CHILD LABOR IN THE CAROLINAS A. J. MCKELWAY SECRETARY FOR THE SOUTHERN STATES. SOME HUMAN DOCUMENTS RESULTING FROM INVESTIGATIONS MADE IN THE COTTON MsLUS OF NORTH AND SOUTH CAROLINA BY 'SBDDON, A.M, ULM cD LEWIS W. HINE (STAFF PHOTO- GRAPHER FOR CHARITIES AND THE COMMONS) UNDER THE DIRECTION OF THE SOUTHERN OFFIGE OF THE NATIONAL CHILD LABOR COMMITTEE, Lewis W. Line, well-known to readers of this magazine by his photographs of social conditions in New York city and elsewhere, was sent by the National Child Labor Committee to investigate condi- tions in North and South Carolina and record the results with his camera, Im November, 1908, he went to Charlotte, N.C, the center of the cotton mill region of the South. Over fifty per cent of the cotton spindles and looms of the South are within one hundred miles of Char- lotte. Mz. Hine visited nineteen and in- vestigated seventeen mills, taking 230 photographs. In only two mills, one at High Shoals, N. C., atid the Atherton Mill at Charlotte, was he forbidden by the management to photograph the children, but as these mills are both under the management of Gastonia, X. Co—liow on, right of picture ie ep erate"ptg Giaa write "eheco “feaba dn ee felt Theta in selina of te tig.” Boe ap er athe, wa tects goat ‘ha. Has Ronald feajetptl gh"jears and at ntsue ane, onthe ork" tion She tao af tical "ate Wp racloriees Gren at appresties fe ‘igs Work SY bight liegt ‘Wetore tue" fourteemt”bicthday. Hor Canorial dimaneion of thts nities sce ane D. A. Tompkins, president, the condi- tions at High Shoals may be illustrated by the photograph reproduced on page 752, which Mr. Hine, in spite of the pro- hibition, secured by taking the children atthe hour of dismissal. D. A. Tompkins i$ weasurer of the National Child Labor Coramission of the National Civic Fed- eration, organized to secure correct infor- mation about child labor conditions. This and other photographs from the Atherton Mills may help the federation to locate some children employed umder thirteen years oi age. On page 74g is a picture ‘of the High Shoals mill running at night. ‘There 1s more night work in, the North Carolina mills than in those of South Carolina and in other southem states, about fifty rails now running at night. A. difference of a year in the age limit for North Carolma does not seem to make much difference in the size of children employed. ‘The children work twelve hours on the night shift and say that they have no special time off for lunch, that they “eaca-workin'.” Those of us whomA remember with what joy we hailed the closing aour of school after @ period of five or six hours may appreciate what the closing hour means for the bays in the mills. One boy said that he had been at work in the mill for two years. The lint on their caps and clothes indicates the character of the atmosphere which they breathe. The little fellow of six at the Daniel Mill, Lincolnton, who stays at the mill ali day with his mother and sis- ter, is just “helping” a litte, but will probably be drafted into-regular service, though it may be some years. before his name appears on the payroll. “The pres ence of such children in the mill indicates need for a day nursery. T e@ pictures tell their own story but the statement of the president of the Tey Mill at Hickory is Facroares ..... Fos Avrarsrices . He said very UNDER 18... frankly that the North Carolina child labor law is violated by or GUARDIA Muriovers Mus? CHARITIES AND THE COMMONS NORTH CAROLINA CHILD LABOR LAW. Ack Lawn ror Exptorwext ne Aor Line vox Naw? Worx, Howes oF Lanon ror Cxripkex Bacruovscess Ceeciercates Manoir Wnerven Srateaeyts oF Pameess “Kxowixotx amp Wit January 30 dren employed, though several of the mill towns in North Carolina approach the worst ones in South Carolina. In Ches- ter, S.C, an overseer told me frankly that manufacturers all aver the South evade the child labor law by Ietting chit- dren who are under age ‘help’ older brothers and sisters. ‘The names of the younger ones do net appear on the com- pany’s books andi the pay goes to the older child who js above twelve years.” In South Carolina, Mr. Hine fonnd a mill settlement, the Wylie Mills at Ches- ter, with no schoolhouses accessible to the children. He found distressing types of older boys and men, a group of whom is shown in one of the pictures. He found a boy of twelve, fifty- two inches high, who is a weaver running six looms and_mak- jug a dollar a day,—a boy who has been at work two years, ‘This forms teresting _ testi- mony in view of 18 Yrans seve 12 Yuan +. Ud Yeas --86.4 Weer Requinen ane practically all Futex" Viorave ae Law to Be Coxviermn, || the statement of the mills: “Not [| yo pacrony Ivarecriox, Coscxtsstoxex or || Ellyson Smyth over ten per ‘Lanor Has No AUTHORITY To Exree 4 Fac of South Caro- cent of the mills, con Iina to the effect observe it that the children I now. have a family of four girls nearly grown, all A No. 1 hands, and they are going to another mill because I will not employ a ten-year-old child. Tn my opin- ion the only remedy is to have the law amended so as to have an inspector." Tt should be noted that, not only de the pres- ent ages of some of the children in the nhotageaphs show violations of the Taw, but some of tender years have already worked a considerable time in the mill. As to conditions in South Carolina, Mr. Hine thus states his opinion: “In gen- eral, T foumd conditions here consider- ably below those of North Carolina both as to the age and number of sinall chil- sRopoct of the North Caroline Barsoa of La. oe, WOT. worth repeating. No Proszouriosa Uspxn rin Law. are all in the spinning room and that "no child ever stood at 3 loom.” In the town of Dillon Mr. Hine heard many com- plaints among workmen about conditions in general—low wages, long hours, pressnre of work and ase of young chile dren. Dering the past year some chil- dren have been turned aff, but_ many remain, some under the guise of hetp- ing, The children themselves overstate their ages.—their parents have misstated their ages so long. Illiteracy seems to prevail here. Many boys and women could not even spell their own names. ‘The mill schoolhouse is a shed-like struc- ture and very smail. The mills were not running at night, but the men1909 expected them to start up soon. In the Maple Mill at Dillon, one boy was found,—a boy of teu,—who had worked for three years and who is now earsing thirty cents a day. Tho present report and photographs on Lancaster confirm the report on the same mill early in the year by Rev. A. E. Seddon who ¢: amined forty-five children at work aud found thirty-four iliterate. One little girl of seven had been working in the mill for eighteen months; that is, she went to work at five and’s half years, though as the child is an or- phan, this is not a violation of the South Caro- Tina law, | 12 Yeans, CHILD LABOR IN THE CAROLINAS SOUTH CAROLINA CHILD LABOR LAW. | the Ack Linrr ror Ea@iovacesr ox Factontes, a5 made later in the year by A. FL. Lim, who says of the Victor Mills: “I stood at the gate of the sill and watched the children come out af noon, I saw several, at least seven or eight, who could not have been twelve years old, I saw several very sad cases of little girls from twelve to Fourteen, who bad evidently from their stooped ‘appearance and stupid counte- nances been working in the milis for sev- eral years.” He found the school attend- ance to be 132, which means that out of a community OF about 3,000, one child out of every twenty-three of population attends school, or about one- fifth of the aver~ Mr. Seddon began his work in South Caro- | i EXeyrrions: OuPHANS AND CutpeEs or Der RERDESE PAREXTS ALLowKD To Wonk a7 axy Age; Cxttores Wxo Have Avtexpen Scuaot, Foca Monmas oF tae CURRENT age for the state #5 a whole, in- cluding 'Ne- lina with a visit grnes, Ut was to the “show Yrar anp Cay Reap anp Warts Artowen noticeable that mills'’,—se fewer than a styled by Com- Axb AuavsT. dozen who ap- missioner Wat- | garovatevt Cestunicares ron Cumonew || peared to be as son of that state. | “Ysonn 12 oxte, Fuemisune ty saotsveate | old as twelve Much was writ: | gs anrmaver ov Paneves om Gtanona were ateuding ten in praise of | go ‘os " school. tem Jn praise of | see rie von Nicatt Won, 12 Yeas Heol adon | ExcyPrion: MXeMPrcn Cumpnen Unper 12, AS Above, May Worx Untm 9 px 70 Maxn cr Lose Tie, Hovns or Lavon vos aus. Orsuarrves 1N Tes: nie Mists, 60 4 Wax, SPECTION. work at_ the Monaghan Mills at Greenville, the ‘Victor Mills at Greers, and _ the Belton and Pel zer Mills, Yet in the Mon- |; aghan Mills, of reported better conditions ax to school attend- ance at the Pd~ zer and Belton mills, though his. impression of the spinning looms at Pelzer No Facromy Ix- Baxptovens Must “Kxowrsene” Vionate nate Law 7 BR CoNvICTED, ro Wont at axy Ack Duniya Jue, JULY I 250 employes in the spiming room, it was estimated that eighty-five were under sixteen years of age and of those questioned, two said that they were ten and two that they were nine years of age. OF forty-one examined 23 to their ability to read and write twenty-eight were fond to be illit- erate. At the Victor Mill one of the chile dren confessed to the age of ten, another to the age of eight, and five children ex- amined ont of eight were unable to read or write. ‘The report of Mr. Seddon was con- firmed by an independent investigation was that there: were almost as many children there as 1m the other mills in proportion to the adults Among them he found a hoy “going on ten” who could neither read nor write. Mr. Seddon also brought out that some- tines other mills, onder the same man- agement, do not show such good condi- tions as those which investigators are in- vited to inspect. A. striking example of this is the Ninety-Six Cotton Mill at Greenwood under the same management as the Pelzer and Belton mills. Of sev- enty-five hands in the spinning room fifty were chidren, and of ten interviewed, siteLANCASTER, S. sil, Mth are chen of widows or of iuble tahes, ter nay ely fret sust“Tesiy eit eh Dn bun neither ecsng Hour vs eelons orien, (63, ‘pb 000 tt nscount'of the exes fun bach RepWHERE OTHER CHILDREN GO TO SCHOOL AT LANGASTER, §..C. “This ie punlie schooSinners fity-oe i MEWTON COTTON MALL, NEWTON, N.C. Bop hte worked two veers at warping ill. Lt e-uavally sid that ehiaien work only tw spinning raoms. Amon 1So"emplaver twenty appeared 1 be ewelve fears ef ge or ese. *COTTON ADL, WHITNEL, N. & 9p she nib ent wane or ae wae Sees boy and abot ey chs aS wih (5 Soke, ele onthe neh iy ged os ei ae ‘Sars nig" Word alee gun pia gal fe shldean ances Toureen Sure : me ; TT pibibe HiGH SHOALS, = forbidden omar ci ila one theron, where ievmancesment of by hr Tombkin iaosuies of he Resone? Cad ‘Cie BautouesCATAWBA GOTTON MILL, NEWTON, W. €. (OF fory employes tea ware not Larger than these.” The get spitning, the Nay 9 dott DANIEL MANUFACTURING COMPAR, LINCOLNTON, N.C. Sic yrs os Sys a ay le rea mer an ae work Begone fp de and ably 0q'be rguteey it work, Though his Rabe Pay Rot eppear oe theMELVILLE MANUFACTURING COMPANY, CHERRYVILLE, N. C. Dots, c2v8 he has Worked E80 vears, One ofthe many below Ehe lees aes. NEW YEAR'S DAY AT ATHERTON MILLS, CHARLOTTE, N.¢. Me Hine os refused permission we ghatgragh ciicy in the High Shouls AML These deter boys work ot " ‘ther nil of Wich Os A. Fompkina'is lao president "inset aeeninery Days ow sevens his worked > MAPLE MILLS, DILLON, © Tolle boy tas doled four coy ps Terr sn ye Seqre in the mili tans three SHUG: Ses they ecle wearESLER MANUFAC. "TURING CO. SALISBURY, N.C. WAMPUM MAND. FACTURING, LINCOLNTOS, N.C. Protege taken at For'alowea tee Mtoe mnie te sn LORAY MILL, orituee Yer. He now iwelve years oidsano UOON,DICKSON MILL, LAURINBURG, K. C, Chileno neh wapernendent “Target doll, haa worhed tee yeese dale, has worke Resse rang fe tee, night "Wes proud ha taht Gea Ti Could wre ne humes Night work of all thege nildents ews! were illiterate, two were ten years of age and three were nine, Mr, Seddon found in the Granby Mills at Columbia, under the same management as the Victor, that a “half-time” system had been adopted and in the factory school, for the first four grades only, about half the children Worked half the day in the factory. Me. Seddon and Mr. Ulm both visited the Franklin Mill bard by the Victor Mil, but under a different management. iTere no welfare work was done; there is not even a schoo! building, and six children ‘out of a population of Goo attend the pub- lic school at Greers. None of the chit- dren Mr. Seddon examined was able to read or write. Mr. Ulm counted not less than eight little girls in the spinning room who were certainly below twelve years of age. There were at least ten boys equally youthful. He found a widowed mother who had come from the mountains many years ago, ail of whose adult children but one had married and had ceased to contribute to her support. Three of her 736 children were at work inthe mill, the youngest of whom, twelve years of age, had been at work two years and had. never been to school. She regretted that she had left the farm, saying that other- wise she would have been able to give her smaller children some education, besides rearing them in a better environnient. As to the problem of the poor widow, Mr. Ulm says: “In no case investigated on my trip or that T know of personally, is mill work for small children absolutely: necessary to keep the wolf from the wid~ ow’s door. On the contrary, with laws. to prevent the working of the children, they and their mothers would fare better in ninety per cont of the cases.” ‘The most encouraging thing about Mr. Gim's report is the unanimous opinion of the outtside public as to the evils of child labor, while the depressing part is the story of the beginning of moral de- cadence in the mill villages, of illegitim- ate children, deserted wives and resulting: cases of bigamy.THE FOREIGNER AND HIS SAVINGS The testimony of these witnesses of standing and character, corroborated by the photographic fidelity of the camera, is unassailable. The nanies of the children are all mentioned in the reports. The Legislatares of North and South Caro- lina are now in session. What are the legislators going to do about jt? The fate of thousands of children is in their hands. They can, if they will, abolish child labor in these two states, compel the children to attend school, ‘raise their standard of legislation to that of the rest of the civilized world, and enforce thelr 787 laws by providing for adequate factory inspection. There can be no doubt that the present laws, shamefully low in their requirements, are violated openly, and when violation of law means destruction of childhood, law should be enforced re- gardless of the feelings of very respect- able gentlemen whe create a demand for child labor in mills, which ignorant and indifferent parents supply. The children. are helpless, and their appeal for protec tion must be acldressed to those who make and execute the laws SCOTLAND MILLS, LAURINBURG. HG, llest lad about foursen ears oy Bas worked sigh years fn mil ex yeans ot wight, ‘Talis: Ia shout eheesen it heahe he sorbed tere three ware, " THE FOREIGNER AND HIS SAVINGS PETER ROBERTS INDUSTRIAL DEPARTMENT, INTERNATIONAL YOUNG MEN'S CHRISTIAN ASSOCIATION ‘The foreign born come to this country because of better economic conditions obtaining here. ‘They know that in America unskilled labor is paid from thcee to four times as nich as in their native land; they know that industrial opportunities are far more numerous here than in older countries; and they know that once they make money in the United States, if they can keep it, they are_iree to use it as they think fit The immigrant, coming with this prime