The Washington herald., 1913-12-29
Ry MARY b. MULLETT.
(Oourrrht. 1851

NSOpsiAkHhs ASlSl
Born in Boston, educated in Con-
necticut, daughter OF a famous preacher
in Chicago, and finally originator OF one
OF the most interesting modern move
ments-that, in brief. is the story OF Miss
Mabel Hyde Kittredge's life up to the
present time.
Many persons will identify her at once
when they are told that she is the
daughter of DR.. Abbott f. Kittredge,
who died last year. and who was one OF
the best known Presbyterian ministers
OF his day. But when II comes to do
ing things that are worth while, Miss
Kittredge stands on her own feet.
Eleven years ago she started the frst
housekeeping center" in the country.
Later she organized the school lunch
con" scheme. Both OF these movements
are spreading all over the country now.
but 1t was Mabel Kittredge that set them
going and she is still their chief director
in New York City.
From its high sounding name. you
would expect a housekeeping center TO
be group Of cooperative homes; or, at
the very least a big domestic science in
stitution. Nothing OF the sort! 1t is a
little fiat OF four rooms In an ordinary
tenement house.
In New York the Association OF House
keeping Centers, OF which Miss Klttredge
is president, has four OF these flats.
Model fats, they are called: for although,
when rented, they are just like any OF
the thousands of other flats around them,
they are fitted up as examples OF what
the average tenement housekeeper can
and should do with her own living
quarters.
Crammed with Rubbish.
Most tenement homes are fearfully and
wonderfully furnished Many of them
have had several times as much money
spent on them as it costs to equip these
model flats. They are crammed with
rugs and upholstered furniture, generally
cheap and soon worn and dirty. The gas
fixtures are trimmed with colored paper:
and white skirts of stir pleated material
are hung around everything. from the
mantel shelf and the tops of the doors to
the bathtub itself. In short, the place
couldn't be made into a more inviting
haven for vermine and disease IL one
tried.
But Miss Kittredge and her assistants
do not go around shifting scornfully at
these mistaken efforts. They simply fur
nish the model fiat pleasantly and COM
but in a sanitary manner and
with good taste. They then make it the
haunt of the girls and women Of the
and allow the lesson to
sink gradually into the minds of their
visitors.
Every day. at 1:3o o'clock, a domestic
science teacher goes on duty in each
fat. At 5 o'clock the classes begin
School girls come in the afternoon; and
in the evening the girls who have been at
work during the day. They do every
thing that is ever necessary in fat
keeping, from scrubbing floors and sinks
and backing the gas range and cleaning
waste pipes, to bathing a baby. For this
lesson they borrow a baby from a neigh
bor And in the tenements that is some
thing one doesn't have to 90 far to find.
Learn to Care for Homes.
Girls who are expecting to be married
and who, because they have worked in
since they were little children,
don't know any more about housekeep-
ing than a cat knows about geometry,
come to learn how to care for the little
home they are soon to enter. Older wom-
en- come for help in their problems, |
which range all the way from how to |
discourage an invasion of too, too neigh |
oorly vermin to how to feed a family |
Of seven on a dollar a day. Children |
come to play with toys. Fer there is a |
'oom in the model fat-as there must be |
n almost every tenement home-for the |
children. In the furnishing there isn't |
/ thing that cannot be copied by most Of |
he tenants of the neighborhood. The |
ioors are painted and SO are the walls |
rhe furniture is simple, comfortable and |
Some Of it is made of packing |
'oxes, to show the possibilities in that |