The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1915-05-18
(By DOROTHY MTTCHELL.)

stories you see written that they go
hungry-hungry, neighbor-IHere is
a paper basket, for your tears are
surely wasted). come and take a peep
with me at the back yard Of Mrs. Nc
Ginnis at the Pint mill in Gastonia,
and then your eyes Will open a little
wider, for there YOU will see a nice
1~ourishing garden in which is planted
and growing Is eatables. And if YOU
will cast your eyes about, you will Sc
a garden in the backyard Of every
cottage there, and if you will visi,
other mills you will see more and
more gardens.
l went to the Flint mill to take pic
lures of the life of the village which
| WCuld show up the living conditions Of
the people,, and you can bet when |
saw such nice gardens and Mrs. Nc
Ginnis a model gardener soon called
the photographer into service, and
Mrs. McGinnis was put in the picture
hOcing as she does quite a good deal
to keep things SO clean and thriving.
This picture will be sent to New
York and given prominent mention
among the other pictures which will
show the welfare work Of North Caro-
lima and be placed in a permanent ex-
hibit on the 35th floor of the Metro
pOlitan Tower along with other well
fare work among various industries.
The things which are growing in
Tx So1 oS1l L AAS DONt
toes, onions, beans, beets, tomatoes,
cucumbers, okra, corn, lettuce, must
ard, turnipS, parSnipS, sweet potatoes,
WatermelOnS, cantelOupeS, peanuts, an
herb for f1avoring soups, and a bed
Of tanSy. In addition to the vegeta-
bles, there were two or three peach
trees which will bear fruit this year.
Last year Mrs. McGinnis kept a pig,
and this year she will again help out
the larder with another one.
Hoes were in general use by the
women of the village, and one little
girl not more than ten perhaps was
vigorously chopping around some
plants and she used the hoe as If she
mac been accustomed to it for some
time.
The people at the Flint mill are
taking more interest in flower garden
ing his year than usual. The mill
company has given out seed and is
encouraging them to beautlfy their
> premises.
= For the past few years mill garden
: ing has been steadily increasing, but
. this year it seems hat the people are
taking more interest in this branch
: of home industry more than ever be-
fore. In every mill village which ]
a have visited this spring, I nave motto
( ed that there are better gardens than
usual, some people are planting
something who heretofore V ne
elected their premises. AS usual, the
best general average gardens Of g
town or community are found amons
a the cotton mill people, as they seen
g to know how to make things grow
v When a good gardener is found, he j!
v very much Of an expert, and hi:
methods of planting are about tht
Y best advice to take if you are {
v novice.
e A good garden is n Of the wors
e enemies a tin can factory has, fol
where there is a good garden, Their
" will be fewer tin cans seen. Their
are some of the mill people who ar
Le canning their own supply of fruit
t. and vegetables.
Ie I would like to see this pictur
a shown to every individual, for in i
one can see the true condition o
e Southern mill operatives. Here i
le the South we have the separate CO
tages for each family, except in a FEY
Of instances of an apartment house TO
OIL two small families, gardens for al
at roomy premises and neat but simpl
at homes. The cotton mill people ar
not the thin, half-starved lot that S
lr many people and magazines have pic
I'd tured them; for if there is one thin
I'd they will do it is to eat.
tn At this time there is a continue
he story running through the Ladie
te Home Journal which touches Cotto
mill life in New England. 1t is a pit
oil that a writer who can handle the pc
Id as cleverly as Edith Barnard Delan
III should give such a false idea to
re vast reading public in "When Core
mt Came to Town by writing abol
something concerning which she
as only slightly informed. In this stor
she depicts the cotton mill help
is, hating their master, hard worke'
I'D poorly paid and even hungry. TO u:
ISL a few of her words, they run like tn
sc for a line or two:
10 zone little boy looked hungry
nc I asked him if his mother gave hi
n q nice dinner to bring to work. Al
IN he laughed-not q child laugh, b.
an old-man laugh
The average reader who has req
some Of the stuff put out by the no
yet thern newspapers and magazines co
We corning cotton mill life tn