Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1895-05-09
Hoods SarsapariIIa
Makes Pure Blood
WOMEN WAGE FARMERS.
Range of Their Pay and Opportuni
ties Offered to Them.

| hange OF 1helr ray and Opportuni-
ties Offered to Them.
New Yorh Sun: Several large dry
goods retailers recently testified be.
fore committee of the assembly that
some girls and women in their en-
ployment earned from 81 to $14 a
week. Had the investigation been
more thorough, doubtless it would
have shown that women and girls In
the business life of this town earned
as little as $50 and as much as $4,000
year. The range of women's earn
ings is hardly so great as that of
mems, but it is great though the aver
age seems exceedingly small to any
one with moderately high standard of
comfort. The Young Women'S Chris
tian association of Brooklyn found
some years ago that the shop women
Of that city earned on an average but
81 week; that a girl sometimes had
scarcely any other decent garment
than the gown she wore to business;
! that many were almost without under
! clothing, and that some, when i'll, had
not so much as nightgown to go
to bed in. Eleven of these girls We're
i found living together in one not very
| large room, where they cooked, ate
and slept. 1t was also found that
these and other women who came to
the notice of the association often had
little or no housewifely knowledge or
skill, and that especially their ignor-
ance of needlework would have made
1t impossible for them to earn the
miserable wages of the least skilled
professional needlewomen.
Women and girls employed as house
servants in this city and its suburbs
earn from SIS to $40 Il month. Per-
haps the average wages Of fairly
skilled house servant is below SO
a month. 1t is certainly below S14.
In other words. the poorest paid
house servants have nearly 500 n
year above board and lodging. the
best paid more than $3.50 above. and
the average perhaps $50 above. Their
material condition is on the average
much better than that Of the shop
girls. But of shop girls many are too
proud to be servants. AMI others are so
ignorant Of housew ifely arts that they
could not find place save ut the
lowest rate of wages and in families
where the work would be slavish, the
lodging saualid and the food poor.
In other occupations where competi-
ton is open TO women and the women
themselves make no such objection
to the work as they do to that of
house servants, the pay on the aver
age is probably not much better than
that Of the shop girls. There are a
hundred and one light trades employ
irg many thousands of girls and
women. In many of these a trial of
two weeks enables a girl of fair in
telligence to earn average wages. In
others 4 manual education in the shop
Of year or more is necessary. The
weekly pay of skilled workwomen in
such trades is above the average of
shop wonien's wages. but in many
such trades the women are employed
only part Of the year. Some women
learn two or more trades, and manage
to be busy most of the time.
Any one that has watched the con-
duct of shop girls easily understands
the wide range Of wages. Whatever
the cause that makes the average
low, the relatively high wages OF some
and low wages of others are owing
to differences in knowledge, skill, and
attention to duty. Good speech, neat
attire. agreeable manners. trim tig-
IRE. and d pretty face all help glll
to place and to wages above the
lowest. These and other qualities
differ greatly i'm degree in different
shops Al shopwomen Ia New York
aro dcceutly clad. The cash girls at
some 1T the cheap shops. biz ana lite,
are sometimes a bit dingy. but they
may he earning only 500 year and
contributing most of 1t 10 the com,
mon fund nj home. The difference ~
style ana manner between the salea-
women of the cheaper shops and
those In the great shops that still hold j
themselves above the bargain counter
is an interesting subject Of study
The purchaser that drops into one q
the first mentioned shops before tie
gossip Of the day has been completely
exchanged is likely to be treated to-
curious revelations, But the tone and
manner differ in different places.
Every women that does much shop
ping comes ID realize that the best u
the shop women have surprisingly
good manners, speech. and address,
and are frequently responsive TO any
show Of womarly good will. sympathy,
ana understanding. 'Admaribly we'll
dressed and graceful women are en-
Moved III some of thc millinery houses,
and ono NEW YORK women IS con-
stan.. threatening 70 invite her dresa-