The Dickinson press., 1909-09-04
COLUMN DEVOTED 70
WOMAN svFFRAaE

1t is a fact that such Improvement
have been made in labor-savine device.
for the household that women nov
tied to the cookstove and the wash.
tubs would have entire emancipation
from all drudeery could they but possess
/ 40 say. entire freedom from all
fdfdgery sounds like putting it rather
strong. And yet such is the fact. The
woman who lives in the average county
town home today must on Monday mofn-
~ when she gets ready to wash. carry
puekets to the we'll. pump them full Of
wager, carry them back into the kitchen.
tiEher kettles 90 that 1t may heat, and
while 1t is heating drag down her heavy
wash tubs, fix them up on chairs. or an
improvised low stand, sort her dirty
clothes, bail the hot water out of the
kettles, and with her back bent over
the washtub, proceed to scrub.
Before she has BEGUN the actual wash
ing she has done enough back breaking
labor to pull her health down several
notches. And yet hundreds of thou
SANDS OF women repeat this drudgery
every Monday morning Of their lives,
without thinking of any better way.
Bit there is an electric washing ma
chine in which a woman may put her
clothes: press button and the process
OF washing goes on. They are then fed
int0 q wringer.' which. by the aid of
electricity. wrings them perfectly dry.
Her fiat iron may be connected with an
elecric wire. and kept hot for her, while
she goes over her linen. No hot fires
are necessary, no tramping back and
forth from stove to ironing table. Time.
nerves. Doctors bills and physical
energy are all saved to wonderful de-
gree by these labor-saving machines
alone -" -"
BUT think of cooking and baking
table, small, wonderfully clean and
neat affair, on which a heavy, subst an
tial, or dainty. ''fnicky' meal may be
prepared without the bother of dust,
ashes,4 smoke or the odor of burning
wood Or coal. A housewife may put on
her prettiest house gown and cook her
meal here without fear of running it.
Or. there is an electric chatting dish upon
which she may prepare the breakfast at
the breakfast table. while she discusses
the news in the morning paper with her
husband. And we imagine she would
have, wider interests under such con-,
ditions that she can how have. There
is in operation an electric waiter which
carries dishes from one table to an
other. or from one room to another, and
an aSctric machine which washes and
dries them beautifully.
Than there s, the sweeping. This, too,
is now done by electricity. Think of
the wear and tear it saves on a woman's
strength. Yet il is actually done. And
even s9ore marvellous things. There is
a ,sm&lhdevice which freezes ice in the
refrige& &tor-think of the saving in the
ice bHM And another that makes ice
creanfThe old methodsof packing in
salt 4A4 ice around a bucket thing,
and OH1hrninR q crank for an hour or
so is @'iio longer necessary. And the
housewife need no longer be too weary
when she makes ice cream to eat it.
Of course. under right conditions
every sAl6ase should be provided with a
bath room and fixtures. It is almost
disgrace 10 our civilization to hear, as
| heard recently, really nice man say,
y am nearly forty years old. and yet
have neSer lived in a house with bath
IN 1t: And there are GREAT ~multitudes
of others like him. Yet what a labor
Saving S1AAAS 10 d Wci1 cqulQpCU OdCQ.
Today there is no need of furnaces, as
the water can be heated while coming
out of the faucet by an electric device.
How much better all this would be than
the old way of heating a little dab of
water on "a little kitchen stove and
clearing the kitchen for ''all hands,
to take bath Saturday night. Once
q week is as much as they can afford.
Yet ever one should have good cleans
ing bath at least three times q week,
and "r1b-down" every morning.
All of these things are lin existence.
They are not mere dreams. And yet
how far away they are from the AVERAGE
household especially of, the small town.
How can we expect our women to, be
progressive, to think clearly, to possess
more than enough intelligence to carry
them through each days existence.
when their whole round Of life is spent
in the hard deadening; soul-desroying
round of household service to which
they honestly 6elive that God in His
infinite wisdom has called them..''; =.
Under the present conditions where
things are made for profit,p and few
have a monopoly Of the. necessities Of
life. we cannot expect any great thinGs
from womankind.e But in the future
who says that the future does not hold
the fultilment Of all our dearest dreams.
Verify. the machine isrto be the
emanciDatOr. of WOmanfind. .-i:, u :,