The herald., 1897-09-26
NONE LIKE THEN.
What the Free Air Of Our
Country Does for the
Factory Girl

labor troubles in this country" said the
manager Of New England mill to me.
That's all very well, and I believe In
them up to a certain point. don't be-
ieve a man or a woman, either. ID worth
anything that hasn't little spunk and
doesn't stick up for his rights. There
is something in the atmosphere Of this
country that gives US all restless spir-
it. I have been often surprised to 80
how quickly the foreigners who come -
work in this mill imbibe It. In Z few
months they are no longer content to
live in a two-room tenement. They
want things as the Americans have
them and they set out to get them.
You watch the girls as they come
out this noon and compare them with
the girls that come out Of an English
factory, and you will see what differ
ence American restlessness, American
equality, education. and wages make.
If you aren't satisfied with your coun-
try it Is because you don't believe II
giving the masses any chance"
So I watched them as he had gug-
gested. Most Of the young women had
hats trimmed with considerable taste.
They wore bright shirt waists, with
COelAdAS 1AO uSdtly SAcQ OOW6, &uO 8k1IGU
of good quality of cloth. Some Of
them had capes. some boas, and they
looked fresh and healthy, as II they had
enough to eat and were not returning
home to an ale-house brawl. In Eng
land they would have worn shawls
over their heads and dirty gown Of
the cheapest stuff. They would have
returned home to bread and cheese for
supper, and maybe glass Of beer.
If you had shown the group of Amer.
lean girls that I saw to an English fac.
tory manager, he would have said that
they must have come from seminary.
If you had convinced him Of the truth,
he would have said: what do factory
girls want such things for?" It doesn't
help them to work. does it?" To this
there is the reply. What does anybody
want such things for? Why does any
body want to be happy?"
"Now, I'll tell you another thing"
said this American manager. do you
know that these American girls do
more and better work than the English
girls? There is a sense of discipline
and pride about them. You never see
them intoxicated, though It IL very
common to see women drunk In an
English factory town. There are 10000
factory hands in a radius Of fve miles
in this vicinity, and there is only ono
pawnshop. I should like to know Of
an area similarly populated in England
that hadn't ten pawnshops.
English factory girls go to a pawn
shop every pay day and get out their
clothes and all the valuables they have.
Then the poor creatures go back ON
Monday morning, after their Sunday
night ale debauch, and put them in
pawn again. When we have been lis
tening to the talk of foreigners we
Americans wonder sometimes II We
have anything to be proud Of. tell
you these factory workers are some
| thing to be proud Of"
If the English factory girl reads at
all it is the cheapest and most objec-
tionable of fiction papers. If she ever
goes to a play it is of the lowest and
cheapest variety. The American fac
tory worker goes to the theatre about
five times as often as the English girl.
and selects plays Of a superior class.
1t is a mistake to suppose that all fac
tory girls read Laura Jean Libbey:
thew don't. There has been q great
change in this respect in the last few
years. Every factory town has its pub
lie library, and there the factory girl
finds a better class of books.
I went into library at one factory
town and found that nine-tenths Of the
readers there We're actual workers, and
that the library did not keep Laura
Jean Libbey. There are factory work.
ers who get as much pleasure out Of
our best works Of modern fiction as the
sons and daughters of the rich.
And then the factory worker In our
country does not consider himself 4
dependent being. AS a rule he Is an
owner of real estate and the depositor
in the savings bank. Give him work
and in the majority of cases he save
money. Girls do not consider 1t e hard
ship to work in well-ventilated fno>
tory over clean loom. Many OF thern
would rather do it than to clerk. Of,
ten the father and his two or thru
daughters and two or three sons N
have places. and together earn 3lo or
$50 a week. At this rate they o<,sn
have enough saved to buy home. ThN
is more than thousand generationn
] their ancestors have accomplished. ;.
4 Copyright, 1897. By Bachelor Gyn1aco1<