The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1897-10-24
new WOMEN Are
NOT SO VERY new.
Al Least There is Nothing New in We
mans Sharing Mans Work.
AMRS. VANDERBILT WHO WAS A COOK
How Her Toiling Hands n eIped Her Hus-
band To Amass His
Immense For
tune,

A stranger TO this planet who should
read and hear the oulogies constantly
lavished upon the new woman" be-
cause she is earning her own living.
would inevitably suppose WORK by wo-
men to be a new thing on earth. and that
the mothers and gldnumOthers and great
grandmothers of the present generation
were an idle and useless lot.
But the stranger would be wrong In his
conclusions. Tor the women-speakng
broadly-have always done as large a
share OF the worlds work as they do now,
and perhaps larger one. The changes
in wOmens work have been chiefly Ot
quality and variety not OF quantity.
This is especially true In America, where
though a very large leisure c.ass now eN-
lists among the women. there Is almost
no corresponding class OF idlers among
the men. m YOU doubt this. recall the
situation last summer. and many preyi-
Gus summers. az nearly every pleasure
resort in the United states. where there
were rarely more than half enough men
TO go round
While the women were taking their ease
the men were earning the money to pay
for 1t. 10 Is just the same In the win
ter, too, almost everywhere. What is
called society is carried on-exccpt per-
haps In the greater cities, where there
are numbers of men rich enough 70 be
idlc-almOst exclusively by the women.
The men give some attention to II. 10 be
sure. but the women do the planning and
the schcming-and most Of the enjoying.
for that matter-f0r the men haven't
the time.
I'm the early days of the Republic most
of the women worked as steadily as the
men. II is true that they did home
work mostly. but IL was hard work none
the less. and IL helped support the fam
lilies and earn the slowly accumulating
surplus.
In those days the women did the work
that is now performed by half a dozen
different kinds of factories. They spun
the yarn for the stockings that were worn
by every member OF the family. and knit
ted them, too. and they did most Of the
weaving. NOw-a-days even the knitting
is done chiefly by machines Not only
was the cloth for the garments of every
member of the femily manufactured at
home by the diligent housewife, hut she
and her deep-chested. strong-armed
daughters woye The carpets lesdes. All
this factory work was dore M addition
10 the house work now so generally
done 10y servants. every biz Of IL was thcr
held to be distncuvely "womans work.
began.
Although this labor was mostly done
indoors. the woman never hesItatcd to
help i'm the harder. outdoor work 90
the men when called upon and by ail
accounts this was pretty often. Farm
ers wives and daughters were frequently
seen i'm the fields. They planted and
husked the yellow corn. they made hay.
they helped i'm the harvest and they drove
teams.
Some Of the vast fortunes ON which
the famous families of to-day whose
women marry dukes and princes. and
would Dee scandaized az the thought or
any kind OF work-are founded. were
built up by the help OF womans work.
IL Is said that the wife OF the first VAN
dorbilt toil,d az hard as he did. Whom
he was a young man he was ferry
only two or three times have Ameri-
cans won the distinction OF having a pie
ture purchased for the famous LuXcm-
bourg gallery. This high honor has been
given TO a negro artist recently.
man between New York and Elizabeth
port. Al first he used a schooner in
his business. He commanded the craft.
and his wife did the cooking. Some
times she had her hands full, feeding
the passengers and crew; for. although
when the wind and the tide were right
the trip was easily and quickly made,
when they were adverse the passage
sometimes occupied days. Ms. VAN
dorbilt was a good cook and frugal
woman. and 1t vas due quite as much
to her industry and THRIFT as her NUS
bands that he was able 10 discard ms
sailing vessel when steamboats, came
hos a-
sengers were often fed on the boat, and
She remained the cook until the Van
derbnt surplus had attained 10 consid-
cradle proportions.
Among the middle and lower classes
Of the countries OF the old world, the
women have always done lot or the
work that Is considered the work of
men here. In England women work a.
the forge hammering cut nails ana
chains: i'm France and Belgium they mine
coal. and have done so for generations,
I'm many German cities they clean the
streets: and all through Europe the suiah
shopkeepcr has always been assisted by
his wife both I'm making sales ana ln
keeping the books. Ina short the world
over woman has done quite as much
i'm the past TO earn money as she Is DO
ing now-and man has very rarely inter-
posed objections.
In the character OF the work. how
ever. there has been vast change
There was a time when men practically
monopolized the arts and professions,
but that time has gone forever Then
there were no women book-keepers, nor
painters. nor sculptors. nor journalists
! Now women have a free field In all these
lines Of effort-thanks quite as much 10
the help Of man In opening tho doors
AZ TO the energy Of the eternal temi-
nine herself. And though there are
some sour grumblers among the men
/ there is really no cause Tor mascuhn"
discomfort on account OF the women
workers, since the work gwen up III
| Tho shuttle" by the women 10 the men.
i'm the way Of tailoring, dressmaking'
! cooklng and other lines almost or quite
equals that seized by the so-called weak
-