The Memphis appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1886-1890, 1886-10-24

not say "saleewoman" 80 we'll as
"salesnian2 ?" It seems to me that one
glance at the girls standing behind
the counters of our great retail stores
ought to satisfy any pc son that /. is
the last ditch into which they could
get by any possible tumble. In these
places the work has nothing stimulat-
ing about 1t. 1t stirs no latent en-
ergy, it acts in no sense as tonic to
the brain. 1t is physique wearing,
patience exhsusting. The aver
age pay of these poor girls is
So per week. Out OF that they must
pay their board, cloihe themselves--
and clothe themselves respectfully,
too-pay their car fare, the doctors
bills and for what little pleasure they
get in the way of amusement. Now, /
do no. intend to preach m morality, but
l simply open the door and ask you
to look in yourself at the 10000 girls
in this great city whose average COM
pensstion is S. 80 per week, with an
enforced vacation In many Of the
larges stores of from six to eight
weeks duration, during which they
get no pay whatever, and then tell
me whether this is echool for virtue,
whether this is promenade on which
can bs tafely placed the tender feet Of
girls too young TO understand the
meaning OF the snar6s that EMERGE
them, bat old enough 10 wish to dress
as well as their companions, and weak
enough to follow any example, how
ever perniCious, that they may get on.
Now, all this le ads up to the question
Where shAll they go2 What shalt
they do2 1t teems to me that outside
OF the factories, where children ara
little better than slaves, there are fields
OF labor in which the unquestionable
intellect and marvellous adaptiveness
(physicaD OF woman might bs util-
lied, am rot very familiar with
spinning and the varied cognate EN-.
ployment connected with it. but be-
ieve that there is realm in which
women could do an immense amount
of work, and for which they would re-
ceiys pay-they would hate TO take
wages" l suppose - &C commensurate
with thu ir ACHE vement,. Household
service, mental service, OF necessity,
occupy the time and attention OF
thoueauds 50 far as cities are con-
cerned, that class Of work is monopc-
liz3d almost entirely of foreigners, but
throughout the great country, on New
England farms, on Western rar ches,
there are opportunities where self
respecting and self reliant girl5 cou d
fad congenial employment. The
gre at picture dealers OF this city tell
me that they tell with wonderful
rapidity, and at most crafty
ing pricse, crayon sketches aud
water co,or pictures, done by
men or women, 30 long ss the
subjscts are unique and sympathetic.
Women's intuitious are quicker, their
sentiments are finer, and so they
ought to be better able to sslect sub.
jFcts which, being pleasant to them,
would be agreeable 10 purchasers. A
portion Of cur city churches have
women orpanists. Some OF our largest
concerns have women acCountant
The best proof reader ever knew was
q woman.
Women in newspaper Office, es
rule, area nu' sauce, The reason OF this
is twotold: First, they insist in Terms
and in manner upon being treated IS
women. They want their copy judged
more leniently; they want their little
episodes # for4etfulness passed over
very lightly, not because they we're
i'll, but because they are women. The
ordinary woman writer seizes almost
intuitvely upon fashions 40 her topic,
as tho uph dress and ite idiosynCi asies
were the chief thought Of their read
era, and thei efore Of themselves. TOey
are unwilling to be directed They
are often petty snd small in Their
Iehension CT atlairs They tre,
as a matter Of courBe, obyiouaiy pre-
cluded from certain PHASES Ut Jews
paper work, but in the comp sing
room have always found them as
serviceable as man, and In the proof
room, as say, the best reader | ever
knew was woman.
Literature, The world around, seems
to be a fair fed for women If they
would be content to enter before the
mast and work their way up, ire
spective of their sex, or OF any special
domestic trouble that may be annoy
ing to them. In other words, II they
wish 10 stand shoulder to shoulder
with their brothers, receive mans
pay for a mans work, they should be
content also to take the risks and to
expect the hazards, precisely as their
brothers ere compelled to; go that, af-
ter all, it seems to me the first thing
our girls should be taught isthe neCes-
city Of self lel auce for their own sup
port, the necessity OF a training to
SONS special end, and then go ahead
with the understanding that their
work is a lies work, into which mat.
rimony, if il comes at all, comes as a
lirn.A q M aud a N aid and a hnln