Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1915-09-09
WOMEN WORKERS WHO
NEVER REST WHILE
SERVING THE WAR GOD
Du Pont Village Down the Del
aware the Scene of Never
Ending Toll for Wives .
of Powder Makers
AN ALL-DAY SCHEDULE
Breakfast Three Times Every "a
Hours and Same Number Of
Dinners

| laid great Dig egg, ana most peisVhs
think It was an easy matter for the
farmer 70 60 out and pick up that egg.
But II the story could be given a back
ground Of facts you would find the farm
er's wife watching that goose day after
day. mixing special food for her lady
ship, currying her feathers, putting her
to bed at night and when the time came
leading her subtly TO a spot worthy OF
a golden egg Then the farmer went out,
picked II up and he and the goose have
come down in history.
SO II goes on. There's a parallel down
at the du Pont powder mills at Penns-
grove Every one has read OF the
myriads of men hocking there for work.
and who thinks OF the wives uprooted
and replanted there? Men are limited
by law to an eight-hour day, but the
law knows no housewives and the women
work three shifts a day This is a SAM
| pie day Of the average woman in du
| Pont village:
"1've got to feed eight men. my hus-
| band, three sons and four boarders,"
/ said this typical fagged-out-looking
| American worker, her hair pulled back
| tight and screwed together In a knot that
| slipped up and down as she talked. THE
company knows just how many rooms
| you have and they want every room
filed UP or they'll come round to see
you. work much harder than my hus-
band does, but then I guess l make al
most twice as much as he does. too How
would you like my jobP / dish up break
fast three times day and dinner three
times day It's like this: This week my
h,,rh etuFS 90 OIL
Z in the morning until 3 in the afternoon,
two of the boarders and my third son
from 3 in the afternoon until II at night
and the rest of the boarders from II at
night until in the morning. Neither
the machinery nor myself gets any rest.
ALL DAY SCHEDULE.
This is my schedule: l get up at $50
for the first breakfast at 6 a. m. for the
shift that works from in the morning
to g. At the boys on the 11-to-7 shift
come home and they want their dinner.
Think of dinner at o'clock!
"In the morning 1 tidy up wherever
there's nobody asleep. At two In the
afternoon breakfast is dished up for the
G-to-l1 shift, about four the 7-to-3 boys
como hame for dinner. At nine l give
the 7-to-11 gang breakfast, and at Il mid
night the 3-to-u crew their dinner.
Every man gets a breakfast when he
gets up and dinner when he's finished
work. Can you see me setting myself
down in rocking chair? Sometimes I'm
so tired l don't know whether I'm dish |
ing up dinner or breakfast. Some folks |
just serve a meal in the middle of the |
day. and them that will, call II breakfast, |
and them that won't call 1t dinner. But |
l amt that kind. l get 81 a week from |
my boys and l feed them good. And l |
forgot to tell you that between times l |
put up eight lunch boxes a day, and last |
Il gaA fa1 aV,d 90,
row I'm going to put up two baskets of |
tomatoes. We're all mighty busy; we |
amt no ladies here.
HARD-woRKING BEDS. o
IT only have three boarders in a room |
I don't know any of the families around |
here, but in the third house from the cor
ner on the other side, the woman has |
27 boarders in seven rooms, and one of |
the rooms is a kitchen, You can see for
yourself it's only one-story house. I'll |
tell you how they do II. When one shift |
OF men gets up to go to work. the shift |
that has just come off gets into their
beds And when the second men get up,
tho third gang comes in and takes their
places Them beds gets worked as hard
us women.
"lm not resting now, a'talking to you.
came out here to see IL they're bringing
my boy home. Today at noon the young
est boy brought home his brothers dinner
pail and said: Nom, here's Luke's pail,
he amt coming yet; he's in the hos
pital' Just like that. Boys got no |
heart. The hospital is in du Points
ground, and nobody can get by the gate.
Last week Pop was singed. Three men
working with him were burned and died,
but only the back of him was hurt. And
stood at the gate by the hospital a cry
Ing. Amt 1t awful waiting?
REAL AMERICANS. do.
would you like to see my house? Our
living room is about Is by 10, and there's
a dining room and kitchen on this floor,
and we have three bedrooms on the next
floor. We aren't crowded but we are
well filled up.
Have you ever seen a Photograph as
old as this? has an artist make a
charcoal portrait from a tintype II was
taken in Chicago so years ago of my
great-great-grandmoth and they were
old people then. They left Ireland when
they were married. Isn't he funny in
his stovepipe hat and the wide brim?
And the way she clings TO his arm!
guess we're real Americans"
Everywhere the women were hustlinR.
Men lolled on the porches. but the wom-
en- were eternally fussing over their
gasoline stoves. And so II was at any
time Of the day; men rested when their
work was done, but the women never
seemed to be through. All neurotio ten
|
fully by canning tomatoes, and nerves
plus temperament soothed by preserving
peaches.
Going back to the town in the after
noon the reporter met the afternoon
shift jitneying jauntily to work; for who
would walk In du Pont village when the
jitney trucks take you down 10 the
works. two for five.
One energetic man stands out; he helped
the reporter to find the depot
WAR GODS WORKING OUTFIT.
There, Miss. right ahead OF Won.
down the street know it's there"
visible.
Honest II Is. Right on the other side
OF the car, the guide explained.
And leading the way around the car
he pointed 10 a one-room building, cud-
died down back OF the car.
Such is the entrance to the workshops
Of the war gods and their satellites. tha
hard-working American women.
Anti-Suifragist Arrives