Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1889-11-28
HEALTH AMONG The HOPS.
A brooklyn Young woman's Ciiatty stor!
of Her Health Trip.

of Her Health Trip
"I have just returned from the hop
fields" she said, and she looked as though
all the good of the hops and none of their
injurious qualities had been absorbed
into her system, for her face was bright
and rosy, her step elastic and her man
ner cheerful. She was not at all like the
fragile young lady of eight months ago,
whose friends in Brooklyn hardly ex-
pected to see her alive in November.
"For a whole month";" she continued,
81 have lived on farm near Coopers-
town, N. Y, and picked hops almost
from dawn to dusk every day except
Sundays. The farmer was glad to hire
mo for my board and lodging. Four
other girls and two young men were en-
gagged on the same terms. We were all
more or less acquainted with each other
in Brooklyn, so it was not exactly like
going alone among strangers.
"Of course it would have seemed
great deal more refined if we had paid
the farmer for the privilege of picking
his hops, but, had we done so, the OBJ
| ject for which we isolated ourselves
so far from home would not have
been achieved. He would never have
had the moral courage to make his
| guests and patrons work against their
wills. AS matters were arranged, he
left great deal to his wife, and, l can
tell you, she showed us very little con-
sideration. She was determined to get
the full value of her milk and weak tea,.
and was not disposed to give us her fat
pork a. beans without fair equiva-
lent, or to allow us to eat the corn bread
of idleness. She called us every morn
ing at daybreak, and she was not to be
denied. We had to walk three-quarters
of mile to the hop fields, and it was
necessary, she said, for us to be astir
early.
"We did not mind this much on warm
mornings. but when the breath of frost
was on the atmosphere it was dreadful
thing to be told to get up from our not
too comfortable beds, and to know that
we had no alternative but to obey. How
ever, it was not so bad when we were
once up, and when the sun got well up,
too, we grew quite cheerful, for the morn
ing air in the northern part Of the state is
very bracing. 1t was like bathing at Co.
ney Island on chilly day. After the first
dip the agony is over. But washing in
the icy spring water was Il terrible
ordeal. Once l asked the farmers wife
to let me have little warm water in my
bedroom, but the proposition, which she
declined frigidly, so shocked her that
was afraid she would punish me by CIV
ing me no breakfast; but she only marked
her displeasure by confining me to three
slices of corn bread, which was bad
enough, for my appetite at that time
had grown out of all ladylike proper
tions, and I usually consumed five Slices
Zone young man, whose hair and
mustache were of a beautiful seal brown
color, said that he would allow his beard
to grow rather than shave with cold wa
ter; but we were all amazed to see the
bristles on his cheeks and chin coming
out quite red. He was very much NOR
tilted, and when the other young fellow
laughed at him, and lectured him about
, the evils of forgetfulness, he packed up
. his traps and went away two weeks be-
fore the farmers hops had all been har-
vested.
"Of course we had some rights that
we always maintained. We insisted on
not being separated from each other in
, the hop fields, and we ate our lunch to-
gether among the vines. 1t was very
pleasant, for we could sing songs and
talk and tell stories, which we should
, not have cared to do if we had been
! obliged to work side by side with the
. paid laborers, many of whom were
.. tramps, pure and simple.
, ''To them the farmer used language
that seemed to me to be sometimes un.
, necessarily emphatic. To us he spoke
! more politely, buG this was the only dis.
tinction he made. He was as careful in
, seeing that we turned in our full COM
, plement of hops every evening as he was
, to get the value of his money from the
men and women to whom he paid theil
| wages at the end of each day.
, "Ihe fare at meals was, of course, ex
ecrable, but hunger is good sauce, anG
we all ate heartily. Next season shal
: try to make up party of delicate young
| ladies', and take them to the hop fields
I in search of health. l shall lay in {
, stock of biscuits and canned provisions
) to assuage my hunger in my bedroom Oh
, among the vines, SO that the farmers
wife will not have reason to regard mt
/ with strong reproachful eye at meals
, as though she thought worked harder
/ at the table than in the field. New
York Sun.
Signs of a Hard Winter.
: TI,o o-o,, of |, ,,,,k, /,