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manded. Party expedience, party success and party victory are the watchwords of the G. O. P." 1

All pleas were in vain, however, for the election process again produced a republican majority in the assembly led once more by Speaker Machold. And while some defection appeared at the outset in the republican ranks, the threat was made against Governor Smith's program, that "any foolish Socialist program" would be defeated.

Thus the legislative sky of 1924 was clouded at dawn for the advocates of "welfare" bills. But there were also wide rifts of blue. For one thing, new facts had been gathered since the close of the 1923 legislature. In November was published a comprehensive study of hours and earnings of women in New York, prepared by the Bureau of Women in Industry, Bulletin No. 121. The report included data concerning more than 59,000 women in five industries which indicated that while there has been an improvement in the hours and wages of women in recent years, perhaps 44 per cent of the women whose time was recorded work more than 48 hours a week, and more than twenty per cent earn less

'New York World, November 2, 1923.

'Article iii of the State Constitution prescribes the method of electing legislators in New York State. The system results in the fifty senators being elected approximately according to the census, but it seems this is not true for assemblymen. According to the constitution, one assemblyman is elected from each of the 150 assembly districts, but there must be at least one assemblyman from each county (with one exception) while the remaining number are elected according to the population. This seems to result in the so-called "rotten borough" system whereby up-state electors can retain a majority representation in the assembly while the majority of the people of the state, centered in greater New York, are represented by a minority.

This study has more than usual interest because of its covering precisely the same fields of employment which were investigated by the Factory Investigating Commission in 1913, and the State Department of Labor in 1918. Thus there is an interesting array of comparative data over a ten year period.

than $12 per week; more than one-half of all the women earn less than $16.00 weekly. Since 48 hours is considered a sufficiently long working week, and $16.00 the approximate minimum for a respectable living, these findings gave new strength to the arguments for the 48-hour week and the minimum wage bills.1

Moreover, the advocates of these bills felt relatively confident of success this time because, in addition to the staunch friendship of Governor Smith which he again manifested in his legislative message on January 2, Republican State Committee Chairman Morris stated that his committee endorsed the 48-hour bill. The cause of the minimum wage commission also seemed strengthened by the endorsement it had been given by President Coolidge in his message to Congress. There were two other early features of the 1924 campaign that gave hope to the proponents of the welfare bills. was the spectacular victory of Governor Smith over Mark Daly of the Associated Industries when the latter failed to substantiate his charge against the efficency of the Department of Labor. We have seen that Mr. Daly represented interests actively opposed to protective legislation; and now it was confidently hoped by advocates of legislation that his power was broken and that a vicious foe was at last vanquished.2

One

Another factor in the campaign that encouraged the welfare enthusiasts was the probable support of Colonel Theodore Roosevelt and his political associates. It appears that Col. Roosevelt has always been sympathetically inclined to

An important observation made from the data was that in the short hour establishments, a greater number of women worked full time than in the establishments with a longer scheduled week, and furthermore that there is a "decided tendency toward a higher rate of pay for full time work in shorter hour establishments."

'More is said of this investigation of the charges of Mr. Daly in a later chapter.

ward welfare measures, and now, it was evident, he was being seriously considered for the next governor. This fact necessitated caution on his part against either active or entirely passive resistance to the measures proposed by democratic Governor Smith. Thus, it was prophesied that the republican campaign methods of 1919, 1920 and 1923 would not be adopted this year. On January 18, cheering headlines appeared in the newspapers such as "Outlook is bright for Smith's laws-bi-partisan agreement to put bulk of program over seems assured." 1

The second month of the legislative session was not so promising as the first. "Partisan warfare holds sway in the Legislature" was the reflection in the press; ' harmony conferences" were admittedly over, and the republican assembly and democratic senate were deadlocked. The eighthour day and minimum wage bills, among others, appeared to be slated for discard. These bills had been passed in the senate on March 10, a public hearing having taken place on February 26. Cleavage among the senators had developed in the voting, six republicans having broken over party lines to join the democrats in support of the measures. The New York World evidenced its friendliness by applauding the rebellious senators, commenting further:

Can there be any excuse for treating measures to regulate the conditions under which women and children work in factories upon a partisan basis? What difference is there between a Republican woman and a Democratic woman, a Democratic child, not yet a voter, and a Republican child, not yet a voter, in industry? Why must such questions, even in the Assembly, be debated or decided upon a partisan basis?

1 New York Morning World, January 18, 1924.

New York Morning World, March 12, 1924.

* Senators Davenport, Ferris, Lowman, Mastick, Whitley, Hewitt.

Thus the republican party discipline in the senate under Leader Lusk appears to have broken down. In the assembly, however, there was greater solidarity. For, although State Chairman George K. Morris had declared himself in favor of the eight-hour bill and Speaker Machold had said he would not oppose it, a conference of republican assemblymen voted to kill the bills in committee, which, when the time came, was what happened.

On the 7th of March, less than four days before the close of the session, Governor Smith repeated his strong eleventhhour effort of 1919 to recover his bills. He urged fervently that selfish partisan interests be cast aside and that it be recognized that "the eight-hour day is gradually receiving nation-wide acceptance." As previously, he restated the reasons for this legislation (the eight-hour or Straus bill and the minimum wage or Reiburn bill):

The desire to bring about the forty-eight-hour week is predicated upon the theory of the conservation of the public health. If we are to have a healthy and vigorous race we must look to it by law for the protection of future mothers. It is my very earnest hope that the Legislature will not adjourn without giving to this question the serious attention to which it is entitled.

I would also ask of you to consider the bill already passed by the Senate providing for a Minimum Wage Board to study the question of wages paid to women and children in industry with the power of recommendation as to what constitutes a wage sufficient to enable women and children to maintain themselves in health and comfort.

Such a law has been in force with a great deal of success in the State of Massachusetts for a long period. Employers of female labor in large numbers would welcome any information that would place them in a position to feel that they were doing justice to the women and children they employ.

I can think of no greater asset to the State than healthy

women and children. The life of the State itself is dependent upon them.1

But despite all, these bills could not be pried out of the rules committee, and thus they became inert like those in years before. A modification in the 48-hour bill proved of no avail. Introduced by Republican Assemblyman Shonk, this measure was supposed to cancel the chief remaining objections of the canners by permitting fifty-four hours of work a week for a maximum of eight weeks in the year.

The test came before daybreak on the 8th of April when the poll for the release of the eight-hour bill was lost by three votes at 2:30 a. m., and that for the minimum wage was lost by five votes, a half-hour later. The democrats stood solidly for both bills, it is reported, and they were joined by ten republicans for the hour measure and eight for the wage bill. The New York World under the title of "Their Master's Voice," narrates that "the remaining Republicans, representing 250,000 fewer than half the votes of the State, killed the bills." And continued,

It might be magnifying his office to call Speaker Machold the leader of this reactionary host. Assemblyman Bloch charges that the master's voice they heard was that of the Albany lobbyist of the Associated Industries, an organization whose cannery complex is known.'

But even then oxygen-tank methods were used to revive the 48-hour bill (there was no further hope for the minimum wage measure). Governor Smith issued an emergency message which made it possible for a new hour provision to pass through the senate in order to bring the act again before the assembly. At 3 a. m. on April 11, about five hours before the close of the session, Senator Mastick introduced 1 Op. cit., April 8, 1924.

Op. cit., April 9, 1924, editorial.