The rising number of textile mills and coal mines in South Carolina in the 1900s led to an increase in the need for cheap labor. Many factory owners found this cheap labor in children. Children began working very long hours, enduring very hard work in poor conditions. Progressive reformers became very concerned, and began questioning the morality of such work for young children. In 1903 a law was passed in South Carolina that set the minimum age for a working child at twelve years old. In 1917, another law enforced the minimum age to fourteen years old, and another in 1937 changed the legal age to sixteen. Later laws would restrict the number of hours these children were allowed to work by law. According to this passage, what was the biggest concern regarding child labor? A. They suffered from too many deaths and accidents. B. They were stealing all the work from adult laborers. C. Their wages were not as high as they could have been. D. They worked long hours in harsh working conditions.