Smyrna times., 1893-12-06
AN OPERATIVES LIFE
A VISIT TO THE HOME OF A FALL
RIVER MILL EMPLOYEE.

People Who Marry Young and Find Them
selves In Debt In Few Years-How the
Wife Helps Her Husband to Add to the
Family Income-The Children.
Being in Fall River the other day, I
sought some facts concerning the opera
tives. Fortune brought me into the
home of what proved to be a rather in
telligent one. 1t was Saturday after
noon, and as the mills close at noon the
whole family, including the father, was
at home. The "hOme" was a tenement
in large double house, where three
other families besides the one inter
viewed were living. 1t was in the rear
of pOpulOus street which is the home
of large number of the more thrifty
and sober operatives. This particular
tenement consisted of a large room in
the center, where the stove was placed
and where the cooking was done.
Around this room three bedrooms and a
slnkroom were grouped. The furniture
was better than one might expect to see.
though 1t was by no means luxurious.
Entering into conversation with the
man, found that he had formerly at
tended the English church while in Eng
land and that for some time after com
ing to this country he had been quite in
terested in church work. In token of his
interest, l learned, one of his children
bore the name of a clergyman of the
Episcopal church. At the time of nv
visit, however, he said that he was not
attending church at all, partly because
he could not buy clothes with which to
make a respectable appearances at church
and partly because he felt that the clergy
were inclined to sidewith the mill owner
as against the mill operative
His wife, rs women usually are. was
more hopeful and content and explained
that she thought they could get along
very well. She was quite willing to
work and had done so, somewhat against
her husbands protest-a protest, how
ever, which was evidently hushed by the
necessity Of the case. In order to work
this good woman was obliged to hire
some one to care for her baby and to let
the other three ''shift for themselves.
chiefly in the street."
The longer l talked with these people
the more interested 1 became, and the
more confidence was mutually manifest,
ed. 1t seemed to me that three or four
things were to be noted:
Neither of them had saved up their
earnings as they might have done pre-
vlous to their marriage. True, in this
respect they were like ninety-nine hun
dredths of other young people, whatever
their work or station in life.
This family was at that stage where
there was but one old enough to work
unless the wife did precisely as this wife
did a part of the time. e., hire some
one to care for her baby while she went
out to work. A few years later and the
children, who may go into the mills at
IA, will be able to earn enough to make
the family entirely comfortable. In
deed many such families as this one
promises to be in the course Of a few
years can save enough from their earn
ings to buy home for themselves after
awhile.
1t seemed to me that it would be-
quite practical thing for this family to
combine with sther families and start a
kind of kindergarten, where not only
the baby, but all the children under
public school age might be cared for at
far less expense than was now paid for
''minding the baby
Such movement as this would
doubtless not only meet with the hearty
and practical support of well meaning
people in general, but it would be sup
ported by the officials of the mills. I
was especially pleased to learn that
many of the corporations of these Fall
River mills support a bed in the local
hospital for the free use of their opera
tlves. The kindergarten would be a
along the same line.
twill be quite q practical thing to give
some statistics of the earnings Of this
family for the week previous. Those of |
the man had been So -; those of the wife
81. Deduct from this total $3.50 for
'minding the baby" and $14.22 is left
as the net income of the household. For |
rent they pay $3.50 per month, and a
barrel of flour lasted seven weeks.
The wife explained that she was only
working ''for spell to help them out Of |
debt" Of course to do this all the house.
work must be done after returning tired
from the mill at night, when both of
them must work late and early in the
morning before going to the mill. AS
the mills start at about half past 6 in the
morning it will be seen that very early
rising is necessary.
Nor IS this all. 1t makes life a tread
mill with no evenings for recreation.
Besides the wife has no time for her
needle, and the appearance of the chill
iren must greatly suffer. The great re-
ief is found in the fact that, by the most
'rugal living and by the strictest econ
1my, this wife was not compelled to
work in the mill all the time. Still it
seemed about impossible for the family:
With the strictest economy and sobrietv.
o do better than was being done until
he 'boys get big enough to work"
That visit enlightened my understand
ng, broadened my view and deepened my
While there are many Of
he operatives who, like us all, live far
below their privileges, still if many of
Is could study life from their view point
'ur sympathies for the broadest brother
lood would be deepened. Boston Com