New Britain Herald Newspaper, May 3, 1929, Page 12

somn g A E e e = o [ - - - - - - - - - - - - » - - - - - - - -~ - - - - - - - - - - - B - - - - - = - - - - S - - - : - - - - - - - - - ~ - - - - - - - - - - Ed A 2 = - - - - - & - - - - 2 » » - - s - « - - - - Children 14 Years of Age Work - In North Carolina Cotton Mills Gastonia, N. C., May 3.—For thou- sands of children 'in North Carolina, the route from the school house door leads to the cotton mill. ‘The state has a child labor law with a- minimum age of 16 years, but under a clause therein a child may leave school at 14 and go to work if he—or she—can show a certificate -of fourth-grade educa- ting. Many of them in the cotton il villages do. Take, for instance, the achool just behind the big Lor: mill, where Communist leade called their frst stri Typical children of a North Carolina s piciure having been taken at the girl cotton mill woikers in her o\enlln. school with an enrollment of 2,000 and an average attendance of 1,500 last term, graduatéd only 32 pupils to high school. There are double | classes for the firct, sccond, third, and fourth grades . . . after that, single classcs. Girls in Overalls The girls, like the mien and boys, work in overalls. You mcet| awarms of them on the strect going | to and from work wearing their| coats or coat-sweaters over their | overalls. Even among those \\ho‘ wear dresses you don't see silk stock- | ings as you do among the the girl mill workers wt Biimbethiton, Tenn. It's & different story here, entirely. The mill hands in this older in-| dustrial distriet are much differ- | ent from the rugged ex-mountain- o¢rs In Elisabethton's rayon plants. Born into it, they have the stamp of | the cotton mill on them. Few of them have ever known anything else. | The women work side by side with the men and in some villages a community house minds their bables for them at 20 cents a day. At a strikers’ mass mecting that I attended in Gastonia mothers sat | in the crowd with bared bicasts| and nursed their babies uncon- | cernedly. Nobndy paid any auen-! tion or seemed to think . it was| anything out of the ordinary. The| childrea who played around the| edges of the crowd were ragged | and dirty. | ‘The streets n the loray mitt | village are unpaved, the old frame houses innocent of shrubbery or flowers. The company rents them to employes at 50 cents per room per week, plus 10 cents per room for water and lights. 1f a bath- room fis desired, that's 50 cents extra. If tne occupants go on strike they are evicted. In the mill village of Pinevill where the Communist leaders called another strike there are 50 company houses and. 1 am told, not a singl public | and { wema | expensive This | and baggy coats swealers that inany | downs. water faucet. A community well suf- fices. According to grocers in the mill districts, the chief articles of food are flour, meal, grits pork. canned- goods and molasses. 8chool teachers say the children apparently get enough to eat but suffer from the lack of a bal- anced diet. The average wears overalls, shirt, a plain coat usually no collar or tie. The s clothes are equally as in- The over-sized coats male mill hand mill village are shown hero | usionia. Lielow is onc of the typical of the school boys wear over their overalls appear to be hand-me- Night and Day Shifts North Carolina law fixes a 60- hour working wezk, but many work- | ers ciuim to work more, The Loray mill, for example, operates night and in two shifts of 12 hours each. Sunday alone is a day of rest, 1t is difficult to determine wages with any degree of exactness be- cause the unorganized workers are paid “according to their individual ability.” The &trikers clalm wages ow as $9 a week and the s the “average™ wage for Loray employes is $18.50 a week, which docs not include overseers. Weavers, they say, receive. $30 a week. At any rate, a visitor doesn't | get the idea that anybody is being ' overpaid. i There are numerous cases, Aac cording to strikers, where men are workink 12 hours a day for At s o i NEW BRITAIN DAILY HERALD, FRIDAY, MAY 3, 1920 $12 a week. Many of the g appears, earn an average of $9 u week or less. Recently, certain mills brought in industrial “efficlecy experts” to ap- ply the stop watch and the time chart and get more production by speeding up the workers and giving them more to do. The mill hands called this the “stretch-out system" and objected vigorously. S8ince the strikes, much of this has been dis- continued. Communists Find It Easy Amid such conditions as these it was not difficult for the Com- munist agitators who came down from New England to gain a foot- hold and call out several thousand workers on strike in and around Gastonia. Regardless of the source, any promise of higher wages and Letter living conditions sounded good to them. The average Carolina mill worker probably doesn’t know where Russia is on the map and has no comprehension of the finer-spun theories of Communism that the Communism intellectuals expound. But the promise of more wages and shorter hours sounds alluring, 0 he parts with his hard-earned 50 cents, signs the membership and ronhvflth joins their union. It would be unjust to lndlct all the mills as being unfair to their workers. Take, for instance, the Stuart Cramer mills at Cramer- ville, a model littl mill town near here. The houses are neat and clean, the rent is only 25 cents per room per week, the supervised dairy sup- ply is among the best and the work- ers appear contented. They sent word to the Communist organizers that they were not wanted in Cram- erville. Fight with A. F. of L, Meanwhile, the Communis leaders are clinging to their noid in the Piedmonts—now the biggest textile area in the United States. Occasion- ally they gain new recruits, occa- sionally they lose members as the pinch of hunger drives strikers back (o their jobs, Business men in Gastonia say the mills would welcome the American Federation of Labor if they could only get rid of the Communists. Just how long this feeling would last ir the Communists departed, however. is another question. The A. F. of L, has tried to organize southern mills Lefore and met with strong opposi- tion. Meanwhile the bitterness between the A. F. of.L. and the Communists continues. The North Carolina Fed- eration of Labor has formally de- clared theirs an ‘“outlaw strike,™ and President William Green has denounced them as “a bunch of reds and bolsheviks.” Replying, the Com- munists uttack President Green and { his ofticial family as “labor aristo- crats,” accuse the A. F. of L. of be- traying the working classes to the employers—on their printed matter | ~— portray their own union as “n fighting organization controlled by the workers.” Green has announced ~ sanizers will remain out d as-long as the Communist lead- ers stay there, intimating that when the Carolina mill workers deci. - to ket rid of their present leaders his organization will be glad to enter and take np their battle. 8o goes the labor war in the new industrial south toda: that his READ HERALD CLASSIFIED ADS ——— SHANGHAL RASNEW EAILE DIFFICULTY : 3 9,000 White Russian Refugees Housed in Chinese City Shanghal, May 8 (#—Shanghal, the city of exiles, has almost a major problem in the more than 9,000 white Russians within its limits. Czarist Russia still survive in the thought and hopes of many of them. They fled here from the rev- olution of Lenin and Trotzky, think- ing it would be only a matter of a yveur or two before they could return to a d restored to the old order. Now, after a decade of waiting, they have assigned the home-going to their children. There are two sides to the local| Russian picture. About a fourth of them have settled down to become good “Shanghailanders” in a colony within the French concession. The cthers are largely homeless wretches eking out a bare existence at odd jobs. The dens of Shanghai iniquity have taken toll of the remainder. The colony in the French conces- tion embraces, besides dwelling houses, about 65 shops. Few of the prosperous proprietors came here with any previous experience in of fhe| trade and practically none had cap- ital. But they were not the sort to be casily beaten. They Lorrowed small sums and began their commercial careers unostentatiously. ()ne man. for example, obtained $25 fro Russian Benevolent society two y!sn 2go. On this capital he started mak- ing and peddling chocolates. Now he has a flourishing confectionery. The community also has social and intellectual organizations. There are charitable and religious socleties, & commercial school and a hospital. An amateur dramatic society is among the best of Shanghai's theatrical companies and four newspapers are published in Russian. Outside this colony the Russian picture is unpleasant. Some of, the more than 7,000 residents in other querters have rcgular salaries, but of only about $15 a month. The odd Job men are numcrous ana those of them who get a chance to keep watch aboard a tug or barge receive 50 cents for 12 hours. Many fam- ilies exist on the earnings of women who work in bars and dance halls and make from $20 to $75 a month. The need for food has driven nu-{ merous Russians to take jobs as strike breakers. This has causel much friction with Chinese and cases of assault have been numerous. There is no redress nor real protec- tion for the Russians in such cir- cumstances. The sting of a nettle causes death. in Java MOTHERS KNOW ITS WORTH [ik mln “Twas l“ nm-dcwn and out was born so I decided to try Lydia E. Pinkham's Vegetable Compound. It helped me with all my troubles and gave me an appetite where before 1 didn't eat at all. 1 did all of my housework up to the day my baby came, as I am a farmer’s wife and could not afford help. 1 feel just dandy now and I will ullm any leztl‘e;n l:oidl will every one how medicine is.” —Mrs. Ira Arnold. IL.vdia F. \'egetable Eaper and 1 “I read lh ad., in the news- started taking ydia E. Pinkham’s Vegetable Compound. I will recommend this medicine to any woman who is in bad shape like I was. T used to get 5o tired after a few hours’ work that I was even afraid in my own house in the daytime. 1 didn’t care if I lived or died. I have given birth to cight boys and 1 always feel strong right after, smce I have his | taken the pou Vegetable Com- ,"—Mrs. Maud Meyers. Pinkham’s Compound OUILET Chialdren hhe milk tlaveied with 'BAKERS VANILLA AND SUGAR CHI-NAMEL VARNISH FREE! MAY 4ih to 11th 1 With Every Purchase of Chi-Namel Varnish or Colored You Will Receive a Enamel— 2-Inch Brush Free This introductory offer will demonstrate the many practical home uses and beauty of Chi-Namel. Your friends have used this quick drying enamel to good advantage in their kitchens, pantries and baths. MILLINERY CO 177 MAIN STREET SMART NEW HATS SPECIALLY PRICED FOR SATURDAY Felts, Straws, Felt ard Straw Combinations Hats that reproduce the smartest imported styles at a common sense price. The new cloche with the wider brim, models with the new miss and matron. irrezular brims and long smart little close backs—a fitting turbans, flattering remarkable collection for 13 CITY FIRENAN BRAVER THAN GOP? Argument Ylues Hot in Denver —Drawn Battle to Date Denver, Colo., May 3 (UP)—Tem- pest In a teapot is around the question of whether a policeman’s work is more dangerous than a fireman's. It started recently when three fire- men were killed in a collision route to a fire and several police- men were killed in line of duty by bandits. sion lista. The report shows further there are only 60 retired policemen as compared to 71 retired firemen, The argument grew Rot when Hershey attributed the greater num- ber of retired firemen to the -fact that firemen usually join the depart- ment at a younger age than police- men. “The average age of men joining the fire department is 21, while 25 is the average age of men joining the police department,” he stated. “This difference in age at the timp~ of starting work, and the fact that’ policemen retire at 60 years, is re- sponsible for the greater number of refired firemen. The difference in the number of widows and orphans is attributable to the fact that a much Kreater number of single men join the fire departmen than the police department.” , manager of safety and excise, took the position that the firemen’ braved the greater hazards. His statement was in de- tem of the firemen’s retirement age of 50 years, as compared with the retirement age of §0 years for po- licemen. “All circumstances considered, 1 believe a fireman has a more dan- gerous occuption,” Hershey said. The imue was joined whén. City Auditor George D. Begole issued his annual report, tending to indicate that the condition described by |« Hershey had changed with the ad- vent of the man with a gun. The report shows pensions are now being paild to 66 widows of policemen and to only 35 widows of firemen. The same applies to or- phans. There are 27 orphans of po- licomen under 14 years of age, and 10 orphams of firemen: on the pen- — blowing here en Ready to Wear Dept. Beginning Saturday! a 3 Day Sale You may now select a slim straightlined model, a smart Cape Coat or any other dis- tinctive Coat of broadcloth, failles, casha, basketweave, or fancy tweed mixture . . . either fur trimmed or with self collar, with or without capes, in sizes 14 t0 42 o, at only_ Values Up to $39.50 Spring Dresses and Ensembles Incomparable values — The newest in de- signs—Wide selection of materials—Dozens upon dozens of chic and distinctive gar- ments, Sizes 14 to 46 at only $15.00 to $25.00 . In Our Downstairs Store! Dresses—Ensembles In new prints, crepes, georgettes, etc. For the woman that would Sport COATS Large selection of fancy Embre materials and novelty.tweeds. A be different, yet thrifty feast for the eye IN OUR DOWNSTAIRS STORE IT'S THE IDEAL FURNITURE ENAMEL The Abbe Hard=are Co. 405 MAIN ST NEW BRITAIN r A large selection of ildren’s hat section you will v conceivable color and style in the largest variety in the city. $198 . $3.75 at only $10 to ‘15 Sizes 120 20 at only %795 Sizes 14 to 44 crechet viceas, felts 2nd combinations. $1.88 .. $2.98 R e e R R R e N PR RN NSRS R AR S 2