Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-06-14

the massacre of some of their people, the ruin
OF their native town,-and they here, more
unmolested but not much more free, than they
were in Russia. They are in bondage to the
sweatshop system; bound hand and foot to it,
and not yet IN position to emancipate themselves
1t there met little Mary Lutz who is the presi-
dent OF the womans branch of the union. Well,
Delphine, l suppose you couldn't imagine in a
year, what a woman of that sort would be like
EFT me draw her picture. She is short and
- childish looking, with soft brown hair neatly
braided She dresses with the greatest plainness,
not one furbelOw or unnecessary peat,- but she
is really dainty Her shrtwaists are as clean
flowers She seems to be tremendously in
telllgent, and can say things that make her facts
stand out almost as If they were human creatures
instead OF facts suppose that is because they
facts about living and breathing, working and
despairing men and women. And here is one curl
Gus little thing: intelligent she is and eloquent
as she is, her grammar is still quite faulty. She
cannot even pronounce some of her words correctly
though she is American born, and she says "yez''
for you" and never thinks of missing a chance
to use the double negative. And really, after
had heard her tor a time, 1t seemed if the use
of the double negative strengthened what she was
saying, and my way of talking sounded little
thin,-made me think of custard with the thcken-
ing left out. She was looking dreadfuy tired and
worried There were deep circles under her eyes,
and she seemed dragged, if the of great
many people were Juggling at her.
l got her to go home with and rest up and
really don't know that ever enjoyed an evening
more She made me feel that knew nothing about
life as it s-life as it looks to the people that
born to stay poor. l always have gone around with
the feeling that in America a man or a woman
could be anything he wanted to be, and that there
was no sense in getting down in the mouth be-
cause no matter how tired you were, if you kept
up your grit and walked on way, probably you'd
meet something fine coming round the corner But
she told me about class of people for whom there
seems to be such chances. All the circumstances
of their lives bind them down, and it seems to be
tor the interests OF some clever persons that want
Millions to keep them right there l never thought
much about these things before When folks
going around without any light in their eyes, Snuff
ling and sulen, 1t made me angry. l wanted to
say, Buck up!' the way English girl does that
lives at the hall.
But how you say Buck upl" to little chill
dren that pass their days pulling out basng threads
or tending baby, winding bobbins, or dipping
chocolates, or sewing on buttons, working like
mad to bring the sum earned by the family up to
peace in their lives! I've heard of poverty being
a wolf; but never realized till how he could
get his muzze in the cracks of your door and snarl
and snap at you. And then the door-it can be
frail! 1t crashing in and let all the
pack in at you-and at your babies!
MISS LUTZ has been talking to me about what
AVA makes all this, till l am nearly crazy One
moment feel like an anarchist and would like a
barricade to die on, and the next moment am SO
tired and bewildered and frightened, that l want
only to go back to Grand Detour where there is
nothing to worry over but the rain barrel
Miss Lutz seems to think political enfranchisement
for women would help very much. And do you
know that English girl thinks SO too? She's ire
mendousy pretty girl athletic and we'll bred, and
quite all that Americans nice English girls
to be- and l was simply amazed
when l heard that she was a
Suffragette, and sympathzed
with those women who appealed
to Parliament and to the Prime
49, Minister, and got in prison, and
HNEkZ Continued on page IA