Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1886-08-01
GIRLS WHO SEW ALLDAY
Most Of Them Happy when They Earn
Fifty Living ON Less Than
Three Dollars Week.
Prices Tor Fancy work--rwo Dollars for
Mating AN Oyercoat rhat SELLS Tor
FORTY 60 Fifty Dollars.
NoM Yolk AlAll and Eknrena.

Now York Man and Express
Asa rule, seamstresscs on mems wear
receive the least pay, according to the
oneness OF the work aud the extreme
care bestowed upon It, though work ON
some womep's garments is illonough
paid The large tailors and manufacture
ing establishments alye all their work
outside, and II is cprlously divided up.
Some women receive those parts that re
quire special basting, The cutter cuts
out 50 many coats, and with them all the
Innings, buckrams and velvet which are
necessary, and these are graded In a
muthodical manner and each size placed
by Itself. In some cases men DO tho
stitching Of the seams, but generally
women DO that, They they are all
given to the pressers and then 80 the
basters. From these they go To the
liners, after which they are sent 10 the
inishers and the acknowledgements.
They are aiterward given 10 those who
sew on the buttons, and then others take
out the hastings, after which the preesers
again have them, and flnally the Inspector
orders the tickets and little silk patch
with the FIRMS name sewn on. Thus ten
persons work on each coat. Each part
OF work Is done on dozen coats and
each dozen rs soon as finished Is fastened
together aud returned. Whom the
work is returned II Is inspected,
! and II the least imperfcction Is
disoerned the mistake must be rectihed,
/ The cutter and inspector are well paid,
| but those who do the work plecemeal
only earn about 80 to 40 cents day,
working constantly aud giving half day
20 take the work and get more. In one
! tenement house lives woman who sup.
/ ports herself and three small children by
/ finishing gent cmen's fine oyercoats, She
homs the satin Innings and sews In the
sleeve Innings aud the velvet collar and
puts 10 several stays, In all setting from
5000 TO 10000 stitches ON each, and earns
at most 90 cents day. Out OF tails she
pays 50 a month for rent. She works
Sundays, too, She sends her babies
to n kindergarten, where they are fed
but In the summer the school Is
closed, aud how she lives and keeps
them In clothes ana Gre none but those
who live IN the same way know, just
now another woman with one child L
sharing her room and her rent, which fe
lievea hera little. The man she obtains
work from has factory, also fine tai
OllIW NfhhUNlfNHtNhAI anu Aiih NtAHN ~
work these women do IL for oyercoati
which cost $40 and $50, Allowing oacl
Of the ton workers on each coat 10 cent
for what She does. and the cutter aud In
spoctOr each 90 cents, the cost Of MAKING
a mans nne coat IL about 81 Man,
manufacturers give all their work 20 con
tractors after II ~ cut out, aud they u
turn give It out ~ small parcels TO tn
poor women who do It,, and 10 maxi
money themselves grlna them down Il
h the very lowest figure. Other con
o tractors take In large quantitle
OF work, and then hire hands i
their own worll-room and set them Z
work there. When the work require
machine stitching they allow the girls III
use Of machines, charging them 40 niue
n day for theus OF them, aud they pa
by the piece always, Some OF tho wor
is OF the cheapest quality, and some OF
again Of the richest aud hnest; but how
: ever II is the girls pay remains about Tn
y same, Just enough TO keep body and sot
together while living In the most sqnali
II manner There arc Immense quantltlC
< Of this work done in the poorer houses /
v the city 10y the mothers OF families VIII
cannot leave their little children,
cases OF contagious disease the wor
goes ON iust the same, and the germs {
sickness can be carried In the line coat {
r the society man. Where the girls 9
G women can leave and go into the store
a or factories they have a chance TO ear
/, moro money, but on tailoring the pny
|, cruelty short,
Z There are several places whore shrew
!, men have bought up numbers OF old sew
:, lug machines, and these they either rel
or sell to those who have none, and tab
their pay In work For an old mnchlr
u not worth $40 they will make these nj
y fortunate poor pay from $50 TO $50
. work at starvation prices. the wor
they give is usually mems commo
drawers and overdlls and jumpers, 40 we
:, as the commOnost calico shirts. An
:, they earn the gratitude OF these unfortl
u nate women by only retaining half III
a price OF the work toward the payment ,
o these machines each week Sometimes
l, takes two years 10 pay Tor raInHchackl
x old machine that these men have bOugl
II up for few dollars, and by tbs tim
y they get II paid for II In good f.
K nothing at all Men'a shirts arc sons
b times made by giving out lots Of doze
y or 80 10 those who can mako thom con
o plctc, hut generally they are given on
piecaneal For instance, dozen pair 9
wristbands and those little napa No ~
, bottom OF the bOsoms, the Yokes, an
then the sleeves and bands together, an
finally the bosom, then The body, aud a
. last the finishing on The swiftest an
= nentest sewer on bands md flaps, wit
4 the aid of drst class machine, can max
!, No home about 30 cents a day, from carl
4 morning 90 80 NJ night. Those who q
4 the iolis aud bodies, 10 short, the 0tho
I work, earn on an average about tho sam
with the aid Of their machines m
a. ahlrts, when all d0np but "lnishiug,
!, require four gussots, six huttonhoC
and FIVE buttons, and thls work IL give
a out In largo quantities 10 women Ia ten,
\ ment houses. They are paid for the con
mon ones cents Il dozen shirts, and ID
4 the finest shirts 0 20 "a cents doze
4 shirts iorty-eight gussets, aixty button
: aud seyenty-two bnlteD' holes And me
lose patience when the buttons Ny on
Finishing mems drawers Is about as bat
a The work N Of necessity done IN the mos
rapid manner, and the buttons are read
20 fall on the iirst time they are buttoncd
but II these poor women were 20 stop I
= make each secure for all time the
would have 70 90 hungry. The rent IL ~
y heavy expense 81 these workers., and Ia
e only way they can live II W clu
= together, either en- iamllie OF anon
HnNa