The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1914-06-28

Gill describes In his book THE Children
Of the Dead End" which created
Juror IN England recently, his expert
ences with sucn a gang. His pen pic
lures Of the brutal lire If these gangs
are Vivid and startling. The American
edition Of the work has just been issued
by T.. l.. Dutton & Co.
When tho gang landed in Scotland
Mr.. Magglll says that the pota,o mer-
chant met us on Grcenock quay next
morning. and here Mickys Jim mar
shalled his squad which consisted In
all of twenty-one persons. Seventeen
OF these came from ireland, and the re-
mainder were picked up from the back
streets of Greenock and Glasgow. With
the exception OF two. all the Irish
women were very young. none of them
being over 10 years OF age, but the
two extra women needed for the squad
were withercd and wrinkled harridans
picked from the city slums. These
women met us on the quay.
"D'ye see them?" Micky's Jim whis-
pered to me. They cannot make
Twin on the streets. so they have to
come and work with us. What dye
think OF them2"
81 don't like the look Of them"
said.
The potato merchant hurried US of
10 Buteshire the moment we arrived
and we started work on a farm mt mid
day. The way we had to work was this:
Nine OF the oder men dug the potatoes
from the ground with short three
pronged graips. The women followed be-
hind. crawling on their knees and drag
ging two baskets apiece along with them.
Into these baskets they lifted the po-
tatoes thrown out by the men. When
the baskets we're filled I emptled the
contents into barrels set In the field for
that purpose. These barrels were in
turn sent or to the markets and big
towns which We had never seen.
The first day was very wet and tho
rain fell in torrents. but as the demand
for potatoes was urgent we had to work
through 1t ALL The job. bad enough for
men. was killing for women. All day
long, on their hands and knees. they
dragged through the slush and rubble
OF the fed. The baskets which they
hauled after them were cased in clay
TO the depth OF several inches and some
times when emptled OF potatoes a bas-
ket weighed over two stone. The strain
on the women's arms must have been
terrible. But they never complained.
Pools OF water gathered n the hollows
OF the dress that covered the calves of
their legs. Sometimes they rose and
shook the water from their clothes.
then went down on their knees again.
The Glasgow women sang an obscene
song lust by way OF passing the time, )"
one OF them explained. and Micky's Jim
Joined in the chorus. Two little ruts,
not at all unlike the burrows left by a
coulter OF a skiddng plough. lay behind
the women in the black earth. These
were made by their knees.
We left off work at 6 o'clock in the
evening and turned in to look up our
quarters for the night. We had not
seen them yet, for we started work in
the fields Immediately on arriving. A
byre was being prepared for our use and
IL farm servant was busily engaged in
cleaning it out when we came in from
the fields. He was showing the COW
dung through a -ap door into a vault
below. The smell OF the place was
awful. There were ten cattle stalls in
the building, five on each side OF the
raised concrete walk that ran down the
middle between two sinks. These stalls
were our sleeping quarters.
The byre was built on the shoulder
OF a hillock and the hidden was situated
IN a grotto followed underneath; Its
floor was on a level with the cart road
outside and in the corner OF this vault
we had to build fire for cooking our
food. A large dunghill blocked the en-
trance and we had to cross this TO get
to the fire. which sparkled rightly be-
hind. Around the blaze we dried oui
sodden clothes and the steam OF tht
drying garments rose like mist around
u8.
One of the strange women was NAMED
dourock Ellen. which goes to show thai
she had a certain fame in the town o.
that name. The days drag had hacked
and gashed her knees 50 that they looked
like minced flesh In a butchers shor
window. She showed her bare knees
and was not In the least ashamed
turned my head away hurredly, no
that the sight OF tho wounds frightened
me, but felt that was doing some
thing wrong in gazing at the bare lei
Of q woman. looked at Norah Ryan
and the both OF us blushed as II we hat
been guilty OF some shameful action
We boiled q pot of potatoes ant
poured the contents into a wicker bas
ket, which was placed on the floor o
the vault Then all OF US sat down to
gether and ate our supper like on
large family, and because we were yer,
hungry did not mind the reeking mid
den behind us.
During our meal an old bent an,
wrinkled man came hobbling across tn
dungheap toward the fire. His clothing
was streaming wet and only held to
gether by strings. patches and threads
He looked greedily toward the fire. an
Gourock Ellen handed him three no
potatoes.
"God bless ye," said the man in thir
piping voice. tits yerself that has tn
kindly heart. good woman"
He ate hurriedly like dog, as
afraid somebody would snatch the brea'
from between his Jaws. He must hav
been very hungry, and felt sorry 10
the man. l handed him the can O
milk which I had procured at tn
farmhouse, and he drank the Who'll
lot at one gulp.
TITS yerself that Is the dacen
youngster God bless YET" he said, an
there were tears in his eyes. "And ism
this a fine warm place ye are inside O
this wet night"