Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1890-07-30
HARD-WORKED CLERKS.
Female Toilers In the Chicago Pen
sion Office.

Uncle Sans female clerks in tie
Chicago Pension Office have good
cause TO dread the quarterly payday
which confronts them just four times
too often every year, says the Chicago
Herald. From 7.30 o'clock in the
morning until the same hour in the
evening these Industrious toilerS in the
Government vineyard have scarcely a
minutes rest from their labors, and for
several days following the beginning of
each quarter they are the hardest
workers in the custom-houSe building.
The Pension Office at Chicago prior 70
one of these occasions resembles a great
beehive, yet very quiet one. At 1.3u
In the morning the interior already pre-
sents an animated appearances; the
Semi-darkneSS of the room Is relieved
by electric lights that glimmer like
stars above the various desks, yet fail
to relieve the gloom of the large apart.
ment- Groups of girls are flirting
about in the passages between the
desks and some have started on their
long days labor, from the unskilled
who are sort ng papers and placing t EN-
In pigeon-holes TO the pretty yong
black-haired clerk facing the door, who
is already fathoms deep in figures.
y busy little woman with a supply
Tag, containing pens, blotters and
INK, passes from desk to desk, re-
plenishing the clerks with material
with which to work and later return
ing with large pile of vouchers from
which to copy addresses on the eco
nomical br wn envelopes which Uncle
sam furnishes to his large family for
official use. If there were any inclina.
ton TO gossip among the scores of fe-
male clerks Ii would soon be nipped in
the bud by the head clerk, who
watches his brood very closely. The
nOyitiate who in her innocence begins q
| conversation with her vis-a-vis, is sud.
denly aware Of a warning glance bent
upon her, and look ng up she notes q
| frown that seems strangely out OF
place upon face modelled from one oi
natures jolliest patterns. 4 phren'
OlOgist wOu d be surprised at this ap.
! parent paradox, for on that round head
! the bump of combativeness Is almost
! invisible. But life in this miniature
/ West Point has forced an unnatural sem
| blance OF sternness upon the ''cap
tain's" features, and during lusines:
hours his natural social tendencies art
| wholly obScured.
The clerks engaged in addressing the
pension envelopes encounter some yer,
queer names while copying addresse:
/ from ihe vouchers. As the right hon
/ orable commissioner at Washington ab
hurs abbreyiatious every name must bt
written out i'll full-there are no labor
] saving devices in the pension depart
/ ment. So the nimble fingers form sucl
/ queer cognomens as NebuchadDeZzal
~.
! das MauschrauSch. Jane Turnipseed
Ulysses Grant, Scheller de Bou,, Nil:
| q. Utter, or more melancholy yet
/ Hyppelite Gravelot, and a score o.
! others equally peculiar and outlandish
! When the great Lard playfully asked
What in a name?'' he was not &C
| quainted with many female pension
clerks, OF they might have given bin
several pointers upon tins much-Quotet
/ Interrogation.
These girls by the way, are nearly
all well educated and refined in mau
ner, but, as Mrs. Darlington would say
I somewhat ''rejoosted' in cIrcuur
| stances. They are better grade thai
the average clerk, and the majority
have eagerly seized these positions a
! Offering more respectability than othe
! work within their reach. Four out o.
five are dressed IN black, which som5e
hue tells It's own story. 1t can not be sail
that they are contented with their lot
for this is scarcely true, yet they know
If they fail out of the ranks there al.
/ plenty who stand ready u take theI
| places. So they steadily ply their pen
and occasionally heave a sigh of Tegre
as they see the army of ignorant mel
III the Offices across the hall who ar
smoking in the corridors and leerin,
al the girls as they pass.