OCR Text |
Show CHILD LABOR LAWS AND THE STAGE. T Francis "Wilson, one of Americans prominent actors, who played an engagement in this city last night in "The Bachelor's Baby," is one of the nation's foremost advocates for the protection of stage children. Mr. Wilson, while thoroughly devoted to his art, yet is giving much time to the question, of child labor laws as adopted by various stales in which he has appeared during his present season. The child labor laws, while not aimed -tit the children of the stage, yet do a great injury iu that they prohibit children under H years gof age from doing any Idnd of labor. Mr. Wilson's views are the 'same as held by every broad-mlndett citizen of the republic it will mean tho discouragement of the developing of the dramatic instincts in the childGn, who probably have the ability and may reach the r rirvj&c-Ujjadder in the theatrical profession. Duriughis stay in Ogden and Salt Lake Mr. Wilson will give much attention to the child labor bill, passed by tho last Utah legislature. legis-lature. He says the new law will practically bar many big productions produc-tions from this state. In this Mr. Wilson is right. Had the senator from Weber county, Eudolph Kuchlcr. considered what effect ef-fect his bill woidd have upon the theatrical profession there would probably have been an amendment tackeil on the measure before its final passage, which would not have included children of the stage. As every theatergoer knows, child actors and actresses children chil-dren of the stage are necessary in the presentation of certain plays. "Tho Blue Bird," "Rip Van Winkle," ".Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm," Uncle Tom's Cabin," "(Little Lord Fauntleroy," to mention men-tion a few which have charmed countless patrons of the arania, could hardly be given without them. It is from sources such as these that the stage owes Maude Adams, Julia Marlowe, Annie Russell, Elsie Leslie, Mabel and Edith Taliferro, William Collier, Henry E. Dixey, Joseph Jefferson's sons, Wallace Eddinger and others. Where state laws arbitrarily prohibit the appearance on the stage of children, chil-dren, the latter are debarred from' opportunity of learning the rudiments rudi-ments of the dramatic profession. Not only this, but there is lost to playgoers many plays impossible of production without the services of juvenile actors. No fault can be found with the laws of New York state in this respect, the licensing power being vested in the mayors of the -various cities. Many other states, however, handle the matter in a far less liberal manner, as traveling theatrical man-' man-' agers have for years found to their cost. The states of Massachu- t setts, Illinois and Louisiana, which contain the hig cities of Boston," Chicago and New Orleans, have laws -which are particularly drastic, as they absdlutcl bar children under 16 years of age from appearing in theatrical performances It is well understood that these laws were drafted with -children o the factory and the mill in mind. Nevertheless, though their sponsors perhaps did not intend it, they Operate directly against-stage children. As a matter of actual fact, no children anywhere aro ho welL enred for and watche'd over as the youngsters back of tho footlights. Every stage hand or "grip" becomes be-comes at once their champion ; every stage manager and stage door tender is their loyal friend. Nothing )q least objectionable ever reaches their, eyes pr ojirs. X'oupled, Jvith this, thQyfarc -invariably accompanied by some older person, and their work, if work it can bo called, occupies a scant two and a half hours at most, and usually usu-ally but a few minutes. |