The Goodland republic. [volume] (Goodland, Kan.) 1891-1907, 1892-01-08

assistant.
Hasn't showed up yet" he replied,
without raising his eyes from some
work. "Same old excuse, / s'pose,"
The foreman looked at the smudgy
little clock over.his desk.
ga full hour this timehe muttered.
"Confound that girl, she'll have to
walk the line if | can find somebody
to take her place after this rush.
HAS anybody seen TEMP" he called to
the girl workers busily setting type at
the cases farther down the room,
"Click, click. There was no reply,
and the bits OF metal lifted by the
def fingers OF the compositors fell in
to place in the sticks rapidly. Al
though it is understood in most COM
posing-rooms that answers will be
made to questions when they will
contain needed information, the
silence, as customary at such times,
annoyed the fretful interlocutor more
than the most vague reply possibly
would have done; he'flung himself
into the chair at his desk and
began inspection of a pile OF copy, re-
Aecting that all he could do at the
time would be to chide the delinquent
for hardness. Work in the estab-
lishment OF McGinnis & Buck was in
too much Of o rush to discharge any
body at present, just before Thanks
giving, when several OF the papers the
firm printed for publishing houses
were getting out special numbers and
they were working day and night.
Most OF the compositors working
that night we're girls. In fact, Nc
Ginnis q Buck employed only few
male printers, for the firm was addict
ed to paying as little as possible for
composition, and Typographical
Union No. 9 had not yet admitted
women to membership, and the best
printers to he had at less than scale
rates were girls. Twenty or thirty Of
them were perched on high stools
around the composing-room, not an
unpleasant sight, for many were pref.
ty and all of them were by far more
Intelligent than'most New York work
ing women. There were q few pallid
faces, to which the yellow gaslight gave
an uncanny look, a few racking coughs
were to be heard and few frivolous
giggles, but, all told, this hard
faced little foreman was proud
of the appearance and char
acter OF his co-workers. True, he
looked on them as so many machines,
to be valued entirely by the work they
did and it's cost. Some OF them had
worked under his direction for years,
but it would never occur to theman to
assist such were they to become desti-
tute, or even inquire after their health
were they tossing on beds OF sickness
away down in the darkness that pre-
cedea the dawn of that day when we all
meet as equals. He would recognize
his helpers on the street and commend
them for good work as freely as he
would commend them for carelessness
or ignorance, but it was o matter CT
business with Foreman Sutton. Praise
and censure he considered essential to
working the human machine, and in
making i part OF his employers bust
ness, still larger piece OF mechanism.
Slug Ten was one OF his best COM
positors, the foreman was ready to
admit, and for long time she had
been model employee, but for u
month or SO, in fact, since the Begin
ming OF the present rush of business,
Mr.. Sutton reflected that the COM
positor in question had been particu-
Iarly aggraVating in her conduct, and
press OF business had necessitated
work from 8 in the morning until g
in the evening, then from 8 p. m. I'M
til midnight-terrible hours, but not to
last long and OF course, they were paid
"by the thousand" for composition.
With the exception OF Slug Ten he had
been enabled to hold his force to the
same rigid observance OF the new
hours OF labor that he had enforced
in less busy intervals. Slug Ten had
been late almost every morning, and
had not yet been in the office in the
evening when slime" was called
hurriedly coming in an hour or SC
later with the excuse that the serious
illness OF her mother had detained
her. Discipline must be enforced
Sutton reflected, as the girl walked
briskly to his desk on the evening o.
which have been writing.
Slug Ten doubtless had another
name, but she had not heard it fol
many months, and it was doubtful i
anyone at McGinnis & Bucks, with
the exception of the foreman, knew
che patronymic by which she wa!
known to the outer world. The fore
mans eyes and face hardened as sht
approached.
IL am so sorry, Mr.. Sutton" thu
girl began, "but my mothers condi
ton was such that | could not hell
being late again. l ran all the way
from my car and did everything
could to keep from being 80 yer!
late, but I could not help it, +"
"rhe same excuse twice day yol
know, s-ah--Slug Ten. We mus
have Discipline here, and If am t.
take this excuse from you must d.
the same with everybody else"
The compositor tried to say some
thing more, but the foreman, distrust
ing his ability to hear her in patience
hastily arose and went to anothe
part OF tina room. The girl found
place for her coat and hat in the cup
board used for that purpose an,
quickly went to her case.
II, q littla uillaoa in tho nOuntr