Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1898-11-29

THsr HAVE THE CALL OVER THE
BkAurIEs N CHICAGO.

THEY HAVE THE CALL OVER TIL
BEAuTIEs n CHICAGO.
ID beauty ~ advantage or otherwise
to woman who has 20 work for lIv
Ing! asks writer In the Chicago Inter
OCean.
Thu years ago such question would
have bean regarded - . Joke, for II
thoss days beauty and lot Of e Vas tn
motto. Bat, times have changed, and
strange and irrational % Il may appear
good 1ooks are not only ct discOunt IL
the modern business world, but positive
ugliness 10 enjoying Q boom.
Nowadays the "fatal Gift OF beauty
h particularly fatal 70 job.
"Yes, cir, there ID growing prtjudict
against employing very handsoms
women" said big retailer. "It's NJ
Joke, and there's no sentiment about II
It's just cold-drawn matter Of business
l don't care how competent strikinGly
handsome woman may be, or how dis
Greet and quiet and Industrious she Is
all the same she's bound 70 demoralizi
the force. She makes the women jeal
Gus and the men absent-minded, and Il
tells ON their work. OF course, che CAM
help II, but that's no affair Of mine.
sl've made . study Of the subject,
he continued, land know what I'm talk
Ing about. A real beauty 10 store Will
reduce the working capacity OF Its en-
ployes about 20 per cent. IL she hap
pens to be very unusual type--a blonde
for Instance, with dark eyes--the re
duction will be fully - per cent. Sup
pose the pay roll Is $3.50 week, you'd
have to make an entry every Saturday
like this: ITO depreciation on account
blonde OZARK eyes), 9ls7 So" That.
enough 70 break Vanderbilt.
I'm talking from experience. W.
had young lady clerk here once who
had everything 10 the world to recon-
mend her except LONELINESS. She was
beautiful, poor child, and, what made ],
worse, ,he had that hopeless, ineradica'
Die kind OF beauty that one doesn't out.
grow, like warts or freckles, and 10 a.
ways the same, no matter what happens
believe that girl could have fallen Into
. hoeshead Of black molasses and come
or. still radiantly lovely.
"well, she went to work, and | never
had better or more faithful employe
but the deadly demorallz alton began u
spread the minute she stepped behind
The counter. Everybody felt IL. The
bookkeeper was surly Scotcbm IN, and
about rs emotional as fried oyster. Ia
less than week he was raising mus
tsche and making at least forty errors or
his ledger. The correspondence clert
started half his letters Dear Annie, To-
stead OF Dear Sir and the cashier wa'
short every night through trying e
make change with one eye on the lady
And that wasn't all. The Hoor~alkeI
snd head salesman became rivals-ir
their minds, because she never A. much
rs looked at either one nj them--and had
|, out while the store WAS full OF custom
ers. They spAttered gore all over the
ribbon department and hnally rolled
through an open hatchway and were
both laid up for month. Aud now, by
George, they are threatening me with 4
damage suit.
III am only mentioning 4 few Of the
worst cases. | thought the head porter
WOOto CSNaYt OrNaoSp tfG Wos ueSo es1
agreeable old rascal, and besides he had
. family as big MS 4 kindergarten-su'
he didn't. He primped himself up until
he looked like shaved ape, and wher
he realized that he wasn't 10 the running
he got even by beating his wife. She
had him arrested, and meanwhile the
elevator man nearly murdered several OF
our best patrons by stopping between
floors to feast his eyes on the chsrmer
BY that time thought the thing had
gone about far enough, and let the
girl 70. advised her TO get job In q
telephone exchange, where folks couldni
see her"
"But I thought handsome clerks were
considered valuable for drawing custom.
erss" said the reporter.
THAT used 10 be the theory, but It's
exploded. Years ago n big Chic igo con-
iectionery shop became famous all over
the country for Its beautiful salesladies
The result OF the experiment was this
The place lost all its women customers,
and the trade OF men proved worthless.
A young chappie would drop in, buy .
stick OF gun for cent, and talk for
three hours at q stretch. At last the
proprietor discharged the whole force
and engaged lot OF the hOmeliesi
women In Illinois, cross-eyed preferred.
After that he made fortune. Aud SO
II goes. I could cite you hundred
cases, but you can say confidently that
pretty women-yery pretty women,
mean-lre ut a great disadvantage 10
business. It's next to Impossible for
one to get job. The homely girl has
the call"