at an early age in order to learn to do his part of the world's work.
Clearly, then, from the standpoint of the child, there is no excuse for his working at an early age. There is no necessity of child labor for a "learning of the business." But there are other sides to the necessity problem. From the standpoint of the child, there is no necessity. What of the parent?
"The devil can cite Scripture for his purpose." The man looking for a justification of some policy will most easily find it in a plea that a particular act is necessary to prevent individual hardship and suffering.
It is probably fair to say that no legislature which ever met to discuss a child labor bill was not confronted with the "widowed mother" argument. Indeed, it sometimes happens that the very firm whose unguarded machinery snuffed out the life of the father, will plead hardest for the protection of the "helpless widow and her baby orphans," and will allow the "baby orphans" to get the same place in the same factory that was responsible for the death of the father.
