Roanoke Rapids herald. [volume] (Roanoke Rapids, N.C.) 1914-192?, 1922-01-13

tutonal amendment upon welfare legislation al
ready secured through action Of state legislatures
The amendment is ndorsed among others by
George Gordon Battle of New York, Shipper Lew
is OF Philadelphia, secretary of the legal educa
tion committee of the American Bar association:
Charles W. Needham, solicitor for the interstate
commerce commission and former president OF
George Washington university Robert 7. Scott
former assistant TO the attorney general; Frank
7. Walsh, Matthew Hale, and Miss Gail Laughlin
Frank F. Walsh former chairman OF the Indus
trial Relations commission. appointed by former
President Wilson and former joint chairman with
Chief Justice Taft of the National War Labor
board, gives II as his unqualified opinion that
the passage Of the amendment will 'in no way
affect welfare legislation for women. either that
which is upon the statute books at the present
time, or which may be enacted In future He
warns that there Is no anticipating the action Of
a court in the face of many differing opinions COW
ering points which appear quite obvious He, how
ever, shows that long line of judicial presidents
have protected the validity Of and constltutiona
ty of women's welfare legislation Mr. Walsh con-
cudes:
II can see no way of approxmatng justice as
affecting the sexes, except by the passage Of such
an amendment as your organization has proposed
ion the late amendment guaranteeing women the
right of suffrage would become mere abstrac-
tion."
Mr. Walsh admits" says Mrs Edward p. Cos
tigan OF Chicago vice president Of the National
Consumers league that the problems In their
final settlement will have to go before court,
the result Of whose decision Is clearly In doubt.
II would be terrible to deprive poor working wom-
en- of safeguards that have been attained by and
for them with long struggles, and In return give
them privileges they can never use. The thing
to do Is to push the specified changes in the
state legislatures"
In support Of this view Prof. Felix Frankfurter
of Harvard Law school, counsel for the Minimum
Wage board OF the District Of Columbia says In
part
The various measures dealing with women In
lndustry-limitaton Of hours Of employment pro-
hbtlon or regulation OF night work, regulation OF
employment OF women before and after confne-
ments minimum wage legislation-have all been
sustained by the courts upon physical, social and
economic factors peculiar 10 women. All such
legislation necessarily circumscribes the freedom
of action of the individual affected For instance
wherever legislation limits the periods when a
woman may work before or after confinement
she may not work within the prohibited periods
even II she wants to.
For reasons Of policy, society's welfare Is
deemed more important than the desire OF the
rare individual who would insist on working un.
der such circumstances. In other words she Is
under disability on account Of sex, which does
not hamper a man engaged In similar employment
she cannot contract freely; the man can. In tn.
same way. minimum wage legislation, and the
other types Of law which have enumerated are
In one aspect disabilities and treated as such BY
the courts At the very best the proposed amend
ment writes into the Constitution of the United
States a dangerous lawsuit, jeopardizlng the eff
forts of the nation and the states 10 deal justly
with Its women workers. Undoubtedly II vii
largely retard, II not render impossible ever,
effort Of legislation protective of women work
ers, for all such efforts win encounter the opposi
ton of alleged uneonstitutonality."