SOCIAL LEGISLATION ON THE PACIFIC COAST 289 



power to license l()(l,uiii*i" houses used liy i iiiiii ii;i ani-. and that licaltli 

 and sanitation rules be more strictly enforced in the labor camps. 



In making- this brio I' snrvey of the experience of the Pacific coast 

 states in state-buildino-, th(> author has no doubt omitted several im- 

 •portant features. Sueli on\issions, with the exception of two, have been 

 made because it was thought best to include only those features in which 

 the Pacific coast states were somewhat distinctive. The two omissions 

 just referred to are the rural ]n-oblcm and the development of business. 

 These are iuipoi'tant, hut ai'e without the limits of this paper. 



The conclusions of this paper show that in empire-building citizens 

 of a democracy have not hesitated to build according to the new theory 

 of the state as set forth by tlie researches of political science, a theory 

 that demands a government strongly and Avidely developed for the aims 

 of social justice and eolleetive eil^'oit. These new states have shown elh- 

 ciency and built with dispatch. (Jovernment as collective organization 

 and effort has boon excellently demonstrated. The unrestrained liberty 

 wliich has meant injustice to others or to the group has in many ways 

 been restrained, and the forgotten rights of the unprotected have not 

 been neglected. The new states have not hesitated to experiment. It is 

 well to see these experiments in summary. Oregon was the first state 

 to adopt the recall, the direct election of senators, the presidential pref- 

 erence primar}', to pass an extensive ten-lionr law for women and to put 

 into effect the minimum wage law for women. California and Wash- 

 ington w^ere first to adopt the eight-hour law for women. C*alif(n-nia 

 was the first state in scientific budget making. "Washington was first 

 to abolish private employment bureaus and is first in the efficiency of 

 public schools. Oregon was third to provide for the initiative and the 

 referendum and was first to develop them. Oregon was second to adopt 

 the direct jDrimary and California was second to put into effect a law re- 

 quiring the reporting of industrial diseases. There were only two states 

 to precede the Pacific coast states in creating mothers' pensions. In 

 adopting other social legislation, while not the first, second oi- third 

 states, Washington, Oregon and California were in a small leading group 

 to legislate effectively on home rule for cities, child labor, hours of labor 

 on public works, factory sanitation and inspection, employer's liahilitv, 

 eugenics, prohibition, prison reform, public utilities, munieiiial owner- 

 ship, the social evil and woman suffrage. The success of these experi- 

 ments may be interpreted by observing the extent to w^hich other states 

 are following their example. To see the new social order of the Pacific 

 coast, social legislation should be looked at in its entirety. This social 

 order is distinctive. Xo other group of states possesses such a Avealth 

 of social legislation. This paper has aggregated the variety of cases 

 found among these Pacific coast states and it is a very imposing picture 

 that is revealed. 



VOL. LXXXV. — 20. 



