The Savannah morning news., 1901-07-30
WHITE GIRLS AND DOMESTIC SER
VICE.

Carnegie esta blish a great southern
| University, taking the position that
such an institution would be Of meal
culable benefit TO a large section of
country and would, at the same time
serve to perpetuate his name. The
suggestion brought a communication
from a lady in Florida, in which she
said that chronological schools, for both
boys and girls, were needed in the
South more than great university
Mrs. w. H. FELTON, of Gainesville, in
a communication to the Atlanta Consti-
tuition. takes about the same view. She
| speaks particularly of the need for in
dustrial schools in which girls are
taught everything which pertains to
| household duties cooking, sewing, etc.
! though she recognizes the necessity for
similar schools for boys, in which are
/ taught such things as enable them to
! earn a living. She points out that
/ Northern money is being sent to the
! South for educating negroes along in
/ dustrial lines, and makes the point that
/ if white children are left to the tender
mercies of the three or four months of
|
/ the rural districts it will not be a great
while before the negroes will occupy a
more advantageous position in some
very important particulars than the
whites.
| She illustrates the benefits that are
derived from these industrial schools
by an incident which came under her
j
| A gentleman of position and wealth
told me the following a few days ago;
Il had sore need of a capable house
servant. Our last incumbent had call
to visit her people, and went. With
| little children in the house-one an IN
| fant-we were obliged to have help, ca
pable servants. We applied to well
| ordered colored college, where every
! thing was taught colored girls from
| kitchen work up to Latin, and one of
| them came to us. She is the most ca
| pable help l ever saw in my life. She
| can do everything. She is an expert
with sewing, homework, about the ia
| BILE and excellent with children. She
is simply a treasure. Nor is she in any
respect pert or disagreeable. A more
capable servant 1 never had in my
house at any time. She has been thor
oughly taught, and can do the work
of three or four people in the same
I household
"Why do not our white girls and wo-
men prepare themselves in the same
way to do good work; to get first-class
wages, and improve themselves in ev-
cry particular"
l replied: II know they should do
so, but where will they go to get this
! instruction? / know of but one school
| in Georgia where even cooking and
| dressmaking are taught. That is the
Normal and Industrial at MilledgeVille.
But comparatively few can get in, for
there are scores of pupils there whose
| well-to-do parents take advantage or
the opportunity and there are thou-
| sands of poor white girls in the state
who never put foot inside of the door
of first-class school of any sort.
But It will not do" said he, for
these white women and girls to remain
ignorant when colored women and
girls are being taught useful profess
sions and callings where they can make
SIS or $40 a month, and get soou
| home"
Il know that" said I. but where is
the money TO come from to establish
| such plants for education. If Mr.
| Carnegie would give North Georgia a
half million of dollars to build and
equip schools for white girls such as
| Northern people have built for negroes
|
my! what a grand help, charity, philan-
thropy-yes, blessing, it would be"
A question which presents itself in
this connection is this: Are white girls
willing to make use of industrial
schools with the view of entering do
nestle service? There is no doubt that
they could earn good wages in such
service and if it were not for the feel
ing that they were servants they would
be happy in filing positions in house
holds. The demand for capable serv-
ants is increasing all the time, and
servants who understand the duties
required of them, and are willing to
perform them, can command high
wages, much better wages than can be
obtained in factories or stores. If in
some way employment in households
could be placed in public estimation on
the same plane with employment in
stores and factories, an avenue for the
employment of large number of
girls in every community would be
opened. 1t would be an easier matter
perhaps to get native white girls in the
North to accept employment in house
holds than in the South, because of the
fact that in the South negroes are so
generally employed as domestic serv-
ants. Still. If the public were taught
to regard domestic service as being as
respectable as service in a store or fac
tory white girls in the South would
prepare themselves for It. II would
certainly. be a boon to housewives to
have good servants. If they thought
the time was close at hand when II
would be possible to obtain them-good
tempered willing and competent serv-
ants-they would bear their present
troubles with more patience. The Incl
dent related by Mrs. FELTON, suggests
that the time may soon come when
there will be a fair supply of competent
negro servants. AT present, however
there are no signs that native white
girls will be competitors for places in
domestic service.
There doesn't seem to be anything
in the proposed new title of King Ed
, I