The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1899-04-09
The MATCH GIRLS OF LONDON,

III mAlIH UlRLS Ut lUNUUN.
Lendon, March 2o--In and about BOW
Common. clustered together like bees In
hive, live the match girls OF East Lon.
don. Twelve hundred work In the factory
Of q firm which manufactures the lucIfer
match. and half as many more may he
found at their endless tasks In each Of
ELK other factories located ia this neigh
borhtod In addition TO these factory emu
ployes there arc large numbers OF girls
who make niatch-boxes for trifllng re-
muneration In their homes.
Girls" Is tho term applied lnd,scrimi-
nately TO the female workers IL the match
industry of East London. Undoubtedly
he majority OF them are girls. but not
a few are mature women. Many Of these
have married unfortunately and find
themselves compelled to supply not only
their own wants, but their chldren's
wants as we'll They are usually very
poor. They leave their little ones al day
nurseries while they. with dirty shawls
over their heads and In shabby skirts. 20
out to the match factories to work for
bread.
It frequently happens that girl work.
ing in these vast industrial establishments
rises considerably above the general level
Of the neighborhood In respect OF prosper
ity. She belongs to a family OF which
there are several members. all OF whom
work. The result is that only a small
proportion of her earnings of or 10 shil-
,ings week is required to supply her
share of the household demands. Under
these conditions she becomes flushed with
independence, breaks away from the mo-
notony of life with her parents and her
brothers and sisters and sets up for her.
self in some cramped and poorly furnish
ed room in court or lane of Bow Com
mon.
1t usually is not long until this unwise
lass-probably she is not more than Il
or Is years OF age-falls in love with some
dock laborer or other ill-paid industrial
serf, and they are welded. In nine cases
out OF ten, as Is natural enough, the union
turns out unhapply. Montague Williams
police magistrate of East London. said
on this subject. Very often one of these
poor creatures month or two after mar
riage applies to me for protection against
her husband. and frequently when have
that the husband had a great deal to COM
plain Of He very likely has worked hard
and never failed to take home his earn
ings TO his 'misss, as he calls her, and
yet night after night he has returned to a
dirty and neglected fireside and found no
dinner and no wife awaiting him.
These dellnquencies on the part OF the
young wife are not accidental. Her whole
life has been out of its proper channel.
She has cherished false and delusive
ideals. Utterly lacking in domestic train
ing. she has no appreciation or reverence
for the domestic virtues. The music halls
In Bow and Mile End have captivated her
fancy and led her into the pursuit OF
empty and disappointing pleasures. Some
ulEuts II Snt NC u llOtutls but "
to her neglected home TO find her hus-
band gone and her babies crying because
OF hunger and loneliness.
With the hand of necessity resting thus
heavily upon her. the latent heroism OF
her nature asserts itself and she takes up
the burden with determination OF which
no one would suppose her capable. At
this point her motherly sacrifices begin.
Her tawdry music hall clothes disappear
and even her hat or bonnet goes with
them. shawl--the certain mark Of deep
poverty in England-takes the place OF
her former headgear. and the rest of her
apparel becomes rapidly worn and old,
Wrinkles get into her face and other evil
dences of advancing years and of sore
responsibility appear there. Where In
the days of her frivolity she devoted her
earnings and her thought to herself, she
now devotes them to her home and ner
children.
There is a tragic air about the scene one
may witness any week day morning OF
eNeUiuS III Tue VI leLiilg that thts
out an existence by making match boxes
The pay for this work is so much less than
that for the more skilled labor In the fac
tories that a person must devote himself
to his task very assiduously in order tC
earn shillings week. Wherever a fam.
lily supports itself by this form of tot
every member who is we'll out OF tn,
cradle contributes his mite in the way o
service. AS soon as the children are on
OF bed in the early morning they beglr
with knife, paste and materials to bullt
match boxes. Their small hands become
very adept in the work after few weeks
practice, and they generally are able t.
turn out in given length of time az
| many boxes as can be made in the SAM
length OF time by the older members o
the household
! a. n o,oIorix In fha rnnrnfne these infan