The evening times., 1899-10-26
Women i'm Office.

There has been some agitation of late il
regard to married women who work in the
departments. II is alleged that there are a
great many married couples in the service
of the Government, and that they are keep
ing deserving men with families from Sc
curing positions which should be open. In
some Of these cases clerks have become ac-
qusinted while in the Government service
and have been married secretly. the wife.
Of course, keeping her msiden name. In
others ths husband ard wife have sepa-
rsiely secured positions under the Gov
erEment.
There is some rather bitter feeling
against this arrangement. but. after all. it
Is simply another phase OF the general
question regarding women's work. Ever
since women began TO aspire TO the better
paid positions OF bookkeepers. cashiers.
stenographers. and so. on there has been
cry that they were driving men out of
these. Undoubtedly this is what has hap
pened Ii always happens when there is
a sudden influx of new labor There is al
ways hardship as a consequence. The con-
stitution of the business world changes
slowly. ard if there are only certain
number CT places, and women are capable
OF holding one-fourth of these in compe-
tition with men, the men who would other
wise ill these places have 10 lcoh for
something else to do. In some of these
cases which have occurred in the Govern
IL haE hat hnS
or wife has been required to resign, and that
the wife, holding the better-paid position.
has elected 10 remain. while the husband
sought work elsewhere. This is a peculiar
condition OF things at first sight, bat it
often happens in other walks of life. More
than one woman has really earned more by
doing the family sewing and teaching her
children than her husband earned in his
business.
In other words, he could not have paid
cut of his earnings for the services which
she rendered without wages. In the case
Of the wife who holds Office at a good SAL
airy. she may pay for the clothing OF the
family, hire some one to 90 the house
work. and send the children TO school. and
it is in general effect the same as # she
herself cooked the food. made the cloth
ing. and taught the children. as her grand
mother might have done Conditions have
changed; civilization has changed The
energetic woman can no longer spin, weave
keep poultry. do all her own housework
make her husbands clothing and that of
her children. because nowadays such things
are done much r4ore perfectly outside the
home. The natural consequence is that she
works for a salary il she can find = place
The money expenses of the modern family
are considerably greater than those of the
family of fifty or seventy-five years ago;
the wages Of the man have not always
kept pace with the demands upon his
purse, and there is less and less work to
be done at home. The period Of education
is also longer; girls leave school at twenty
or even twenty five. instead OF at sixteen;
and boys frequently prolong their prepara-
tion for professional life until they are
nearly thirty. All these things cost money,
and the natural consequence Of the in
creased drain upon the family purse is that
more and mere members Of the family are
forced into the labor market.