The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1876-07-27
WHITE MARBLE STEPS.
A Social Vanity that Costs Philadelphia
S3,85O,OOO Every Year.

s3,85O,OOO Every Year.
This city, says Philadelphia corre-
spondent of the Sun, has an industry
peculiar to itself, and it is therefore
worthy of honorable mention. Every
house has marble doorsteps, and houses
of any pretension have marble trim
mings or foundations which rise above
the sidewalk fro1a two to four or five
feet. The industry referred to is de-
voted to keeping this marble work clean.
A stranger would think it Il small matter,
and that n few whisks of brush or
broom would be sufficient; but this is 30
far from being the case that great deal
Of hard work is required, and it must
be done in scientific manner. The
ronson for this lies in the fact that there
is more or less iron, or perhaps other
minerals, in the marble, which, con-
tinually coming to the surface, must be
taken out by lard rubbing and scrub
bling, and likely enough with tears.
Usually the work commences early in
the morning, sometimes at daylight. A
bucket and scrubbing brush are re.
quired, also soap, cloth, and some rot
ten stone, and the laborer gets down on
her hands and knees as FIRST step-if
such movement is stcp-then begins
to rub ON one side, and painfully goes
over the surface, much rs a carpenter
would do if it were piece of black wal
nut to he planed and smoothed and
sandpapered. Nor will ordinary scrub.
bing at all answer; for the discolored
spots are to be watched and rubbed un-
til they wholly disappear; and ii the
spots will not "out," they must be rub
bed till they shall. Now, when it is
considered that there are from two to
four, and even a dozen steps, and, be-
sides, a line of marble from fifteen to
twenty-five feet long, it will be seen that
there is solid, honest work to be done.
Sometimes good half hour is required
for two steps alone.
What is singular about this matter is,
that such is the social arrangement con-
cerning it, that it is impossible to neglect
the work, for if it is neglected, the next
door 0eighbor, all the people in the
street, all the passers by will notice the
remissness, and glance cf contempt
will be cast at the front door, at the win
dows, and the whole house, and the So
cial standing of the inmates will be in
danger, and perhaps credit itself will be
in jeopardy.
1t is presumed that the servant girl
does this work, and it is certainly tru,
that the operative looks like servant
girl. But the truth is the great maj ority
OF families own their own houses, ano
they do not keep servants, 30 it is the
woman of the house who is out on hel
hands and knees, and at an hour wheI
her husband and children are either IL
bed or helping in some way to get the
breakfast, or, when there is only one
servant she will be required at the
range, or, if the servant has not done
the scrubbing we'll, leaving yellow
spots, and there have been contemptu
Gus glances, the lady of the mansion
goes out, but nobody is the wiser, for
dressed in an old gown, and in wornou
shoes, she knuckles down to the grea
social duty, feeling assured that when
later in the day, she steps down thos
snowy stairs dressed in silk and all othe
things in the latest style, and perhap
admired or envied by every eye, sh
will not be shocked by seeing a singl
foul spot. And SO day by day, mont
by month, and year by year, this Phila
delphia industry goes on.
Now, taking out factories and strlctl
business houses, there are in this cit
not less than 100, 900 houses whose mai
BILE steps and trimmings must be rubbe
down every day. The value of the wor
performed and of the material used wi
average fully ten cents for each house
s though in many cases the work is richl
worth twenty-five cents-therefore th
f daily investment is $4,000, equal
1 SO, $50, 600 year; certainly an emo
nous sum, considering that it col
t tributes to neither food, clothing, r.
t ligion nor politics.