Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1913-04-13

nineteenth century had either to super
intend or to take actual share themselves,
according to their station in life, in such
industries as the making of soap. starch,
beer, homespun linen and clothing, wax
and tallow candles, and the other neces-
saries of housekeeping.
The principal work for women of that
time outside of the home consisted of
spinning, sewing and house and field Ia
Dor. But we need not wait for the
woman bosses of the twentieth century,
for here is one early as this in our
national history: My company killed a
yearling whale and made twenty-seven
barrels of OIL says Nine. Martha Smith
in January of the year 1907.
Today there are heroines of the sea
without number. Miss Laura A. Hecox
has for thirty years tended the grea
beacon of Santa Cruz in the Pacific
ocean. Another lighthouse keeper of the
Pacific is Mrs. Z. A. Fish of Point Pinos.
who but recently received gold star
from the government in recognition of
her services. One would not expect such
a dangerous place as Robbins reef to
have its light kept by woman, but
that is where Miss Kate Walker is sta
toned.
In 1927 nine-tenths of the working fe-
tories, of which the most important were
the cotton manufactures. 1t was not
until 1870 that the government first
thought the importance of women in
trades sufficient to warrant putting them
into the census report under the separate
heading of Females" The comparison
of these statistics with those collected in
1900. the beginning of the twentieth GEN.
fury, reveals some very curious and in
onf nTIx no0 r.Ii inc he
change and progress of woman labor, but
also showing the kinds of work then be-
ing done by the weaker sex
The following incident is fairly typical
time ago toward the question of woman's
ability to compete with man. A certain
longshore fisherman and his wife had
frequent quarrels which it was plain the
woman usually started. During one of
these the man. finding himself unable to
hold his ground in the wordy war, set
about using physical force to back up his
side. "Oh. Oh. Tom cried his weeping
ing wife, you ought to remember that
woman is the weaker vessel"
Confound it, woman" replied Tom.
taking up the scriptural phrase in a
sense more appropriate to his own daily
experience, If you are weak vessel
and want anybody to use you like one
you mustn't begin by carrying such an
Internal crowd of SAIL
glance at some of the occupations
given in the 1870 census report shows
the weaker vessel'' engaging in trades
which no man need scorn What about
such light feminine employments as coop
ering. saw and planning mill work.
charcoal. coke and lime burners white
washers. printers and pressmen, gun
smiths. lOcksmiths and bellhangers? And
yet in 1870 women were doing all these
things and many others, too. There
were boot and shoe makers harness and
saddle makers, leather curriers' and tan
ners: there We're bottlers and soda water
makers. brewers and malsters. distillers
and rectifiers: and although there were
not very many of them then. there are
great many more at the present day
But all the trades have not increased
in the number of women working i'm
them. For instance. although there were
az cabinet makers in 1870. i'm 1900 there
were only sixty-seven. And again. in
1870 :;9l females welded the whtewash
brush. made famous by Tom SAWYER,
while in 1900 only sxty-five were en-