Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1900-03-22
NEGRO HOUSEWIVES.
THEIR THRIFT AND INGENUITY UNDER
DIFFICULTIES.

withstaudins 1hcir Poverty.
The most notable economist, in this
country today are he negro women down
south the field worker, who keep house
against odds, yet achieve crcdIablc re-
suits. 81 couldn git hold of no jar nor
nothin 60 put up peaches in dis year, buB
Inc got pretty noar bu,hcl Of cut apple
an peach dry an STOW way in bags, u
cabin housewife will tell you.
"Ihem hotus an sides up thcrc9' she
goes on. "Ail both Of 'cm is from do
shote, what raise on home victual- an
lcaviu's Dcy never turn outno lard worth
countin, but de- meat IL sweet
Another time she will show you her
quilts, six or seven Of them folded away
neatly, one apiece for each Of the children
as she says. "Nhen do you do your Sow
ing you ask hen.
Mostly in de night time, when Dc chill
len IS out dc way an dc rucns IS lay down
or gone huntn.
But you have no lamp"
No, but keeps good turn ~ fnt
eplinters an pine knots handy, an dey
makes good blaze to see by Days whom
! does half task in de- field / works bout
de house in de afternoon, but dore' do
washn to do an de patchin an scrubbin
an one ting an anudder Den, if l has
now cloth, ! makes brooches or irock, one.
Dcre's always SEWN waitin
How do you manage about the rook.
ing whom you are so buy ia the fleldy'
she Is asked
II mostly Nuke 81 ch,,ica .tirabout
or some bred lurr = start clsa "a de
Inornir, an .erF nieao lore lay ~ <vn I
alp one ts-ers IN de ashes e. done slow
for dom. Den ] eep ally don't cook no
more till l come out s. field at shutdown
( WI =. 1 git chsnce, ..e5 make cake an
swoetened bread II eggs i5 plenty"
"But you sell your eggsg"
Yes. Dey mostly goes for SEWN
thread, sometimes for a little gar an
coffee or maybe kerosene. / alv ga keeps
/ bottle Of kerosene handy, caUse It ~
good TO drink for misery in de a4.d 1r to
rIb with when your j'intS is painful
II does make sharp money out of my
butter, too, when de COW ain gone dry, -
she adds
The average negro farmer who Wants
his little one horse or two horse acreage
that he rents barely makes enough moons
o. keep body and soul together. In tha
flush harvest season he earns the cquiva-
lent Of 40 cents day. His wife aCcerd.
ing TO her Interpretation, has 10 ''turH
swift in order t. make things hold out
She buys as little as possible and mako
use of such resources as are at hand. Eves
food for the COW has to be considered AZ
is evidenced by the going dry"
If wc could make out to gi' Sock q
mash OF cooked peas night an moruin,
She would keep up her milk all de year. u
| says Socks mistress, but We can't do
dat nor rent no good pa=tur Ian neider
/ an in de winter dc grass what's GROWN
sr.- q. %.
de mule to feed too. Thus she tells Of
her simple needs. The negro housewife
broom is made Of broom straw gathered
from the fields and bound securely with
strips Of homespun. The scrubbing brush,
that plays an important part in the week
ly cleaning up, is made of shuckS from
the courthouse pegged into q piece Of
board with long handle to it. BY cut
ting Oft the necls OF the gOurClS that grow
each year under the caves large bowls are
made to hold anything that needs be- kePo
over in the wooden cupboard For cook
ing conyenieuccs there are only the crane
in the open Kinney place and the heavy
lidded oven, akIllct and big mouthed pots,
which are lifted about. no matter how hot
or how full thoy may be, by bont poker
or stout, knottcd stick.
The mistrt - Of the cabin hoes her half
htEc Nl~IN tti'Al AFN nc lltII y Will every
department. of the field work, from get
ting the ground ready for the seed in early
spring 10 the harvesting in autumn.
Many OF these women pIow as well and
have little side crops ol rice Or cotton.
Nearly all have young children
a good many negroes are shiftiess aud
irresponsible; some are dirty, but a ma
jorty Ut the wives and mothers on the
plantations IRE ambitious and make .
brave effort to- put the best foot fore
most and keep things shIpShape They
rival each other ~ raising turkeys and
chickens ami Win walk LaiIes hunting up
I some secretive guinea hen nest or search
ing for missing duckiiBR chat hee stray
ed of from the brood. The sewing that
they DO is crude Some OF the quilts that
they are so proud Of look grotesQue
enough because of intccuIuGy IN she cut
ting and carrying cut Of the pattern, but
they are monument To tiN' patience ana
industry of the makers, when one thinks
how rough and coarse from hard labor
are the hands that WELD the clumsy scis
sors big needle and coarse ball thread
! with which they are made. The garments
they make are cut out on the original
! scale, with little regard 10 liz, but the
I stitches hold firmly, and the FORMS large
and small, Jhas wear the clothes are 81
well knit and lusty that the garments
soon fall into shape The patching done
by these wursen may be classed an art
Every possible economy Is praCtiCed in
these homes one set OF smoothing irons
often does the ironing for whole neigh
borhood, and the starch that stitiens the
go to meeting petticoats and the husband :
shirt is made out OF rice water boiled down
to the requisite thickness. Every skim
q