Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1920-10-01

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cate local action. so that we may
have throughout our states an in !
.creasing n of obligation to meet
a national standard, Of social justice. !
l desire particularly to empha-
size the need Of safeguarding the
prosperity of the American farmer, !
30 that he may compete with indus !
constantly voices raised in behalf of
the women in industry. desire to
raise mine now in behalf of the wom-
en- on the farms of the United States,
who lin the labor shortage of his year
have gone into the fields-young !
girls and old women-to give a serv-
ice which, if it had not been given,
would have deprived us this year of
an adequate food supply. There must |
be labor, normal labor. a%vailaUl> TO
farm as well az factory.
One OF the important organizations
under a department of public well
fare might well be the children's bu-
;reau which now exists, but whose
work, already proved SO useful, must
be extended and made still more cap
able of educating n assisting in pre-
natal are and early NANCY. It Is
for us a grim jest. indeed. that >1he
federal government is spending twice
as much money for the suppression
OF hog cholera az it spends for its
entire program for the welfare of the
American child.
Our Death Rate High.
We are o doing. however, enough
for the future citizens Of America if
we allow women to injure, by indus
try or ignorance. their maternity, or
II we allow infancy itself to go unpro-
gence. Among sixteen important
countries OF the world. thirteen show
a lower death rate for mothers than
does the United States, and six show
a lower Death ate for very young
children. Nearly a quarter Of a mil
lion babies-practically a number
equal to he entire casualty list of
our men in the great war-die every
year.
1t will not be the America we love
which will neglect the American
mother n the American child. The
program to prevent abuses OF child
labor, already greatly advanced by
Republican efforts, represents the
progress Of legislation toward wise
prevention: which will receive the
sanction Of constitutional law. When
we first legislated to remedy the
abuses OF child labor, approximately
one out Of five Children between the
ages Of ten and fifteen in the United
States were wage-earners. ! do not
say that among them there were not
many exceptions, whose lAbors were
of such a nature as to fit them to be-
come better men and women, but I do
say that in the mass, their labor rep
resented b theft of their right to
childhood. to happiness. to health,
and OF their right to prepare to en-
brace equal opportunity. to real
ize for America, their capacity and
worth as future citizens: This con-
dition we could not neglect, and we
can not neglect the problems Of child
labor in this country. Even if it were
not upon Humanitarian grounds, 1
point put to you that the protection
OF American maternity and childhood
represents economic thrift. Indeed,
1t represents the saving of our blood,
our posterity. and the future strength
OF our nation.
Our National Health.
Next to maternity and childhood.
l believe that our attention must be
conferred upon our national health.
have said repeatedly through this
and thtrty-three INC one-third per
cent OF the young men examined in
our. first draft for war were found
TO pc defective, or physically unfit.
Examinations OF children in the pub
lie schools of America disclose that
fifty Der cent of them are suffering
from physical d~elinquencies. most Of
which proper attention would rem
edy before maturity. ! believe, there
fore. that we must undertake with
great seriousness the problem OF our
national health. l am alert to the
danger OF too much oppressive bu-
reaCcracy In any great federal health
bureau, but / want to see the various
agencies grouped together in u de-
| NJ ~ ~ nyNf ~ ,>,AVS-
to see their principal function, that
OF stimulating, by research and edu-
cation, the communities n local
governments Of the United States to
the most active and sufficient cam
paign against low standards Of physi-
cal well-.,eing. We must attack, first,
q low standard Of health among chill
oren; secondly. the invasion of dis
eases which attend a low standard
of morals, and thirdly. the invasion
Of epide1nics, and the neglect of the
chronic diseases Of maturity, many
OF which are due to a failure on the
part OF individuals to adjust their liy-
ing and habits to an artificial civil
ization.
1t is not possible to discuss in de-
tail all of the of social JUS
ice which sooner or later the people
of this country will probably have to
consider and adopt and put into ac-
ton, or reject as impracticable. But
l do conceive an obligation of govern
ment,, to devote grave attention to an
other group of problems which are all
humanitarian, and which are of vital
Importance to our future.
To Reunitc Parties of Discord.
l have spoken during this CAM
paign of my attitude toward indus
trial peace. I have stated my full
belief in labor unionism and in the
practice of collective bargaining, and
l have also tried to emphasize a be-
lief. which feel deeply, that indus
trial peace, though it may be attain
ed by adjustment and Cancellation.
can mover stand upon it's firmest
foundation until a higher sense Of
loyalty to the task permeates the
worker. and a higher sense uf hu-
manitarian brotherhood permeates
the employers of America. 1 do not
think of this reawakening of a higher
conscience upon both sides in terms
of generalties. n I regard it as be-
ing one of the humane functions of
which our government is capable to
saturate the industrial life of our
our country with a spirit which will
tend to reunite parties of discord.
We are often presented with con-