Smyrna times., 1892-10-12
THE FACTORY LASSES
SKETCHES OF THEIR LIVES IN THE
GREAT LANCASHIRE MILLS.

/
GREAT LANCASHIRE MILLS
n made by the Oxford Factor,
10 owners for the Recreation or III.
. AmpIoyees-How the GirIs Dro.. -
n Conduct Themselves.
It HoI the recreation of their hands roiIIs
0 nave no provision whatever-as r,,1o
: 'hat Is. There are a few excen+iors
+ ana only few. Unique certain1,, oro
the Oxford mills at Asbton-,7rdo,. : -.
~. ~ connection with which the late NJ
: n Hush Mason founded little coIo,,,.
u Outuoor sports there is a LARGO rIo,.
5iouiio' with swings, etc, and ho1ri
t iHs green attached. When the vaa+Ia,
, 10 uhIavorabIe the hands can % +o +La
leCIeallon rooms. On the ground Aoo,.
u 'ueSe Is reading room liberallv e,,,,
pi9G win newspapers and DerioiicoIs
ana having a library Of zoo voIun,og
:, coHee room leads off it. and fro,,
lllaC again the baths are reached ~
STAIRS Is large lecture room fitted VIII
UesKs and with platform at tba e,,1
DUSIa Oh great men are on Dedae+,Is
round the walls. Scott and BDrns oro
ID a niche together, as is ftting and
near lheln are Homer, Sbal,es0ao,o
Dante and Milton. Michael ~.
IooAs at Raphael, Bright and Cobdo1, :
! Newton and Watt Franklin and w
I AlSton-au are there; and at in+e,,,oI.. l.
luere are also hung portraits of in, !
EenIorS and improvers of cotton mo \
chlhery. In connection with these roo,,,. .
'i-eIe IS a good brass band. Sewino arJ d
o'ner classes, too, are held, while d1rin,, =
tHe winter months concerts and Ioc !,
lures are Of frequent occurrence Of u
an TINS 1t should be noted NTossrs u
Iholnas Mason & Son defrav tbe ev. j,
penses. 'i0 eA- 81
From other portions of the district ,,.o o.
take the following. The sacro+o.+, ''o IL
cotton operative spinners' associafior ~ :" 81
stated to have said: % OF
- any girl who wants work can have - -
II III the mills. That labor market is - -
never overstocked. Atthe present time ~ ~
particularly in the spinning department g
some llrms are shorthanded Nowadavs -
many girls IN Manchester do not care H.
80 INTO the mills; they would rather
WORK IN the warehouses and shoDs."
1here has been an Improvement in eol
tI!h Ihe lou OF the factory workers. asked " "
the interviewer. '''A0U RI
Yes, replied the secretary. sin every IrO
way; wages are higher, hours shorter an l
0ur, mind you, hands have to yvorlr
harder while they are at it, because tba Cru
Machinery runs faster and tbev have zee
o look after more of it. WHY. in NV -oI
'oung days a weaver tended only two C Cou
ooms, now she tends four" 9on
1hrostIe spinners, the writer adds ION
work with as little clothing as possible mig
no generally in their bare feet. tbouob
ONE wear slippers. Cardroom hands lou
year straight pinafOres, cut awav at +ba ~. mn
eek and with short sleeves. The die Splc
nctlve parts Of the mill girls dress aro IesS
logs on the feet and a small shawl nleH
they are calIed-on tbe 'HeI
loulders. "a 'Io
Weavers, though there is nothing na-
, distinguished from o+%ar t%n seneLalIy sty at IL
ris' They have a personal trade mari, aSSel
their front teeth are often bad and the
sides many of them have at times = uoWl
cullar gesture. Drawing in the braa+l, writ
suck weft through a shuttle cansos 1;3O
g teeth to decay. The mannerisn1 is mill
nllarly explained, 4oc
In q weaving shed tbe ,oiso - 5o.e. are
2. You cannot hon. ,,oI,,. = Ne''teli- dude
the weavers attract one anotber,s Of men
ltion bv n sbrill g sUbooI, a-S'5 "'- clerk
rse by means Of signs and by watch ocio(
so proficient in Iabo,,1a 81 tney Phila
follow private conversation anv-
ere II they can see the speakers faces
Is circumstance explains a common Nrt
ervation that is otherwise onia-r,ati ,lQii by IL
Mind what tha'rt sayin'" one VINO
SIP Will remark to another, glancing caIieo
plciously at the object of their taIk IN the
Os wayver." Willie
ONE mill GIRLS nevo,. do 49,. ,.--- enc
rl1; their ignorance in Ivbiot y b l-ous9- fed a
female education is oo-nao--aII - sli4In the m
)ssal. Hundreds cannot make md WI
p or n ME for +be Efo oe tIle..o =" % Puu "Be,
writer has heard of a lass putting n geC INC
bit IN a dish whole and making n ArlOul
st for it with suet. There are factory g,
on the other hand-and these are 90
the maJorlty-who take their full with n
e OF cleaning, cookery, needlework. bottar1
5 rule, too, the lasses are in every ,nod;+il
respectable. When factory lass sunnlv;
her sweetheart go off on a trim or ,,IaI. ~
week at Blackpool or Southportor daiI5
Isle of Man, as often as not she paws cbaro'o5
expenses. She it is who in due course e,,a-So1,
the furniture-aye, and perhaps %
ing and all the rest. Whether she
S.''l.u CAV ~ IlllS OF hot' the four "Ethe
weaver need never remain single. t,ro D.,
ng factory girls she corresponds to tor 90 -
eiress of ordinary life, and as such ,oiso-aIl mi
10 difficulty in obtaining husband. I1 sTbo+ at
hen otfsprings become old enough bor 60
are sent to the mill, as their parents tal-os ON ~
before them. The typical Lanca- a man y
woman does not like the idea of
aiming higher. AS they soon re- t
good wages their parents are rap An ell
'laced in comfortable circumstances only wal
re comfortable than they ever knew extensive
ps. This state is the factory oper- generally
! summum bonum-the position gine. 1t
ID which he or she very rarely goes. limited
sells Journal. the late {
---- ton the
He Was q Founder. Mt n rre