The Washington times., 1916-12-06
WOMEN NOW MAKE
J. SHELLS FOR ARMY
Hand That Rocked the Cradle
Makes Munitions to Rock
the World.
ONE PLANT EMPLOYS 1900,
All Glasses Are Employed in the
MunitioT Factories Of
England.
ONE PLANT EMPLOYS 1900
By MARGARET MASON.

The hand that rocked the cradle
world,
For female fingers fashion
Almost ev'ry bomb that's hurled;
And maidens, wives and mothers
AL stand working. sun to sun,
With bits of glittering metal
That will XIII men when they're
VINO knows, oh, Tommy Atkins,
As. you throw that hand grenade
Perchance it's one of many
That your wife or sweetheart made.
LONDON, Nov. 1 (by aiD.-The
early Victorian females must raise
their lily hands from their tatting
and crewel work in horror as they
look back across the River Styx and
see how the hands OF their twentieth
century female descendants are occu.
pied. 1 am sure they don't consider
II maidenly or 1adylike and yet these
steneh and willing women munition
work, too.
Huge Munitien Factory.
Down at the big arsenal at Wool.
wich. just thirty minutes from Lon.
don by train. 1900 women from six.
teen to nifty years old at big ma.
chtnes arc turning out with fleet and
capable feminine fingers bits OF gilt.
Sering copper ana aluminium and
BRASS which, assembled into shells
h4mbs, hand grenades, cartridges, and
~ those deadly and frightful weap.
ona OF modern warfare are dubbed
Not only are the wives, mothers,
Atkins, the typical working women.
employed at this new sort OF fancy
work. hut delicateiy reared and cui.
tared sentlewomen as well are eager
~ and efficiently doing their bit.
There is work for every grade and
degree OF age and mental and physical
development. The pay for all Is bet.
Ter. TOO. than the workers can get In
from f3 to 70 or SIS to s25 a week
one time comfortable English house
holds are plunged into chaos and
gloom through the loss OF their cham.
hear the siren call OF the shrapnei
and the she'll. Mansions in Mayfair
and Park Lane, novels In White.
chapel and the, East End disgorge
alike their bits of femininity into the
Unsuitable nav OF the government ar.
senals.
Fur Coats and Jewelry.
Never have so many fur coats, never
has so much jewelry been sold In
London as At the present moment. and
the women munition workers are the
busy little buyers, The first thing a
poor little erstwhile factory slavey
does when she draws her first prince
arsenal Is 10 treat herself ITO to ali al the the
cheap Jewelry her little starved fem
mime heart has craved her whole life
long. She may top off with n warm
spending orgy she IL content to settle
down and save her salary with the ex.
ceptfon OF what she spends daily on
real food. And my. how she does eatI
at. l.l lAZk -
the different arsenais where the girls
may get the most nourishing food for
the cheapest rates. Four meals are
served q day. breakfast lunch, a very
nsr. There also are lodgings estab.
lished near the arsenal for all those
women who wish to live close 90 their
work. These are called hotels, and
rooms for a modest sum.
Al wooiwich. under the wide and
human Jurisdiction OF Miss Lillian
Barker. tho government lady super,
one huge family or a school for girls.
All sorts OF things are provided for
their amusement and instruction In
their recreation hours. There are
dancing classes, amateur theatricafs
and educational courses.
Isspreved Living Conditions.
90, although the work Is strenuous
and the hours long, the enect on the
women OF this steady work. good pay.
nourishing food, clean lodging, fresh
air and. above all, blessed spirit OF in
dependence they have attained, Is
working miracles with English wom-
ankind.
Thanks to their munition work they
win be fit physically, mentally and
financially to take up the burdens or
their poor MANNED and broken men
folks after the close OF the war,
4 Strange and yet fittingly simple,
Isn't it, that these same deadly bits
of metal shining beautifully golden In
the sun should be bringing death and
destruction and disfigurement TO the
one. health, prosperity and life to the
Twenty-four hours, day after day.
night after night, the huge arsenals
are busy turning out the munitions
that spell trouble for the ehemy. Since
the days OF Eve and Adam woman
has been dubbed a trouble maker Now
she is glorying and being glorified In
the role. She is making munitions.