Bisbee daily review., 1909-06-23
755e Breaker Boy

| Scott Nearing. former secretary oi
 the Pennsylvania child labor commit
 tee, contributes to the Charities and ! the Commons press bureau this re.
 markable transcript of the experience of child who has grown up in the
 hard labor of the coal mines. It is a
 wonder that he should know so much
 as he does. This is the record of Mir. | Nearing:
 Whats that! What was I up to yes day? I ain't sure can remember | 1t all. but I'll try
 My days is mostly all alike when
 the mine is workin'. Ma and me lives
 in that there little log shanty with little Bill and Sissy. They goes to 1 school, but none of that for me. Never
 learnt a thing in school. l didn't There weren't no chance When
 went to school. it was in one door and out the other.
 Yep. I'm 15 now-been workin' in the breaker since was ten. Days is mostly the same to me. Yes'day mornin' l was dreamin away two
 forty about our nine. We was playin'
 ahead. I goes up to the bat and soaks
 her for homer, and jest as I was gettin' around to third, and the fellers
 was a hollerin' to beat time, comes to and ma was a-singing': Rise, Johnnie. rise,
 Don't you hear the bells a-ringin'f Johnnie. are you wakin' It is time to be alive Early in the mornit'. Continually keeps callin' Johnnie, are you wakin'? It is half past five.
 She sings that every mornin' to get me up. Pretty good of ma. to wake a feller that way. ain't it? It's a sight
 better'n bein' hauled out by the hair like some of the kids is So I gets up and puts on my clothes. That's the part don't like fer cent After you once gets dirty. it don't makeno difference. but it's pretty tough to get out of decent bed and into them black mine clothes. Anyhow. l gets on my clothes. fills my lamp and goes down to breakfast
 Tt was a dandy. yesday. Ma had fried eggs and taters. Mas a swell
 cook and she puts the real thing into yer pail. I uses the pail as belonged
 to pa. When the cage fell and killed him, the pail he had wasn't broke at all, so somebody brung it home to
 ma and when l started in I used that pail. Looks pretty rough, don't 1t?
 It's pretty much of tin can. but it
 was pals and besides new pails cost 50 cents, and that's half days work for me. 80 yes'day I gets me to the breaker
 by seven and I gets over on the hill before goin' to work When we onct
 get to work. there ain't much chance for baseball-it's just work all day. Why do have lamp? We'll, you see. I've got the bad corners. It's awful dark and the dust is bad. Us older boys mostly gets them bad places. Sometimes in sunny days
 kin see to pick the slate in there. but
 mostly it Is so dark that I uses my lamp all the time.
 No, the work ain't hard. only sometimes yer back gifts sore You don't do nothin' but sbend over and | pick. and fer a greenhorn it ain't no l cinch. I've been there goin' on six | years now, and l never minds it. Tn | winter it's bad on account of the cold on your hands. but mostly it ain't so I worse.
 "Yes'day we quit at four Didn't
 have no more cars, they said, so we | all skins home, takes wash of our faces and hands. and makes for the ] baseball. No. we don't wash all over l every day when there's steady work | Onct in a couple of days does us . | plenty.
 | There was a good game up there I yes'day. The Reds was playin' the
 Yankees, so us little fellers' never had
 show till most six. but we had a
 good one then. Played till near eight
 and then we lost the ball | Then we takes a sneak down by
 the saloon, but there wasn't nothjn
 doin' there. so we cuts it out and goes 1 home
 | Ma was sittin on the stoop waitjn
 fer me. She don't Ike me to stay oui
 nights. She's allus glad when sns
 sees me in bed of night Says she
 knows where am then.
 There ain't nothing else to tell you
 Oh, yes. there was Hunkie got killet
 on the track to-day-but that aint nothin'. There's ma a-callin' now.
 suppose she wants me to go to tn.
 store--so long