Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1896-06-06

Highest Of all in Leayening Power-Laet u Govt Report
R3%:A!! BBsking
ABSOLUTELY PURE
ABSOLUTELY PURE

Sible employment I'm dreSSma king or sim
ilar work for themselves and families Nor
only. then, in this home dressruakiuc Il,
w" have a Legitimate and economically
profitable way of spending labor. but for
many women ii furnishes the only method
hE winch they can even approach that
s"If-respectiER independence that comes
ncm earning your own living.
The tpportionmcnt of Labor
As - Homework generally. I think Madam
Pry is entirely wrong in suppasinE that the
way in which it will be ultimately s!mpli-
fed and improved Is through more extern
sirc.y hiring it done. So long as for 81. which
Means at Madam Pry's So week about
one days labor for her she can get some
poor housemaid to work for six or seven
days, she will take 10 particular trouble
to have her housemaid's labor economically
spent But that she can afford 81 out Of
her weekly $50 fer the housemaid means
that she can afford Just such proportion:
OF time each week that 81 represents IL
getting that particular work done. SuI.
pC Sc, instead Of hiring som" one and giving
TINS tine indirectly. through the mon "
carried in ii, she actually gives this tina
IN her own labor. IL is pain :hat she viii
be obliged to do her housemali's one wcek's
work IN one day, or each days work in one
satin or ore-seyenth OF d day. Then Z, via
be that she Will feel the necessity for labor
saving devices. If she can't fiud what sh,
wants in the market ara is clever enough
l. %
things must be done quickly that causes
them TO be so done. Not until women who
feel that their time has some yal. Cor
othrr things besides homework. and every
woman 10 be worthy the name should recoE-
nlZe that her time has such value II il be
but for sitting still and thinklng-not until
Su'h women go 10 work Themselves will
they understand the necessity Of ringing
down THIS proportion of time in each family
d"NOt"i to such labor. a prapariDg food
to much less than onc-half at which Ell
Ward Atk:nSpn puts ii. But what the h1use-
k"rl'"r can do in one hour each lay tho
houS"ina.d caa DO also in one hour. il she
be competent. She VIII have time too then
Tor other things. But al this point since
tiit Work VIII nave become 50 trif.ng. COM
pafauNeIy, We Viii probably all prefer to
get along without hired help altogether In
my Utopia, Ike Madam Prv'S every one
mas ms speciality but the specially Of none
Is 10 come into other peoples houses a-l
90 me work which belongs dis;iartively
TO the family living there a. washing his
lace belongs to each Individual
\ Limit To Speciality Work.
There is altogether d good deal OF non
sense in this talk about the inroupetart
Jack of all trades and The advantages of
deNoung ourselves TO one occupation. There
is limit 20 what God allows US 10 do in
that way. So many hoGrs a day, five per-
haps, six or seven, is as much as II is
rsychologically possible for most people to
employ prohtah!y at one thing As tor The
Test OF the time, brcadmakng NAV furnish
Us with quite As good exercise as tossing
b"anbags. ami making beds compares not
1hf+Eordb!y with swinging Indian clubs be-
sides being much more rational. 1t l. mis-
very much misunderstood and exaggerated
division OF labor and Specialization 81 en-
"igy that has brought along with The gen
era! progress Of civilization the Necessity
Tor arilhcIal unmedning gymnastics to
,ounterdct its evil effects
Dear Httlc-girl-w no ma - your-own-shirt-
waist, the question of home sewing Is A
serious one. rs Ma lam Pry tells you; Tut
don't swallow that pretty quotation from
Ruskin whole and be made sick by H. There
Is as much of false economies IN thai as IN
the weakest varorirgs OF Madam Pry's
critics. l wish / had time to explain il all
TO you, though, to he sure. except for tie
iact taat The quotation Is put just where il
is. l should say ii had nothing to do with
the case.
Now, Madam Pry ] should advise Won 10
decide Tor yourself whether you want to do
your own dreSsnaking or not. but don't
interfere with other people who presumably
know good deal more about what is basf
Tor them than you do If. because / 50 beg
leave to differ from you. II will give Won
any satisfaction 10 call me an old maid or A
Houentot, or wonder if ! have anv brains
or use any Of your favorite sling-a-stoua-
and-rua-away epitkets, why. go to work and
DO il. / shall merely continue TO stand
where L stand alrea ~. in my homemade
dress. and look you in the face and smile