The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1912-08-29
Rich New York Girl Who Worked in
a Laundry.

a Laundry.
In the July American Magazine,
Ida NJ. Tarbell tells the life story of
Garcia Woerishoffer, who absolutely
refused to live in luxury on the
money which was hers by inheritance
and chose to go through the real ex-
periences of life which make for the
upbuilding of genuine character. This
girl. who was killed in an accident
at the age of 26, achieved a great
work for women's trade unions be-
fore her death, but earlier in her
experience she worked for four
months in a laundry under precisely
the conditions that were imposed on
the other workers. In fact, those
who worked with her had no knowl-
edge of her identity Of this expert
ence in the laundry Miss Tarbell
writes in part:
"As she was determined to shirk
nothing she was regularly at her tub
or mangle or feeding machine at 1880
a. m. and whenever the work de-
manded it she stayed on into the
night. There were no provisions for
seating in the long work period, fire.
quently the rooms were practically
unventilated, always more or less
sitting from steam and damp. In
some places she found neglect and
uncleanliness adding to the disagree
able features inevitable in the indus
try. She worked days over unguard-
ed machines where the girls told her
cynically: You didn't get burned
to-day or yesterday, but you sure will
some time, everyone does That she
must. have often suffered disgust,
pain and fatigue is certain, but she
makes no record of it. 1t is only by
accident, indeed, that one learns that
| she was conscious that it was hot
summer! she is telling in her scrupu-
lous, restrained way of the ventilat-
ing provisions in the different places
she worked: In one place where the
investigator dipped shirts in hot
starch at break-neck pace she
SAYS, she was first struck when she
| went out to lunch by the GOODNESS of
the day. That night she discovered
that the thermometer had registered
| Sc degrees in the shade!'
"The entire naturalness of her at
titude toward her felloW-Workers, her
apparent unconsciousness that there
| were any difference between her and
them, made it possible for her to fall
at once into friendly relations. She
was one of them. Dozens of little
| comments like the following show
this: Upon entering new place
the investigator found, as a rule, a
spirit of friendly interest and of cor
diality, expressed occasionally in the
accepted formula: "Say, you got
feller?" Sure; amt you got one?'
"Sure"'
cor take this: One of the ironers
was eager to tell her past pampered
life as a cook "off Fifth Avenue"
Sure, and it was a fine time had
there, but" she added with sigh,
lit was there I met my misfortune. !"
And what was that" some one ask
ed. me husband" she said, and
then explained how it was through
his illness that she had been brought
upon her present arduous days.
standing on your feet nine hours a
day five days in the week when you
are we'll on in life is no joke"
Her straight control of herself,
the easy terms she fell into with the
girls, gave her a reasonableness to-
ward the work and an understanding
of how and why they, as a rule, &C.
cept cheerfully and as matter of
course it's hard conditions. That is,
understanding and not emotion ruled
her investigation.
A young preacher in New England,