The copper country evening news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 18??-1907, 1898-01-15
WOMEN OF THE SOUTH
THEIR ENTRANCE INTO THE FIELD
OF HONEST LABOR.


New Channels of Employment.
Before the war there were literally no |
avenues for self support open to ladies |
in the south Teaching was the only
conceivable line in which lady could |
with proper family pride and dignity |
support herself, and it was resorted to
only when all the male members of the
house had passed away and the family
reduced to positive need. 1t did not en-
ter into the minds of southern gentle
men to conceive such thing as the fact
that the women of their name could or
would be sc!f sustaining 1t is only
since the war-and the encroacbment
has been very gradual-that women have
entered the lists with men, and now
they compete with them in nearly every
field of honest labor. In the large dry
goods stores two-thirds of the clerks are
women and girls. Men still preside in
the heavy dress goods, carpet and linen
departments, and of course as fioorwalk-
ers and window dressers. The head book
keeper is a man, but his assistants and
common as cash boys, and when en-
ployed in store are employed exclusive
ly. They are usually attired in neat
uniform, wearing long aprons on which
their numbers are marked. They range
from 10 to Is years of age, at which lat
ter age, il their capacity and term OF
service warrant it, they are promoted to
be clerks.
Girls in stores in the south are al
lowed much more freedom than in the
large stores in New York and other
metropolitan places. Their hours are
shorter, their work lighter, their wages
higher. They all live at home or in
some reputable boarding houses, lodg-
ing houses, and the hand to mouth dis
comfort of hurried cheap meals at poor,
cheap restaurants do not enter into the
life of the southern saleswoman. Twen-
ty or 80 years ago women and girl clerks
| were few and far between; now they
can be seen in every good sized city,
hurrying in throngs to their work every
morning little before z o'clock.
A large proportion of the teachers in
the public schools are women. Many Of
the clerks in the postoflices are girls.
I Every large business house, manufao
tory and lawyers Office has its woman
stenographer and typewriter. 1t is only
in the railway offices, managing editors
offices aud the supreme and United
States courts that men are employed as
stenographic reporters The telephone
operators are girls All the large agen-
cies, like Bradstreet's, and the leading
insurance companies employ girl short.
hand and type writers. OF course they
do not get as good salaries as men occu'
pying like positions. A case in point
will be of interest. A merchant doing q
large business in southern city adver
tised in the New York papers for an ex
pert stenographer. He had many an
swers. Finally one fr, I'd him--st
short, well worded, busirfs' Ike, offering
such irreproacha Re i,u'cs. The let
ter was signed "Wiil-, -" He re
piled at once, Offering q :. ny OF 81, 2O(
per year and urging the rplicant t.
come without delay. In lew days h'
was surprised to have delicate, brigh
faced girl Of about 90 years OF age wall
into his Office and announce herself a
Willie -, ready for business. III
could not refuse her because the ques
ton of sex had never entered into tn
contract, and she was proved expert
but he did reduce her salary from tn
very outset, saying "of course he coul'
not pay a girl what man was worth.
Women printers are becoming genera
in the southern newspaper and 10
printing offices. and they work also Il
the binding, stitching and folding dc
partments. They do also the lighte
work in engraving and Photographic ef
: Establishments. Nearly all Of the orna
: mental water color and china paintin
and crayon drawing is done by womez
7 and they even teach dancing and phys
, zeal culture classes. At all OF the larg
. expositions they are employed a. boot
. keepers and card distributors. The
0 work in the cotton. glass, box, paper
7 match, shoe, ready made clothing, pi
\ tent medicine and all other factories
r Some of the large factories provide con
. Portable quarters for them.
a When one considers the newspap'
Q work in the south, it is there that won
: en- are seen at their best. They write
Q every subject, from leader to descril
{ ton of a german, from sledge hamm'
d book review to an article on lace. Son
r of the very best articles on the indu
4 trial development in the south in Il
9 "write ups Of the new mineral tow
8 are by women. They interview mi
It owners and furnace bosses, railw'
d kings and enthusiastic "boomers" al
b write of drown hematite ores,
= "manganese, local, timber,
}. "iron," "open heart steel, " "fertil
h zers" and phosphate deposits" with
10 freedom and familiarity truly masculin
d They succeed we'll as book agents; tn
10 are not unduly persistent, and VIII
d their bearing is dignified and refined al
the book they offer attractive 1t is ha
g. to refuse them.
N Girls are very rarely seen as waitre'
d es in southern hotels and never In II
a taurants or beer gardens. On the who