Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1909-05-15
Incredible White Slave Traffic
Among English Shop Girl Assistants
OF
Together Barracks and Fed Like in Pen.

Isirable kind. This was my first ex-
perience of a living house There was
! another girl in the same room who was
suffering from consumption. ] was
in that house for three years, and
! could have been out any night during
| those three years without the firm
knowing anything about it."
4 Speaking of certain London dormitor-
les, Miss l3ondfield said: IF the girls
are not in nobody knows, provided
! their roommates do not tell tales For
| instance, II one says to the other, Il
! want to so to the thea,ter tonight do
not split on me and strip my bed in the
morning. the other girls Will say, All
right. There is no possibility of find
ing OUT that that girl has not been in
for the night
TRIVIAL CoMPLAINTS.'
The accommodation provided for the
women in these great barrack estab-
lishments is something quite unfit for
human beings. In the first place. a
number Of the so-called apartments OF
the girls are in the most disreputable
streets, so placed more or less from
convenience to the firms, in order that
their working prisoners may be near
the treadmill. There is one young
ladies dormitory in Greek street, Soho.
which, according to a Scotland Yard
report, is one Of the worst streets in
the whole Of London. Young girls ne
cesSarily have to pass back and forth
through this street They often are fol
lowed. watched and insulted by men
who devote their lives to the pursuit of
this sort of game. Representations
have been made to firms who have
their Sleeping rooms in such localities,
but 50 far no attention has been paid
to such trivial" complaints.
As to the actual accommodation 1T
self much evidence has been sub
mtted proving that the housing of the
shop assistants receives little attention
from shop-keepers. The following let
ter written to Miss Bondfield by a. shop
girl throws a lurid light on this sub
jeet:
GRITTY SHEETS.
The bedroom allotted to the young
ladies was formerly Il. factory with |
those beautiful iron windows with |
small opening. There are three beds |
in one small room. one single and two |
double The beds must be made before !
we so down in the morning and the |
bedroom door must be kept closed all
day, so You can imagine what the at
is like, with five girls sleep
ing in the room. In the first week Of
August one clean sheet was put on each
bed; the others, which had been i'll rlse
six weeks, at least, were not changed
until October. when Miss - came
as 81 new assistant. The next change
was in December, when another new
girl arrived, and in january two sheets
we're changed on one bed IN honor of
the arrival of Miss --. Sheets are
IN use without washing for three, four
Ind even six months. After handling
hem I generally wash my hands, as
ny fingers are what we call gritty"
Despite the sorry nature of the So
allied accommodation. many of thu
hops charge excessively for lodging.
)ne firm has built an enormous sleep
ng apartment house just off Tpttenham
curt road out of profits saved from
wages of their assistants. This huge
tructure accommodates 500 girls. ana
5 operated at a good annual profit to
he firm which runs it. Girls should
live OUT In rooms in respectable
ouses, obtaining better aecommoda
ions. at about one-third less than they
re charged In the sleeping barracks.
PRACTICALLY SLAVES.
With men shop assistants. the same
ile applies as to women. Their ac-
is poor, overcharged ana !
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