The Baltimore County union., 1884-07-05

treat servant girls IN such a manner as
they are being treated all around us
every day. More than that, the instances
are few where girls in the country get
two dollars week. They get from one
dollar and twenty-five to a dollar and
seventy-fve cents per week, unless
they take the responsibility of the
milking.
A few months agowe observed in one
of the Chester county papers several j.
vertisements for girls who under ID
all kinds of housework and couI Up
to attend the dairy. The salarie~ er-
ed ranged from $3.50 to 81 week.
The following was especially noticeable:
"Wanted-agirl who can do all kinds
of housework; and who will get up at
four o'clock in the morning and make
the fire. Good wages offered-S2 per
week. Address ]. c."
:. We chance to know the family, which
grown sons and grown daughter, also
a brother of the father. They burn
wood except in the parlor. Just think
of girl having to get up at that time
in cold house and make the fire when
there were four men there
Hundreds of advertisements which
appear in the Philadelphia Record
amount to this:
"Wanted-a girl to do all kinds of
housework. None except those who
understand dairy work need apply.
Good wages-S2 per week"
They are ashamed to say 1873 cents
per day, but that is what it is anyway.
The poor girl who is unable to do any
other than service work applies for the
':g0od a0ages," 1878 cents day, and
works herself nearly to death, until,
discouraged with much work and little
pay, she resolves to better her circum-
stances, and too often VOWS, in the
presence of witnesses, to honor and
love one who honors and loves the"cup"
more than he does her, or even to take
more fatal step than that, and beside
which marrying drunkard would be
honorable.
The history of American servant girls
is but little better than the history of
slavery. Some slaves had good mas
tiers and were treated kindly; others
had bad masters and were treated un-
kindly; so it is with all laboring people,
but especially the servant girl, whose
recompense is so meagre.
The very day a girl goes into the
kitchen as a servant to earn an honest
living for herself, and in many instances
for feeble and helpless ones depending
on her for support, that day she forfeits
all claim on education and talented So
ciety and has little intercourse with that
circle of human-or inhuman-beings
excepting in the capacity of servant.
She is no longer recognized by the very
persons who could help her most, and
is left all discouraged, and in many in
stances friendless, to tread life's weary
way alone and earn, by dint of hard
scrubbing and much securing, her one
hundred and four dollars her year, per-
haps little more, oftener good bit less.
Pray fell. what is there in kitchen
service work that is so degrading, that
the individual who does that kind of
work is unworthy of social notice?
Why, too, this continued complaining
about girls being good-for-nothing and
have to be closely watched all the time
they are working else nothing is done
right? Because 81 only get as much
as Mrs. BIS girl, who is as careless as
anything. 1 needn't work myself to
death for nothing"
If, however, as is frequently the case,
the servant has always been in humble
circumstances, she has little hope, she
has little chance, of ever occupying any
better position in life, for the kitchen
offers few opportunities for mental cul-
ture ordevelopment. If the individual
knows nothing else and has no opportu-
nifty of learning how to do anything
else than make the fires, cook the meals,
wash dishes, bake, sweep, wash and
iron, scrub and scour, and, in the coun-
try, milk and churn, how can she do
anything else? And since the recon-
pense for this kind of work will do a
little more than decently clothe her, how
eaR Nhhss, Nshs get above this Positiona = ,,,,,,
Girls in these States and countries "lsuly
Tobacco is manufactured resort to cigar
making for living? 1t is because they
have limited time to work and receive
so much better salaries. There is no
one who knows what cigar making
shop is but knows that it is no mt place
for girls.
You say, "We have uniform system
of public schools and every boy and
girl has the opportunity of an ordinary
Common school education" True,
we have grand system of schools, but
It takes more than ordinary common
school education; it takes a M0r0Ksh
common school education and continued
opportunities for an American girl to
secure and retain position by which
she can earn an independent living
without resorting to hard, manual labor
With these facts staring at US, and te
prove the veracity of them, we need bu
| look around us. How can our Leading
Journals aud local papers aoh why 90
many of the poorer class of American
girls have fallen? Welook with sorrow
!, at the increased per cent. of our falle1
sisterhood, and with regret are compel
led to acknowledge that great deal o
the fault lies at the doors of our moniet
people, those for whom the service-worl
is rendered. Let there be equal pa
for equal labor.
Men are and have been striking TO
higher wages in nearly all parts OF th'
United States. Gentle, patient servant
women endure their grievances withou
resentment.
If kitchen service work was dignifie
by rendering for it just recompense
and the servant apartment (room) mad
: interesting and attractive, books, joui
nails and magazines of a healthy natur
placed within her reach, and certai
time given her to read each day, yo
may rest assured our kitchen would nc
be deserted for workshops. With sue
| IL t6a co