Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-07-31
Y. v. c. A. WORK AN
EFFICIENCY EXHIBIT
Margaret T. Hodgen Tells of
Welfare Service at San
Francisco Fair.
GIRLS OF JOY ZONE ARE (
HELPED IN MANY WAYS
Loneliness and Its Dangers Counter
acted by Recreational Methods and
Employers Cooperation.

What the. Y. w. c. A. is doing for
the young and unprotected woman EN-
ployes of the Panama Pacific exposi-
! ton. and particularly for the 600 or 400
| girls in the direct path Of temptation
| in the 10y zone,'' is told by Miss Mar
| garet r. Hodgen.
| In an article prepared exclusively
for the Survey Press Service, an or
| ganization whose purpose is to in
vestigate the facts of living and work
| ing conditions and to propose means of
social advance, Miss Hodgen describes
the welfare and recreational work on
the San Francisco fair grounds as fol-
lows:
From the day the San Francisco fair
opened in February, the national board
of the Young Women's Christian As
ISOLATION has been vigilantly engaged
in two pieces of work for visiting
women. One. to offer information, rest
and refreshment to the stranger, was
a matter of organization along more
or less we'll beaten trails. The other,
to discover fields of useful service to
the lonely and unprotected woman en-
ployes the fair grounds, taxed the
| ina gination and initiative of the stan
of secretaries in the associations own
special building. And of all these the
hardest task was with the girls of the
Joy zone" who both live and do their
turns in atmosphere of obvious
hardship and temptation.
"Smile-It's Painless"
! The ";oy zone" is street almost
! straight, a bout three quarters of a mile
long where the crowds go evenings
for entertainment of a peculiarly light
| order The person with adaptable en-
| thusiasms can enjoy a trip in sub
marine. visit to the human freaks,
vision of creation and a hot wame all
| in brief half hour. 1t is not without
| significance that the zone is situated
at the opposite end of the fair GROUNDS
| from the palaces of fine arts and edu-
cation, and that its most UBIQUITOUS
| sign Is "Smile--it's painless.
| Girls are employed everywhere Some
| are cashiers; some dive for a iiving'
some dressed in Columbine costumes,
| sell candy and chewing gum; some are
| Egyptian princesses; some are dwar1s,
| Then there are mattresses. shooting
gallery attendants, Rough Rider maid
ems. living dolls and myriads OF dancers
of all kinds and descriptions
There are between 300 and 4OO young
women in the zone. ranging In age
| from sixteen to thirty-fve. Some of
them live in rough quarters built IN
back of the concessions, others iiVe IN
rooms off the grounds. They get tneir
meals at the cheapest and most con-
venient counter. That overstrain, ex
ploitation and temptation crowd every
day of their lives is not an isolated
criticism of isolated amusement
center. 1t is the constant ACCOMPANY
ment Of commercialiZed recreation. and
the exposition merely lends glamour and
intensity.
Clubhouse Under Scenic Railway.
concessionaries were at first inclined
to resent the Y. w. c. A. as a second
rate boarding house and a third-rate
PRAYER meeting" organized for syste-
matte intrusion. But by sincere efforts
to see the employers side as well as
the girls side, resentment was replaced
by a very practical sort Of co-opera-
ton. Upon invitation of the conces-
sionaries a clubhouse was built under
the tracks of the scenic railway for the
exclusive use of the zone girls Ihere
they can secure a twelVe-cent lunch and
a rest afterward. They can have hot
baths: they can come an afternoon or
evening to read or sew or just plain
rest.
If the girls in the zone seemed to re-
ceive more attention than those In the
palaces it was because of the pressing
nature of the problems in the amuse-
ment section. The needs of the palace
girls are just as real, though they wear
conventional attire and work ordinary
hours. They are recruited from every
state in the Union, and work at jobs
that require every degree OF training
and intelligence. They demonstrate
processes of manufacture; they DIS
tribute literature and interest prospec-
tive buyers: they make overalis and
try photograph records; they lecture
in movie theaters and bake cakes.
Every exhibitor has thought OF some
way to utilize the charm ana aDillty
of a young woman.
Attracted to San Francisco by the al
Turing prospect of change and higher
wages, these girls. most OF them from
a distance, are scattered about the city
in boarding houses, without friends or
home influence Opportunities for
wholesome good times are rare, while
recreation of debasive sort is too In
sistent to be always avoided
Realizing this fact and knowing her
pays for dinners in advance at her
boa riding house, so that when the I'M
desirable invitation to dine comes she
will have something besides an empty
purse and hungry body to back up her
refusal Unfortunately, such foresight
is rare, and the exposition atmosphere
of excitement and relaxation does not
tend to increase 1t.
Showing Girls the Show.
OF course, in order to counteract lone
illness and it's dangers the greatest
stress is laid upon the recreational side
of the work. Committees of the girls
have been formed in each of the pal
aces. with a trained worker as a sort
of a silent partner. to arrange parties
and good times Sometimes they are
held in the association building, some-
times on the beaches or parks. Club
women of the city have been interested
in the fact that many of the girls have
never had time to see the exhibits out
side the buildings in which they are
employed and are taking groups
through the exposition. The exhibitors
themselves, in the palace of education,
are devoting their noon hours to eX
planning the work of the national child
labor committee and the children's bu-
reau to employees.
With December in mind. the day the
exposition closes, when few hundred
more women will be added to the I'M
employed. evening classes in stenog-
raphy and salesmanship are held in the
Y. w. c. a. building. Preparations are
also being made to have new jobs ready
as soon as the old ones are gone and to
provide for the stranded by co-opera
ton with permanent agencies.
The Y w. c. A work on the EXPOSE
ton grounds has itself been an eff
cheney exhibit Wherever gaps have
appeared it has been able to step for
,I..t -ry II.