Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1923-10-10
4 Reply to Mr., MaddOckS.

ne U6ll6N6S to Dt an GIt4 -lElt.IL III
favor of the proposed 4 2-hou Ia" on
which our people al to vote o. Octo-
| Der Is. l do not E4uasI to krrV
who Mr.. Maddocks ny be, but d.
/ note that the argument which he
uses is very nearly a reproduction Of
the printed propaganda which the
American Federation of Labor has
sent into the State which propa-
/ ganda has been disseminated in part
| by at least two speakers whose
presence in Maine has been of no
benefit whatever to the real cause of
! the real workers.
| do not wish to be understood as
in any way denying the right of any
group of people to organize for their
common good. 1t is unfortunately
the fact, however, that the American
Federation of Labor, in its policies
and its practices, is dominated by a
group of leaders, none Of whom lives
within the State of Maine, and very
many of whom have no intimate
, knowledge of conditions which exist
in Maine. Necessarily, in their
reasoning they are not fairly reflect
ing State of Maine conditions, State
,
Maine necessities.
l had supposed, until l spoke with
one of these American Federation
agitators recently, that the day had
gone by when any man would stand
before an audience in the State of
| Maine, and with shaking arm, trem-
bling voice, and almost fearful eye,
assert solemnly that the employers
/ were placing greed and lust for
money ahead Of the natural needs
and desires of human beings. | had
that experience, and regretted it.
l regret also that | note, in Mr..
Maddocks communication many
statements fashioned by the Ameri
can Federation of Labor, and which
it seems to me would be more read
lily accepted in some state where the
people were of an entirely different
class than our State of Maine people.
| ask the men and women of Maine
to look about them, and see the en-
ployers in our small industries, and
the employees therein, and answer
their own question whether these
EMPLOYERS are not as reasonably
treating their employees as it is pos
if the employees are not reasonably
healthy, happy, contented and well
paid.
The proposed 4S-hour law has its
legal justification only in view of the
fact that the legislature, as repre-
sentative of the people, has right
to protect the safety and the health
and morals of the citizen. Our
federal court has held that each state
may, if it sees fit, regulate in the in
terest of health and morals of the
citizen the hours which women may
work In our basic industries
namely, the wooden and cotton tex
tiles and the boot and shoe factories
men and women work together in
very nearly equal numbers. The
operations through which they joint
ly go are of such character that if
by law we regulate the hours of the
women, we control the hours of the
men. Hence, forcing an eight-hour
day upon the women in industry also
provides an eight-hour day for men
in the same industry.
Mr.. Maddocks presents only the
sentimental aspect of the matter,
namely the natural desire of all of
us to work as short a day as posi-
BILE, and he advances the argument
that the difference between nine
hour day and an eight-hour day will
have very important bearing upon
the health and morals of our women
in industry.
| hardly think that anyone will
claim that the environment in which
our women work in industry is such
that there is any i'll effect upon the
morals of our women. In any event,
continuing nine hours each day
rather than eight each day would
hardly have any appreciable effect
upon their morals.
! So far as the health of the in
dividual is concerned let any man or
woman stand at the mill gate or the
factory gate when the workers IN
our basic Industries are coming out
at the NOON hour or night, and OBJ
serve them. | have done so for a
good many years, and | have yet
failed to find, except only now and
then, an individual who apparently
is not in good health and spirits,
happy in her job, and exhibiting the
same spirit of play which school
boys and school girls exhibit at the
close of school session.
1t is, of course, true that some
women apparently show i'll effects
from their employment The same
is true in any employment where
the woman works under cover. Very
many housewives show the effects OF
the strain of their employment to
greater degree than do any of our
industrial women workers Inc
I housewife, whether on the farm or in
the home, does not expect to go upon
an eight-hour day. Their long
hours of employment must be under
! cover. 1t oftentimes has an effect
upon their health. We all wish that
their situation could be improved.
/ But we cannot entirely yield our
Judgment to our sympathies. The
work of the world must be done.