The Labor enquirer., 1886-07-03
AMERICAN GIRLS.
Annie Haskell Tells Why They Will
Not Do House,
work,
d CATO.

Annie Haskell Tells Why They Will
Not Do House.
work.
Truth in Small Doses.
l often hear people complaining that
our American girls will not do house
work for living. 1t astonishes them
to think that girl would prefer to work
in factory or a shop instead of in the
houses of some richer neighbor. There
must be some reason for 1t and maybe if
some of these anxious inquirers should
try to to find the reason by occupying
the position themselves for time they
would cease wondering.
In shop or factory 1t is bad enough,
but the employees have their regular
work TO perform, their regular hours and
there is not 80 much bossing. That is
the great objection to housework, girl,
however well she is educated and raised
and however much ofa lady she is, will
be re: egated to the kitchen and looked
upon and treated as slave or machine
or combination of both.
l have friend who answered an ad-
vertisement from an employment Office
in this city for housework she was well
educated good musician, and probably
as true a lady as she who desired to en-
gage her She expected to do the work,
of course, that was her business. But
pending an engagement, the gentle
man(?) thus admonished her: Il have
employed a Chinaman heretofore but
for fear of being boycotted in nv bust
ness, have decided 10 employ white
help. | desire you to understand that
you are a servant and that you are never
to indulge in any familiarity or touch
the piano. If, after doing a Washing you
are called upon to cook for and wait on
company, or anything of that sort, we
do not want to'hear any complaints of
your being tir;d; you must remember
you are Il servant and conduct yourself
as such" Among other things she was
not to be allowed to use the lat. cub.
1t is hard to realize that an American
man would thus address an American
woman, but they do, for this that |
have statec. is fact. But it is not hard
to realize that an American woman with
any sense of decency would rather
starve than be thus treated.
Here in California particularly, women
are put down to level with Cinnamon,
in fact, below them, for they do not get
as high wages and in general housework
are expected to sew, if they have any
spare time, or take care of children,
while he Of the celestial kingdom, when
he has leisure, may 60 off down town to
some opium joint and mix with the
sweet scented, cleanly members of his
race.
In some ways Cinnamon may be pre-
ferabe; now they don't care about a
bathtub. One to my knowledge used
milk pail in which to bathe his feet, an
other cut his toe-naiIs with the butcher
knife; no, they are not so fastidious as
American girls.
But Chinaman does not object to be-
ing bossed and girl does. When | say
"bossing," l do not mean telling them
what to do or how to do, in decent
manner: but the way employers have
of trying to impress upon their employees
that-"because you are compelled to
come into my kitchen and work for an
honest living and because | am able to
pay you with money that l have most
likely stolen, | am vastly superior to
you; you are poor; you are my servant; ;
you must obey my orders and you must
feel honored that condescend to speak
to you at all"
And still the learned writers of the
ladies' column in the Sunday papers la
ment the growing degeneracy of the
times in the fact that women teach and
clerk and sew and do anything or every
thing except housework. And still the
ministers of God preach Servants obey
your masters" and not word about
master treat your servants decently"
And still the girls seem to get further
aud further awav from the kitchens of
their "superiors."
l say, hurrah for the girls ANYHOW,
that they have sand enough and nerve
enough to maintain that their souls are
their own. ANNIE II. F. HASKELL.