The Van Buren press., 1897-12-04
NEW OCCUPATION FOR WOMEN
MT Cracking and Floor serubbing as
Business.

1t is a rare thing nowadays TO hear
woman say: 81 can't find anything to
do" English women contend that
American women are never at loss to
find employment. In view of some of
the odd industries that give livelihood
to women here this seems more than
half true.
Mrs. Barotti, in Chicago, makes a
good income by conducting nut
cracking establishment. This is an In
novation, and one that pays well. Nuts
are cracked at other places in Chicago,
but Mrs. Barotti's establishment is the
one best known to confeetioners, street
venders, and the best-known society
people. At this season Mrs. Barotti's
business has a boom, and will continue
TO increase until after the Christmas
holidays. Her place of business is a
long, narrow room opening on the
street Down the center extends
long table surrounded by men, women
and children. In front of each person
is square iron slab with nuts piled
high on one side of it, Each worker
has hammer, and pegs away from
morning until night. Skill is required
to extract the meats without breaking
them. \ good nut-cracker can crack
out about 16 pounds of nice clean nuts
day. For that amount the cracker re-
ceives two dollars or a little more. In
the busy season Mrs. Barotti employs
from 30 to 80 hands.
A Philadelphia woman has hit OIL
novel plan of converting muscle into
cash. When her husband, a laboring
man, died, leaving her with four small
children with healthy appetites she de-
cided to become a professional cleaner
Of kitchen floors. She has worked her
specially TO advantage and is so ei'icienr
that her regular customers would ne
soon think of allowing a plumber to
tune a grand piano as to permit any
one else to touch their kitchen floors
Many kitchen floors nowadays are
made of hard wood or tiles or are COW
cred with oilcloth or linoleum. An eX-
pert car clean them with great rapid
ity, as this woman has proved. She
makes the average floor as neat as wax
in half an hour, and charges only %
cents for doing so. She carries her
own tools, soaps, and cloths for get
ting the dirt off and putting The shine
on, and leaves things spiek and span
behind her. For each customer she has
a certain half hour on a certain day
She is an exact woman, and. knowing
this. her customers have the kitchen
ready for her. She earns from three
to four dollars day, and says she likes
the work better than standing behind
a counter.
For some time a number OF women in
New York have been doing professional
mending. Expertness with the needle
is the only preparation necessary 1or
this business. The members are mis-
sionaries in a way, for they seek out
bachelors at their boarding houses
apartments and hotels and make con-
tract to keep buttons on coats vests
and trousers, TO darn hosiery and 10
close up rents in clothing. The price
charged for such service varies accord
ing to the size of mans wardrobe.
This scheme of a perambulating re-
pair shop appeals to the average man.
for it means money in his pocket. Tan
ors charge good round sums for odd
jobs, and a woman fixes up many things
that a tailor WOULD not touch. 1t is
easier, too, TO have woman drop IN
while man is away at business, and rid
him of all the worry about the condition
of his clothes. The mender visits her
customers at stated intervals.-N. \.
Sun