The Washington times., 1901-10-06
STARTING In BUSINESS.
Women Are Now Learning to Rely
Upon Themselves.
Formerly They Trusted to Their
Friends to Help Then to Succeed
Now They Seek to PIease the Pub
Iic-0nr's Friends ns Patrons.

I
Iic-0nr's Friends ns Patrons.
| The girl who goes TO work nowadays
| dlhers in many particulars from her pre-
| decessor of a decade or more ago. The
most striking point Of difference probably
| is her independence of her old friends
and her willingness, even her determina-
ton, TO look out for herself once she has
taken the step that transfers her into the
ranks of the workers and out of the
| leisure class TO which she belonged.
When girl formerly decided to start
out for herself. says the New York
SUM- she looked about the eli Gle of her
friends to sec how she might Go some
thing in the line of her work for them.
II 1T was millinery or dressmalling, she
appealed first to them and really began
her career as a worker with the idea of
getting most Of her patronage from them.
Even further back in the history Of
woman's effort TO help herself, it was on
her friends that she relied. II she made
pickles or put up jelly, she did not put
her products on the market at first, but
sought to have her friends buy them.
If they did, she considered that she had
been fortunate and it was only after
year or two when her friends thought that
they had helped her long enough and
ceased to buy that she learned that she
had made a false start in relying upon a
circle of customers who were not at
tracted by the quality of what she offered
or by any real need OF II, but bought
only through friendship and a desire to
help her. And that is not the way to
begin any kind of business that is to
continue prosperously
So the girl who works today tries to
get as far away as She can from the pa
tronage that comes only from good will.
She likes to start out dependent only on
the customers that the quality of her
work may attract and hold. OF course
her customers are likely to be from her
own social circle until she has made a
reputation in business But that diff
Guilty is now frequently got over by the
manner in which the women start.
One Of the most prosperous of the So
called society milliners began her work
two years ago with a milliner who had
been established for some years.
mad bought hats from her when l
never supposed ! would have to think of
the way ! should get the money l want
had taste anu could frequently suggest
things to her that she never thought of
herself, not because she had not the in
genuity or the imagination. but because
did not occur to her.
"One day after l couldn't afford to have
Just as much as | had always had, she
asked me If | had ever thought of going
to work. l told her that Cp had been dis
cussing the matter with my mother that
very morning. ~
Come to me- she said, I have too
much to do, and yod' are just the per-
son to relieve me. / want some body who
is 2 lady like you to Istand here and see
that the customers are properly received,
hot Esta rrarkWt
to make me suggestions at times. You
viii be as well paid here as you would |
be anywhere and the work is not hard. |
And the easiest thingsahoAt the work for |
you here Will be your' Independence from
your friends. l wont require you to ask |
them to come and buy my hats because |
you are in the shop. and that wiz be a |
greater relief than you realize. Business
that is built on thatr principle is rarely |
lasting, and there is no class less likely |
to help you really than your friends af- |
Here with me you Will begin in bust |
ness-like fashion. and all the progress |
you make VIII be on your merits
Of course. l had no idea Of depending |
on my friends when started out but | |
had always thought that a girl could |
count on them to a certain extent. 1t was |
only after / had taken the place with |
Madame that ! realized the truth Of what |
she said. Some of my girl friends came to |
the store like bricks and bought hats that |
cost a lot, but there were not enough of |
DfOutaDAe.
the most intimate began 10 drop away |
after awhile, just as all women do be |
cause they want an occasional change in |
their milliner. ] could not help thinking |
how would have Jared If ] had been |
compelled to rely on the support of my !
friends
This young woman repeated the opinion |
of most of the women who have learned |
for themselves that only the ability to |
please the great public will bring them |
success; Not only is the patronage from
the public larger than that from ones |
friends, but 1t is more profitable for other |
Casual purchasers are likely |
to exact less in the way of accommoda-
tton than friends supposed to be anxious
to help the struggling young tradeswoman
who is at the outset of her career 1t is
a fact that the rich are sometimes able |
to drive a better bargain than those that |
are not so literally supplied with the
means to do what they want. And they
are very likely to do this in the case OF
their friends.
We'll, why in the world should I pay
Mary Brown. whom have known all my
life, $50 FOR that hat?' one customer of a |
young milliner asked at her opening the
other day. II can get it for the same
money at Clementine's
1t did not make any difference to her
that the bonnet had come from the same |
house in Paris as that shown by the
French milliner. She had known Mary
much to expect that she should receive |
Tor hat the same price that a French !
milliner would ask. This was her view |
and many customers of their friends rea-
son In the same way.
1t is just such experiences that have
ed the young women who now start I'm |
business to rely on what they can do to
please the great public rather than to
Expect TO make any permanent progress |
through the help of their friends They |
know that they may expect but little
rom that source. 1t may help to start
hem a little way on their path, but it
Hill never keep them going.