The Cook County herald. [volume] (Grand Marais, Minn.) 1893-1909, 1899-03-04
BRIGHT LADY SCRUBS
SHOWS CHICAGO FOLK HOW
TO CLEAN. 81 50
Cost Was Indnitesimal Compared to
What the City Had Been Paying
System VIII Be Revolutionixed In
Consequence. ..J H..

From the Chicago Inter-Ocean: AS
the sun rose over the housetops yester-
day morning Miss Sadie American,
chairman Of the educational committee
of the Woman's club, heading a small
army Of charwomen and male scrub
bers, gathered from nearby Clark
street, dashed into the Harrison school
building at Wentworth avenue and
@Twenty-third place, and startled the
fat janitor into petrefaction. She was
there to clean the large building, to do
1t quickly, to do it thoroughly, to do
it cheaply, and there was not an ounce
OF delay in the woman or her methods.
We've come to clean you up" she
said sharply to the bewildered auto
crat; ito clean you out, to make you
sweet, to fix you so that people can
breathe in you without dying, to put
you into such condition that your
best friends wouldn't recognize you.
Do you know how dirty you are? You
don't? Well, when we get through
with you you'll know what it is to
look decent once in your life. Where's
your brushes, mops, pals, soap, hot
water, rubber scrapers, drying-clo
Where do you keep these things? Be
quick, now!"
The janitor stared at her feebly, and
a large lump rose and fell in his throat.
but no sound came out OF him. '.Bless
the mani" said Miss American, ''he's
paralyzed by the mere mention OF soap.
Come on, you people!" The janitor
felt himself all over to see that nobody
had been holy-stoning him, and fol-
lowed her in daze. In fifteen minutes
water was surging over the foul floors
and the men were scrubbing at the
windows. The dirt came off In cakes,
and Miss American smiled. Seated in
the comfortable and comparatively
clean Office Of the building she tilted
back and forth in an easy chair and
dimp1ed deliciously. No matter how
advanced a woman may become, or
how much of this union she is carry
ing around on her shoulders, she never
rises superior toethe holy joys of house
cleaning =
2et*Yes,'",she said to a reporter for the
Inter Ocean; yes, sir, We are here to-
|sday to demonstrate to-. the board OF
education that 1t does not require a
princes ransom to"
The conversation was broken by the
sound Of angry voices in the hall. Miss
American was upon the scene The
portly janitor aad one OF the Clark
street contingent glared at each other
The janitor was outraged. His most
sacred precincts had been invaded.
Once more the lion was bearded in his
den, the Douglas in his hall. 'Dis
dub he began, excitedly, comes to
me an he says, says he
II don't permit slang" said Miss
American, haughtily; mo slang nor
loud talking, nor boisterous conduct al
lowed in this building today"
"Au right, num-" said the janitor,
lowering his voice to a hoarse, impress
sive whisper. ''Dis guy, dis geezer, dis
gazabo, dis jay, dis hobo, comes to me
an he says, says he"
*Get about your work." said Miss
American, sharply.
The janitor, once monarch of all he
surveyed, and lord of the fowl and the
brute, looked at her moment and
shambled humbly down the hall. The
warlike Clark street contingent, who
had been shaking in his broken shoes,
shambled humbly in another direction.
Miss American threw herself into the
Office chair and tilted back. "Clean a
school building! 1t has been declared
that scrubbing comes to S1.50 a room.
There are more than 4,200 school rooms
in the city, and you will see that the
total mounts up. It has been the Gus
tom to scrub the school rooms only
three times a year-in the Christmas
vacation, the Easter vacation and the
summer vacation. You can imagine
what a horrible condition they get in
from the trackings of the children's
feet. All of this filth accumulates for
months, and is pounded and gets into
peoples lungs and makes them sick.
When asked to do more cleaning the
school board men say that it costs too
much and they haven't the money.
I'VE got permission to scrub out this
one building in order to show them
that their estimate OF $3.50 a room is
away too high. That is what we are
here for. I am paying my help $1.50 !
day of eight hours. The exact cost of
it will not be known for some time. 1t
will be figured out carefully, and an
unbiased report nade to the board. We
are in hope, Of course, that when they
are shown how cheap it is the. mem
bers will order more frequent and more
general cleaning. ;"
Assisting Miss American In her
cleaning contracts were Miss Broom
leH, Mrs. Duncanson, Mrs. Lee and
Mrs. Bennett, all members of the Wo-
mans club. The building was cleaned
from attic to cellar. There are eighteen
rooms, whose scrubbing, at the boards
figures would have cost $27. Miss
Americans four men and seven women
were rald $3.50.