The evening times., 1896-02-10

1
| or seventy-flve
rhe busy clatter of these machines 1,
perpetual, the whirr of the ma chinery which
keeps them going mingles with the rise and
rail- OF the stitching, which stops at one
machine only to be carried on by the next
as the women turn and manage their work
CHAIRS FOR THE SEWERS.
In the lower end of the room are rows
and rows of the low chairs on which the
hand sewers sit. Along the side of the
room are the piles OF bags, which are con-
stantiy being brought up on the elevator
on trucks and whiehEare haEdied by men,
who carry tue sacks OF work TO the various
women who call out to them as they need 1t.
Along the oppOs1e Side OF the room eX-
tends the dressing rooms, wash rooms and
50 on. The women, who are bent most in
dustriously over their work, all wear
calico gowns OF some kind, huge aprons ard
paper caps To- keep the dust from their hair.
The picture is absolutely in grays and
blacks, and Is most drtary one to the un-
accustomed eye. Then, too, the feverish
Intensity of the women who are working
acts on the nerves and draws one into the
sympathetic current.
was introduced to the forewomen, Miss
Desmond AID Mrs. Beggs, at the tables.
They We're giving ont darniIf cord and
po'NueS. .his. beSks 10 d very hibuiy
woman, aud took fne I'm charge. showing
me the cloakroom, where lert my wraps.
ana calling the machine man, Mr.. COED,
To fiDd me a machine to operate on.
She confided TO me that she was glad
was going on the machines, as she believed
the work was more desirable. l was soon
found n place, which very soon became ap-
parent TO me as the most interesting spot
IN the room. Ii was near the elevator and
I'D the hofbed OF criticism and dissent
HOW SHE OPERATED.
Miss Desmond came to me to explain the
machine. She threaded it and told lie
how to operate it, and look great pains with
nie when l told her had never operated a
machine before. She gave HE u bag and
told me what To do Will IL, anu marked an
other one where the patches We're To go,
anu left me to struggle with the problem
myself.
look up The bag feeling that had never
handled such uIrty rag before. 1t WAS
hardiy "a rag, either. These bags are
large and heavy, tDcy are grimed Iuil OF
DIRT, Oil anu moisture, ana smell vnely.
Inc odor Is iDildewcu, and often the stencil
Is Ike that or dead rats. / was appalled,
with the lear tiiat was going To come upon
some dead animal in the bags, and Dauuied
them very gingerly.
VI course. everyone watched me from
time TO time, and 1 made a show OF going
dtlerininediy to work, consoling myself
win the thought that was going to have
plenty OF time 10 look around and ASK
questions.
In few minutes / saw all the machine
Operators get up and surround IA man who
was dumping out pieces of the jute ba rs on
the floor. One OF the girls said 10 tne as
she passed, You had better coine up and
get patches for your work.
so went up with the others and had my
arms filled with the dirty pieces OF Jute,
and returned 10 my place As l sat down
gain one Of the girls said 10 me: should
.hink you would have been afraid to
come To "A place like this, after all that
has been said about It,
why" said !, all that am afraid Of
is that ] shall scome upon ONE dead ver-
MN In the bottom OF these bags" and
looked at her inquiringly. She laughed gIee-
fully and returned:
NO. you won't. there is nothing in the
bags; that is all tonImyrot. The men empty
everything out OF the bags downstairs and
inspect them before they come up to us
1t all. They pile them in piles of five and
put ten in another bag and then they are
brought to u.s.
WHAT THE GIRLS TELL.
But there was something in the paper
ibout someone's finding dead dog or
something and fainting over it, ~es-
II know the girls tellTsli kind of things |
30 aue ever iahls Rsre, except M bot |
weather. unlessl ttey[are sick and over |
worked tu makeup their number. dom, |
e'nember anyone rarnting myself and / |
,uess I'd hear OF itjquick enuugh.''
Was there absolutely ~ truth in that
tory, them
why, l think cro 1,r three years ago |
omeone found dead rat, but that was
'efore the work Yasmanaged as it is
low. That story WIS told, and told TO
make capital of
10 one disputed fer statements. From
ime To time the women would address
ONE remark to me. such as:
Don I bother with that hole: the darners
will mend it. Don; Try to take all that
aims. You won't tuEn out any bags ut all
you do. We have to push all the work
through hereif we wish to omakeany Y money
The fact that / didn' I worry over the ma
hine seemed to impress Miss Desmond. who |
anne and sat by me and looked over what
was doing.
why. you are getting on famously.'
lie said. Most OF the girls who are put
n those machines get nervous and excited, |
nd can't do anything. But you seem to
IKE it very cooly. The cooler you are at
rst the better it will be for you. You Will |
g on n small salary until you become ex- |
ert, anyway. so you needn't bother about |
he number of bags You turn out, and you
m master the machine and learn how to |
atch the bags before you trouble your heasf.
bout how IA ST you are working
Then she marked some bags forme and In |
lected my shears and ripping knife, and |
I'D me to rip the bottom of some old bags
nat ha n double bottom. She left me a gain.
nd l struggled with that bottom. 1t had |
zen darned through and through at the bot
m. and was very hard TO iear r q asundcr be-
z wet and grimy and botched.
/ think | was Il half hour getting that |
oitom off. struggling with the old patches
I'd pulling ont the obstinate twine with
hch it was darned. I didn't want to put
new pat ch on 1t until l had gotten rid of
e mass of rubbish. Int my friend across
e way called out TO me:
"Oh, don't bother with that: put your
II ch on over it. You will hing
that rate"
" But can't bear TO do work like that; it
i'll he n perfect botch. III put patch on
-er that it will be all lumpy, uneven and
ewed about
EXPECTED A -REPRIMAND.
Never mind.' said she; "who cares about
ese old mail baGs? and she pressed her
OF down and run her own bag throughmer-
y aud uncOncernedy. Invent on trying to
as she did. butthe needle wouldn't go into
e rough places. and 1 came to a place
here was stuck. At that moment some
&c paused in front of my machine. and 1 .
,ked up to encounter the penetrating
ance of Mr.. Cullen.
We'll, how are you getting on, Miss Hun
r."
I'm not getting on. I can't make this
lchine budge."
expected a sharp reprimand for the
iy in which was doing the work: q rcpri-
md such as an old new England aunt 1
I'd to give me when botched my patch l
10 L