The Hattiesburg news. (Hattiesburg, Miss.) 1908-1917, 1911-07-26

have drawn my conclusions from a
wide experience, and can prove my
opinion statistically If necessary.
When woman goes behind the
counter she is obliged to absorb, in a
way, the manners of the people with
whom she comes in contact. The large |
part of her time is spent with the Gus |
toner who stands before her counter |
In the large majority of cases these |
customers are exacting, domineering |
and sometimes arrogant They forget |
that the salesgirl is woman like
themselves and speak to her in a man.
ner which they do not use in their
ordinary social intercourse with their
friends. The saleswoman gradually
loses faith in her own sex, gets this
manner herself and becomes hardened.
AT the same time she is absorbing
this attitude towards the world, she Is
becoming more and more independent
financially. She adds the independent
attitude to her worldly-wise ideas, and
the two together make her unattrac-
tive to the masculine sex. OF course,
| am speaking of women in general.
There are many womanly women who
stand behind the counter forever and
never lose their kind hearts or gentle
manners, but they are the exception
rather than the rule.
Because of their independence and
because of their sometimes domineer-
ing manner, the saleswoman does not
appeal to the men she meets; that is,
if they are gentlemen and are of any
value themselves. If they are not
worthy they do not appeal to her, for
one thing the salesgirl learns very
early, and that is that man should
be able to take care of her before she
considers him seriously in the light
of lifetime partner
Mr., Goodman stated that either be-
cause the woman behind the counter
does not appeal to the man or because
the kind of men she meets do not an
peal to her, comparatively few sales
. women marry. The few who keep
their gentle womanly ways and de-
pendent attitude sometimes marry, but
even these marriages are often fail
ures, he says. Three or four former
employees return to the stores every
year and ask for their old places. They
found that their husbands did not
in many cases make as much as they
were earning before as clerks in the
store, and after battling with poverty
for while, returned to their old in
dependence
; Mr.. Goodman said that, as a rule
the salesgirl had very little or no op.
I portunity for meeting the kind OF
men who were able to take care of q
wife properly and he gave this as one
of the chief reasons why the large ma
jority of girls remained unmarried.
Lebecks dry goods store employs
200 women clerks. Their salaries
range from so to $50 per week. Mr.
. Click said that out of this number
there are not more than fifteen mar
Y riages year, and often a much small
er per cent than this of the womer
clerks marry.
At Cain-Sloan's, Mr.. Leak, who ha,
for years been connected with tn,
firm, and who, during his business ca
reer. has been in charge OF about 500,
saleswomen, has the same story I,
l tell. There are seventy women EN-
ployed at Cain-Sloan, their salarie
ranging from $3.50 to SIS per week
Not more than ten out of this numbe
have married in the last year. O
course, there have been exceptions t.
this rule, and once there were fiv
esgirls married within one weel
Several weeks ago the little telephon
operator ran away and married Sh
was. just IA years old
Perhaps from a general survey G
the department stores of Nashyill
the best one for young woman col
templating matrimony to be employe
In is the Castner-Knot Company Nj
kinkead stated that the company en-
ployed from 1875 to $50 saleswomer
and out Of this number at least 10 ne
\ cent married every year.
- Not only this" Mr.. Kinkead sal,
- but after they are married, II the
want to come back To their forme
positions, and are unusually capabi
we take them back. There are thre
or four women in our employ now VII
are making almost double the salari,
Of their husbands. Personally I d