Okolona messenger., 1904-01-13
SHAME OF GLASGOW.
Has More Women Topss Than
London, Paris or New York.
Ons of the worlds Host Progressive
cities Yet Burdened with the
Curss Of Drfnk-some %
the sishts.

/ - ~ NAAI ~ AAI MNAAA AAAA
has 50 many drunken women IN pro-
portion to lis size rs Glasgow. AS .
breeding place for female topers neith-
er London, Paris nor New York can
compare with the Scotch town, which
prides itself on the progress It has
made in almost every kind Of munich
pal reform.
Il is no exaggeration, says q special
correspondence Of the St. Louis Globe
Democrat, to say that an American
walking in the evening through Glas-
COWS poorer Quarter-through Salt
Market street, Bridge Gate. or High
street-soon begins to ask himself II
there can be any sober women in that
part Of the city. Here, in the course
Of an hour, one may see nearly q
thousand women pass in various stages
Of intoxication, nearly all Of them look
ing either for q saloon or q paWnshOp
which, BY the way, are usually close
together.
When once q woman begins 10 drink
here she is done for" is a quotation
IN this Scotch city, and one believes Il
true after an evening IN the slumG
Old gray-headed women, with weak,
disEipated faces and torn rags for
scanty covering. reel through the
streets begging cOppers with which 70
buy more drinks. Young men. them
selves the worse for liquor, exclaim:
''Give the barefooted old grannies e
penny-we hope wen never come to
thatl" The middle-aged tOpers are
the cOarsest Of all, their hair matted IN
tawny snarls, dresses half-fastened,
and their speech too foul for rep6tl-
tion. Some Of the worst characters ap.
pear in striped black and white fan.
mel petticoats. and these women are
called the "PetticoaterR"
One "Petticoater" was on an unusu.
ally high spree on the Saturday night
the writer went through the Bridget"
--as Bridge Gate street Is called. Mad
with drink, this fighting woman rushed
home to her attic, put out her children.
and with hatchet smashed the furni-
ture and even tore to pieces the chill
dren's clothes. The Oldest boy, IL,
went to the police, but in the meantime
the infuriated mother had nailed up
the door and defed them to enter.
Thus, in one nights intoxication the
"Petticoater" had broken up her home,
destroyed the household treasures, and
cast her children into the street
The young women for the most part
wear coarse shawls and with great
deftness they wind them first about
their babies and then about themselves.
Every young woman seems to be q
mother, but they pay scant attention
to the little ones, about the only pro-
lection baby gets being the support
from the shawl. I have seen girls Of
II and Is so intoxicated that they
could not walk straight. Even the
little girls Of six and seven congregate
outside the saloons waiting for q peep
in, or hoping that mother" will let
them have g "drap" The little waits
are barefooted and half-naked. The
droOp IN the corner Of the mouth OF
many Of these little people indicates
plainly the depression caused by cruel-
Y and neglect, together with I'll health
and hunger. Little slum angels born
with an appetite for drink. they have
hard time ahead Of them, If they
grow to womanhood.
The cause Of the degradation is the
wretched home life, laziness and in-
temperance Thirty thousand families
in Glasgow live in one-roomed fats.
Sometimes, indeed, six or seven fam
ilies live in one long room, with only
3 chalk mark or piece Of rope divid-
Ing the rented space Huddled to-
sother in such masses-men, women
and children-Only the grossest immor-
ality can result. Shelter houses are
now being built rapidly. however.
where men may find q comfortable
nights lodging for a pittance.
About these shelters on Saturday
nights men are gathered By the score,
while women and children stand near
BY begging their husbands Tor coppers.
There are . few shelters for women,
also, where for eight cents in Amer
ican money a woman may stay over
night and have & place to cook her
own tea and breakfast But these /
shelters do not take the place Of q
home, for no provision is made for the
children. A little one may sleep with
the mother TIL it Is i've years old, but
the beds are narrow like the hunks OF
q steamer, and generally there are half
9 dozen youngsters. The shelters, how
ever, are an improvement over the ten
ements. and in them people are
obliged TO live decently.
a large home has been established
for married men with children who
have drunken wives. The wee kld-
dies" as the Scotch express It, ere
taken care Of ct an absurdly small sum,
and the father is with them ct night
This picture Of sin and shame would
Be untrue 70 life did It not contain
some bright patches here and there.
Besides these shelters and institutions.
there ere pleasant parks "a the very
heart Of the slums, g fne peoples pal-
ace and art gallery, and opportunity
Tor every woman who viii try to live
clean. One home took IN a young
woman that Saturday night who ia