The Fairfield herald. [volume] (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1849-1876, 1867-09-04
The Poor Needle Women-Their Wages
in New York

|
| The Now York Sun is showing ho,
the needle women in that CITY ar
are paid. After remarkiug that tn
average wages Of even the most skill
ed do not exceed SIS per week, it adds
! In order to earn even that much
woman must be skilled in somc pa,
ticular branch of sowing. Those VIII,
have not had experience in the elias
of work that they engage to perform
cannot obtain as much in the aver
age as five dollars week. How thcs,
poor creatures manage to live is ;
mystery that VIC cannot penetrate
Many Of thcm have helpless children
to support, others have aged parents
to provide for, and all arc the victim.
of poverty. During tho last two
| or three weeks VIC have daily publish
ed communications from young mer
on tho question of saving money
Among the writer's Of those letters arc
many who receive from $l5 to So
per week, and who yet argue that
they can barely support themselves on
such salaries.
Now, ifa young man, free and with
out cncumbrance can barely get
along with SIS per week, how can n
woman live Oh onc-third Of that sum d?
Think of sewing woman with two or
three helpless children cking out an
existence on IS per week Yet
there arc many which do it. Within
a stones throw Of Broadway, with its
beauty, wealth and extravaganza
there are many poor Eomcn toiling
carly and late for $51a week. We
can imagine how that pittancc must
be dolcd out. SuBpo3o the sewing
woman who receives atSis u widow,
with q child,or two to Support. For
rear room in the attic of filthy
tenement house she will be obliged to
pay 81 so per week. Her other out
lay for the same period Will be about
TO cents for bread small loaf
each day; so cents for potatoes so
cents for meat bones ;(S25 cents for
light to see by at nights SO cents for
coal to keep from freezing so cents
for clothing 55 cents for all other
expenses. And then she must stitch,
stitch; early and loto-so eight or ten
hour system for her. isIf herself or
Sfdti Medicines or employ physician?
If an unscrupulous cmplopcr finds
imaginary cause for Withholding her
walics, as is frequently the case, what
can she do -? If the be discharged, F.,
what then we do not hold this pic
turc up as u view Of the life of Now
York sowing women generally, but
that it portrays many individual cas-
scs is very we'll known. There arc no
slaves more miserable or moro pitiu-
BILE than the slaves of the needle of
New York. We arc charitable pco-
pie. and give largely to sufferers
abroad, and to public institutions at
home ; we arc philanthropic people,
ana arc deeply interested in tho elc-
vation of Southern negroes, Western
Indians, and Eastern Cretans VIC arc
a Christian people, and devote large
sums to cvaagclize the hcathcn and
build costly places of worship, but
notwithstanding this fine structure of
bcncvolcncc, whose exterior is so
pleasing, wo have skeleton in tie
closet. 1t is living skeleton too, and
from early morning until late at
night, it keeps up woarisomc stitch,
stitch, stitch.
Mr.. SEwARDs EXPECTED RETIRE.
MENT.-A New York letter says that
Mr.. Stewards confidential friends in that
city continue to assert that he vii
retire from the Cabinet in the course oI
n few days, not because OF any disagree
mcnt between him and tho President
but because he is anxious to retire from
public life, and spend the remainder o
his days at his home in Auburn. They
even go so far as toave that letter
to that effect was transmitted to the
President a fortnight ago, and that
though the latter is cndcavoring TO per
suade him TO consider his resolution, tho
former is inflexible. The 10Th Of Sep
tembcr it is further said, is the time
fixed for his retirement. / give 20,
these reports, as all other reports, rumor'
and gossip of political character arr
given i'll this correspondence, for wha
they are worth.
a English paper has this story: "a
very curious incident occurred yesterday
in the House of Lords during the pro
gress Of the Breaaalbane Peerage case
Mr.. Anderson, 9. c., in alluding 10 on
Of the persons whose name had beer
mentioned, called him Captain Paricl
| Campbell. The Lord Chancellor sait
tic Captains name was not Patrick
but Peter. Mr.. Anderson said they
were convertible terms. The Lore
Chancellor; WhaLl are St. Palricl
and St. Peter the samo2 Mr.. Ander
son Yes, Tie names are The same.
Lord Colonsay informed the Lord Chan
cellor that the learned counsel was righ
lin Scotland Patrick was Peter ant
Peter was Patrick. The Lord Chan
cellor said it certainly was information
to him."
A New York lettor says that Mr.
Seward's confidential friends in tha
city continue to assert that he will re