The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-12-28

AZ MRS. IN. REID .

Think of an organization of business
women, consisting of go telephone girls
from the age of Is years and older resolv-
ing to make better use of their oppor-
tunities for self-culture and to give bet
ter service to the public. This is what
the coop club" of Birmingham means
10 the telephone company.
It means a union of interests not alone
for co-workers, but for their employers.
This organization is a little more than
year old, an infant yet, but with great
possibilities for useful developments. The
organization has a governing commit
tee" compose of the usual officers, and
The details of its purposes are worked
out by subcommittees. and then report to
the governing committee monthly-thus
throughout each 80 days there is much
activity in the various lines of routine
business and pleasure.
The first installfi1ent was a club room.
This is well furnished, including piano
grafonola and music cabinet A branch of
the public library has been added, that
the love of reading good books may be
stimulated, and to accommodate those
who are spending rest l.ours with read
ing. All the leading magazines and To-
cal pa pers are supplied, and cared for
officers have read these magazines they
are carried to the substations.
In these suburban offices many opera
tors have much time to devote to reading,
and a great opportunity to secure Valu-
able amount of information. The maga-
zine of today Is broad, treating of his
tory past and present, besides furnishing
fiction of high character. When one reads
magazines intelligently they have ac-
quired a. great asset to their education.
The next acquisition was lunch room.
This is important for many reasons-trst,
il gives the girls good, wholesome
luncheon every day at the small cost of
6 nickel and the menue averages the fol-
lowing variety, though a more elaborate
menue can be had, If wanted: Butter
beans, salt pork, potatoes. pickles. corn
bread, hot or iced tea, coffee or lem
onade. Now, IL girl wishes to bring her
lunch from home she can have 1t in the
lunch room and the coffee. tea or lem
onade is free to her. Thus she is en-
abled to save cents day-which added
up amounts to $1.50 for the month-quite
a little economy for small salaried work.
ers.
This lunch room is furnished and staple
groceries and matron included by the
company. By good management under
the attention of Mrs. Mamie Jarrell the
amount paid for lunches, after buying
the extras" is quite enough to increase
the working capacity of the club. The
amount taken In through the cafe was
$1,000 for the year After paying all ex-
penses each month there is $50 or $40 left
for the additional needs of the club. A
part of the beautiful service of the club
is the work of committee for carrying
flowers. and giving other attentions to
the sick members.
1T is well to add, too, that a feature in
troduced by the officers of the company,
or club, which will probably be its strong
est asset is the fact that before a girl
is employed by the telephone company
now. the home of the applicant is visited
by an official of the club. and the en-
vironments are we'll looked into that few
of the operators live at a distance too
far to leave the parental roof After this
information gained from visiting the
home, the applicant Is placed in train
ing for the duties of her office; her salary
beginning at this stage of her service.
The majority Of operators work In the
service for five years, though there are
many who have been in the same office
many years longer. The hours are irreg-
ular; that is the girls are relieved at
stated times this often necessitates re-
enforcement of operators after nightfall.
A chaperon has recently been employed
to see the young women to and from
the street cars, so that she feels no hes-
fancy in leaving the office at such times.
One could but notice the "at home"
feeling of the young women. They have
a keen interest in the club rooms, hos
pital, rest room, realizing it is intended
for their comfort.
Miss Sammie Dickson knows "in
union there is strength and she it was
who originated the idea of the coop
club The name designates its every ptlr-
pose, ito pull together" with Miss Anne
Christensen, president; Miss Sammie
Dickson, vice president; Miss Ruth Mer-
Ger, secretary; Miss Carrie Duncan, treas
urer, and this directorate is strongly en-
forced by the services of Mr.. c. A. Barth,
superintendent of the traffic department
So earnest has been their desire to reach
the best results for the public, and the
greatest amount of good to the employees
that they have sought to know the moth
ers. Recently reception was rendered
the mothers In the club rooms and a
musical programme was rendered by the
Hotel Hfllman orchestra. composed of
many young women.
The rooms We're artisdcally decor
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