls over
eighteen may be employed in cities of
the first, second and third classes. A
child of course is permitted I to do
chores around home and to work in
agricultural pursuits during vacation
time. Also work permits are granted
to children who have completed the
fifth grade, If they are over fourteen
years old and have Doctors certifi-
cate of physical fitness.
The reason for amy restriction in
child labor in Kentucky is the desire
to give every child in Kentucky that
democratic basis Of life for which the
United States were founded, and to-
ward which we are striving equality
of opportunity. We want the child to
be strong in body, happy of heart,
healthy of soul and trained and discip-
lined of mind. We want in the United
States people, not medicines. We want
people to whom have been shown thru
education the beauties and wonders
of life; who have had happy, healthy
childhood; who have independence of
thought because they have strong
minds in strong bodies. We hear of
great men who were newsboys or who
sold shoestrings on the street, but II
we are honest in our discussion, we
must admit that these men are great
in spite Of the trickery, the immoral
ity, the unhealthfulness of the streets
and not because these unwholesome
conditions have been in their lives
that these men are great because they
had in them the ability to use this ex-
perience for good and not for evil.
Along with this child labor law goe;
the compulsory education lag, which
with the child labor law is the only
law we have dealing with child well
fare. except the laws that deal with
special classes of children, such as the
defective or the dependent or the de-
linquent child.
In the compulsory eduoation' law,
Kentucky provides for school attend
ance of all. children In cities of the
first, second. third and fourth classes,
between the ages Of six and seventeen
but allows the child In the county 10
| stop going to school at the age CT
twelve. BY these two laws there are
two years In the country child's life
when he does not have to 60 to schoc
and yet cannot work. In cities whera
there are truant officers, the compul-
sorry school law Is enforced to a cey-
tain extent. In rural districts. how
ever, this law Ia difficult to enforc :
At the next legislature a bill proyid
Ing for Juvenile attendant officers 'fo
alloountles In the State will most pro
badly be enacted This law, II en-
forced. will help greatly toward thu
enforcement OF both the child label
and compulsory school law.
| In all great virile ages OF any ooun
try. women have worked and hay,
borne their part In the tasks OF lii'
along with men. parasitism In IA,
women OF country has meant thru
ost history the decay OF that country
In the early days OF this country. wo
men worked In the homs,--spun, we've
sswed, baked and looked after theI
families wants, Nv ths inysntlon O
nlaohlnery. many OF thsss tasks hasl
bean taken eus of ne homo Into M
fas,eFIsss Into 'hs bAbsriss. iaso III