Daily Yellowstone journal., 1891-08-11


bors Tor DefenseIess Women.
iCopyrgh,. ls9l. oy Edgar L. Wakeman.I
WIGAN England July 2s.-The "Pit
Brow Lasses' Of England and Wales are
about G.UJO in number. They are the girls
and women o. all ages who are employed
about tLe "hroyvs" or mouths Of British
coal ana iron mines.
In former times women were employed
below grass" in the English mines, and it
IL scarcely fifty years since, in 1912, all
female labor in the underground collieries
was put an end 70, almost solely by the ef-
forts Of the late Lord Ashley. Wholesome
restrictions upon Juvenile labor in mines
were also imposed year later. But pre-
vious to that time, ever since English coal,
iron and tin were first mined, the labor Of
women was utilized in a manner revolving
and horrible beyond description. The pro
hibition Of female labor in mines was
therefore a wonderful revolution. In Ian
cashire Yorkshire and Wales IL was es-
pecially 30 Here thousands Of girls had
found employment in the pits. Their chief
labor was a. drawers and "thrutchers" for
the colliers who cut or dug the coal. g
These female workers were chiefly girls
from twelve TO twenty years Of age, and
their work Of drawing. OF ''hurrying" as it
b called in Yorkshire, then consisted in
dragging the coal in boxes on sledges or In
trucks on wheels from the 'stalr' where
the collier was at work TO the shaft of the
| pit. Often the miners would be cutting
the coal. as is now frequently the case, in a
place not two feet in height. and from one
to two miles from the only outlet 70 the
world above. Through pitch black pas
sages, too low TO permit Of their standing
upright. and up and down steep inclines
they were compelled to crawl, pulling the
heavy loads after them or "thrutching''-
that is, pushing-them from behind Ere
| quently two or three children were har-
messed together 70 thus pull one OF more
loaded trucks. Leather belts were put
around their waists, and then the little
ones were fastened together by a chain
passing between their legs from one belt TO
4 another. when the children clawed, scram-
bled and tugged along on their hands and
toes after the manner Of four footed ami
mails
The infamous treatment Of women ia
these mines is Only known 20 their maker.
/ The exposure Of but the faintest part Of
I all this wrong brought instant legal pro
hibition under the gravest penalties.
But there was n large number OF women
left IN every oolliery region who clutchen
/ az any manner Of labor that would sustain
/ life A few were already working with
men and lads at the pit brows. Gradually
nearly all Of this work, such as dumping
the trucks from the cage" in which they
I are drought TO surface" from the bottom
OF the mine shaft. screening the coal and
sorting out the slate and stone. loading the
coal wagons with the coal ready for the
market. and carrying the coal dust 10 the
ovens where IL is transformed into coke
came 20 the lot of women. Theoretically
the collier opposed il at the public house
and in meetings Of his union. Practically,
he secretly supported il, for his brother
might have been killed In an explosion,
and the wife or daughter at the pit brow
took up the fight for bread where death
had checked il. and his own arm or leg
might be picked of some day In the ma
chinery, and his own mother or wife
could spring 70 the spade or screen and do
q mans labor for half mans wage.
50 for a name for them all. though many
were lasses no longer, and have seen wO-
men OF fifty and sixty years working MIN
bly, at the screens. they came 70 be known as
~Pit Brow LAsses," and in time got nearly
all the pit mouth labor into their dexterous
hands. But, few years ago, mutterings
were heard In those districts like North
umberland and Durham. where no women
Il
meant, these fellows who had all the labor
themselves, said, the impoverishment Of
that maay men and often that many fam
lilies. Then came miners conference Al
BirminghAm. IN January Of 1855. and Z
resolution there passed that women should
not be allowed 20 work about the mines
was covertly inserted as a clause in the
coal mines regulation amendment bill,
which came up for debate In the house oi
commons in March. l6e6
This was followed BY broadsides against
women's pit brow labor In The Miners
, Journal and other influential trades pa
pers. As well As IN horrifying leader in the
London Lancet. Then a vast army Of fe-
male reform champions. headed by Emily
Faithful, who afterward confessed her
error In the matter. began writing 70 ths
press, writing 20 members OF parliament
and writing 10 anybody else who would
assist in advertising their interest in ths
matter, much after the manner Of our owl
noble phalanx Of the shrieking sisterhood
and for a time II seemed that the poor pit
brow lasses, a. the bill was to be acted
on the following May. would be given shori
shrift az the mines.
The WHY trade unionists who were can
nily using the various senrimentalists o.
England IN order 70 merely give 5000 meT
the places % Be maflb vacant by 6.0o0 WON
en-, very shrewdly put forward the unan
swerable proposition, where the pit brow
lasses were unknown and had no one 4
speak for them. that their occnpation wa
"unsexing.T that Il was 80 laborious as q
greatly shorten human life, thar il led q
immortality In its sodden. machinelike mix
ing Of men and women; that the dress o
trousers and short petticoats was indelicat'
and improper, and that idle and viciou
habits were engendered in the husbands o
women 50 employed. The whole countrl
was astonished and horrifed az the discoV
cry Of this new blot on English civili1a
ton. Il accordingly arose unanimousl'
with the sponge, As it were, Of government
fnterference in its hand 70 wipe il out.
Then one lone woman also arose. hi
one lone woman almost unaided defeate'
the entire efforts Of the entire trades union
Of England. conquered the opposition o
indifference Of two home secretaries
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