The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1894-03-08
READS TO WORKMEN
THE NOVEL OCCUPATION FOLLOWED
BY A NEW YORK MAN.

ehis TOWN employ Il man to read to Thorn
wmle they arc ut work. In no other in.
dustry is this thing done, though it
would seem that other workers "by tho
piece" could initiate tho Cubans to adj
vantage. Not only do they keep in touch
with all tho news, but it keeps them
prom talking, and there isn't a minute
OF their time wasted.
The Cubans arc great takers, and
TINS IS what probably started the GUS
tom In the cigar factories of Havana.
When tho men were brought to this
country to make their cigars in Key
West and tho lower part of New York
city, they wanted reader moro than
ever. They are very bright, intelligent
fellows, these Cubans, and they take
deep interest in the news of tho world
as we'll as the latest Intelligence from
their own little island. They all sub
scribe to fund to pay thoir reader, and
they work all the harder for keeping
their mouths closed and their minds
employed us they roll the tobacco.
Julian Barreda is probably the most
popular of the young men who earn
good living by amusing and instructing
the cigar makers. He is q native of
Porto Rico, where he learned the Eng
llsh language as we'll as great many
other things. He has had college ed
ucation and can translate the English
and American newspapers into Latin
and Greek rs easily as in Spanish.
He is employed just now in two fac
tories, that of Lozano, Pendas g. Co.,
at 200 Pearl street, and another one
at William and Plat streets. When
Barreda first came to this country,
no could not speak the language very
well, though ho knew it theoretically
and could read and writo it. Ho is a
skilled electrician, but could get moth
ing to do in his limo and SO went to ad-
dressing envelopes at SD. so week.
There was vacancy in ono Of tho Gu
ban cigar factories after awhile, and by
that time Barreda had mastered the
speech of this country.
Ho walked into the factory one day,
and mounting the table which served as
rostrum for tho reader no made a lit
tie speech to tho men, tho purport of
which was that no thought he would
make good reader for them.
They told him to go ahead and show
what he could do. Ho pulled a paper
out Of his pocket and began reading a
tariff editorial to them. They demand
cd moro when he had finished the cdi-
torlal, and he read to them for an hour,
Transmitting tho cable news, the sensa-
tions OF the day and the Washington
dispatches into their native Spanish.
The trial was satisfactory, and he was
engaged at once for four hours day.
There were 80 Cubans in the factory at
that time, and each agreed to give him
20 cents week. Then Barrela made
an arrangement on the same terms with
another factory, which employed 40
men. and he was in receipt of good in
come at once.
He reads for l - hours at each factory
i'll the morning and for 2la hours in the
afternoon. He has his evenings to him
self, but he occupies a couple of hours
then in reading the afternoon papers to
familiarize himself with tho late news,
and so his day is busy one.
" 1t is not SO easya task as one might
suppose, said Barreda to u reporter.
The men are very critical, and if the
matter is dull or unintcresting they do
not hesitate to shout out and demand a
change. They are especially interested
In the foreign news. Then they want
tho general news and anything sensa-
tlona in tho city nows. They like scan
DIAL a divorce case or anything on that
order just suits them. AS fast as the
Cuban papers arrive by mail get them
and read them. and the Spanish papers
published i'll the city contain a great
deal that tho men want to hear.
4" In the afternoon l read to them out
OF some book. Just now | am reading
Gil Bias in one shop and Il Spanish
novel called The Two Sisters in the
other When have finished novel, 1
select half Il dozen others that think
will suit them and read them list of
titles. Then they vote on which one
shall begin
Are they good listcners:'
The best in the world They are
working all the time, and they are anx-
ious not to miss word. They work
faster when some ono is reading, and
they realize that if they ever get to talk
ing together their bill Mt the end of the
week will DO just SO much less. They
are nearly all revolutionists, you know,
and there is great chance for argument
among them, because they all belong to
different factions.
II have to DO very careful in reading
the Cuban papers and those published
In Spanish in this city that 1 do not
miss an editorial representing some par
ticular shade of opinion. No matter how
radical it is, it is sure to have some adj
herent and some sympathizcr in the
shop
Barreda has learned to be q yery dis