Daily tobacco leaf-chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1890-1895, 1890-05-26
THE EMBROIDERED.

An Occupation in Which Women Work
from Ten to Fifteen Hours for so Cents.
"Time money!" said the pale faced wo-
man, as she shook the many colored ends
of floss silk from the white apron she had
taken off preparatory to DOMINIC her hat
and sacque. "Well, my time don't amount
to much money-not more than five cents
an hour, no matter how steady work; and
that don't take in the hour spend in going
and coming between here and the shop.
was six hours working this [unrolling
piece of cotton velvet that lay on the table,,
and all I'll get for it will be thirty cents,
and maybe a little jawing because the
stitches amt so near together as they might
be on that rose in the corner, though that
amt my fault, as the girl who deals out the
materials gave me scant supply of pink
silk. A double carnation you say it isY
Well, l call all the pink flowers roses it
don't matter to me what they are, Just so
they are made like them in the patter
you needn't count the flower clusters;
| can tell you how many they are-just two
dozen. One dozen pair of slippers will be
cut out of this velvet, and though they will
DO sold cheap, being cotton, you may be
sure there will be money made ON them,
and lots of it. You see the embroidery on
one pair comes only to q little over one
penny, and the material is bought whole
sale. No, these amt the only kind of slip
pers embroider. There's them get fifty
cents a dozen for They are of a better
quality of velvet, and the flowers has to
have more pains taken with them. A
dozen pair of that kind will keep me busy
from half-past in the morning till in the
evening, allowing me half an hour for
lunch. The best kind-them l get
seventy-flve cents a dozen for are
worked on silk velvet, and to get
dozen of them finished in day
| have to begin as soon as / can sec in
the morning, and keep at 'em till 10 o'clock
at night. Often, though, don't get 'em
done because the girl don't give me enough
of one kind of silk and l have to lose an
hour by going back for it. Hope scold
her wellY Why, bless you'll if say word
to her she only gives me sass. She will
say waste the silk; and she has even in
simulated that hook it for my own use
just as if l had the time to make fancy pin
cushions or any of them sort of things
can never get used to the impudence of
these young girls who are all bangs and
boot heels. You Just ought to hear this
VhN bNAA IA SihS III NOAA PIcsSCNJ
though they have got pressers in the shop,
and if the cook here don't happen to be in
a good humor when go into the kitchen
she is sure not to have any irons hot.
mo, there amt no money to speak of in
embroidery of this kind That the sisters
have to do on altar clothes and such things
Is different, and good worker can earn
$40 week at it. But all that is given to
hat 10, h. t,,A L. II
and learned to do the best kind Of work;
what they do is what might be called skilled
labor, / learned in one morning how to do
this kind and if was to tell madame to-
day that l wouldn't do no more she would
only be at the trouble Of putting an adver-
tisement in to-morrow's paper; that would
bring her all the embroiderers she wanted
and lot more girls who live at home, and
would like to make that sort of work an
excuse to get off from washing dishes and
ironing clothes.
"Why do make this my profession
Myl do you suppose I'd work at this reg
lar, year in and year out? I'm only doing
it now to keep from getting into debt for
my board while am out of place. I've
got my name down at an agency, and
made 'em understand there just what /
want. Folks say am a patient woman,
and am looking out for work that can't
be done by nobody but a patient woman
nursing fractions invalid that amt sick
enough to require trained nurse, or look
ing after weak minded child that's too
much for one of the sort of girls that's
usually engaged to mind children. A place
of that kind will turn up sooner or later
sooner, hope, as l am tired to death of
these roses, or double carnations, or what
ever you may call 'em. New York Trib-
ma