Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1911-03-16

velops from the necessity of working
with others. Sometimes in a grouI
lesson such as the preparation and
serving Of a meal, the spirit of co
operation must be dominant in order
that the meal may be a success. Each
worker must feel responsible for the
piece of work assigned her even tho
it may not be what she would have
liked best to do, for the aim is the
accomplishment of something
for the benefit of the whole
| class, and ones selfish interests
must be put aside for the good of a
common purpose. Think of what
| that spirit Of cooperation can mean
when it is developed to the extent
of influencing community life. The
ability to put aside petty predujices
and personal opinions in the work
with others for a common good is
one Of the crying needs of social
life and it must first develop in the
individual. The tendency of the time
is toward social ethics, indeed, ethi-
cal values in order to be ethical must
be social, must extend beyond self
to home and to community
The larger sponsibilities of the
woman citizen are not to be evaded.
and in our household course it is
meant to emphasize this fact. We
study the sanitation of milk and of
water, and learn the dangers to hui
man life when either is polluted or
infected. How is the housewife to
secure clean milk and water for her
household if she attempts to obtain
she lives where she can own her
source of supply, she must work for
clean milk for the whole city in order
to feel safe that her own child is not
feeding on disease bacteria. Sanitary
and pure foods are a necessity to the
health and to the pocketbook of the
family, but we must work for these
things for all families in order that
one may have them
The future purchaser for the home
becomes a better buyer for having
some knowledge of the sources of
foodstuffs and the production of man
ufactured goods. She herself has pro
duced comodities like those on the
grocer's shelf. She appreciates the
values in materials and in labor and
understands that it is necessary to
pay more for better grades of goods.
She realizes, also, that all too often
the unknoWing housewife pays
double price for some foods put I'D
under patented name, and she can
herself take the raw materials and
work them up into product superior
to that in the can or box. In buying
OF textiles, she can show her train
ing in appreciation of values of
standard materials, for she herself
has handled and worked with them,
and studied their manufacture
Years ago, the weaving industry
was located in the homes. Now, it
is in the factory. Once, all the cloth
es were made at home, now they of
ten come from machines behind which
workers sit a whole day long doing
one simple little piece of work, to
the dulling of their mental capacities |
and the lack of all interest in life
except the excitement of hilarious a.
When the workers were
shifted? Shall we not care whether
in, and responsibility for,
the employees under their roofs. |
Shall people feel any less RESPONSE
bility because the place of work has
shifted? Shall we note are whether
a man works long hours under un-
favorable and unsanitary conditions: =
whether his surroundings are such
as will help or hinder him in being
a good citizen; whether his children
have the rights of children-opportun
tiles to grow strong in work and in
play? The study of the economics
OF labor both within and without the
household, even in the small way in
which high school course can
treat the subject, ought to create in
the student feeling of the large
social responsibilities which we each
must bear
So, you will agree with me that,
our domestic science course tends to
give to the community citizens, bet
ter in themselves for having acquir-
ed habits of cleanliness, order, self
reliance, for having a new respect
for health, for labor, and for individ-
ual ability; better to the community
for having some notions, even though
very immature, about social respon-
sibilities, and that your interest in
this kind of work is truly repaid
RHODA E. DICK.