The advocate. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1901-1913, 1907-10-17
...j.l||''R|OR:i.LEM I
Of '!')ll Securing Servants
In Oklahoma
(ottOn Picking Season Has Drawn
{ { jst stIAll the Women to the Fields
-sS Where Wages Are Higher. "

Guthrie. o. r., Oct. 12.-Whtle
the Negroes Of this locality are MAX
tngSfrom 81 to IS a day picking cot
|Ston,' the society women Of the Capital
City are doing their own work. =
The cotton picking season Is the
holiday timeSo Sof the entire year for
the Negro, and during that season,
from September until late In Octo-
berr,4it Is almost impossible to hire
q Negro to do housework.. =. 49,, 49,.
The Negro is the only common la
Dor OF this locality, and when that
race goes torthe cottonfield, the lady
:of the house must either do the work
or let 1t go undone. To let it 20 un-
done for practically two months Is
impossible. Therefore she does 1t
herself, with an occasional "lift"
|. from her husband. So sr,- ..'- a.. p \,
,7IG is not uncommon to see a So
eiety leader who probably tomor.
row will address the City Federation
of Women's Clubs on servant girl
problems. bending over the wash tub,
getting out the family laundry for
the week, while the man Of the house
puts up the line, pumps the necessary
am o,int OF water from the cistern, and
may ybe> seen, If he can't get out Of
slight, turning the crank to the
EWringer,H5 g., {
May Import Servant Girls. -:
The servant girl problem Is 50
wetghty, In fact, that the City Fed
erattongo ,Women's Clubs recently
discussed plan to bring girls from
Germany or Sweden to Guthrie aud
give them good homes and good
wages to remain permanently in the
employ OF the CLUB women In their
homes. Correspo is now In
progress with this end In view. < ), j
j;&sRhe aggregate value OF the com-
Hhined cotton crop OF Oklahoma and
sI1asltaps Territory. for 1905 was $48,-
1885 So, the total, number of bales
being 918,ST6 !. of, which Oklahoma
Territory grew. $500 and Indian
Territory 419,476. The total Yves
greater than the combined crop of
North Carolina and Tennessee, and
only 46,415 bales less than Arkan-
.sas. -. - .-.--~-4 =: g..
=; To pick the Olkahoma-Indian Ter
ritory crop In 1905 a. total sum OF
S 500, 900 was paid out by the cot,
ton growers. This entire sum went
into the pockets ofsthe Negroes, prin-
cipally, although Indians, Mexicans,
Japs and some Whites are also engag.
ed this year In picking the crop. /. =.
i-zAnte~Bellum Scenes Repeated.
With such an amount going into
their pockets for this kind of work,
it is no wonder that the Negroes de-
sert the kitchen and laundry room
for the field. They make picnic Of
the picking, and in the evenings af-
ter the days work-fs done, the scene
on a cotton farm Is not unlike those
before the war on the Southern plan
tations. with singing and dancing
they pass the time, some old fellows,
who probably lived through slavery
days, doing the ffddling. g..
On the larger cotton farms and
ranches the Negroes are housed in
tents, right on the farm, until the
picking season Is over. They are
furnished provisions by the owner Of
the place; the pickers being usually
hired for so much per hundred
pounds of cotton and board. In re-
cent years from IS cents to 81 per
hundred pounds is not an unusual
price, and at. this rate good, rapid
pickers, can make surprisingly large
wages. Many Negro families In this
way make sufficient sum to keep
then through the winter months, and
Negro students frequently pick cot
ton to get the money to go through
school on.