The Bridgeport evening farmer. [volume] (Bridgeport, Conn.) 1866-1917, 1916-01-29
AUSTRIAN WOMEN
TO BE Modified
INDUSTRIALLY
Economic Machinery TO
Move Along While Men
Are At the Front.

Vienna, Jan. 29.-Under the joint
auspices Of the Austro-Hungarian
ministry of war and the Austrian wo-
mems organization, the women OF
Austria are about to be industriaIly
"mobiIized." The undertaking is the
direct result firstly of the work Aus
trian women have done since the war,
and secondly of a number of confer
ences Austrian feminist leaders and
club women have had with the min
lister of war and his aides. 1t is pro-
posed to enlarge as far as possible
the industrial and commercial fields in
which women are now active and to
add new branches in which they may
become so, the purpose of the move
rnent being to- lberate for military
service all men whose places can be
filled by women and to give more of
them an opportunity to increase their
incomes.
The attitude of the Austrian gov
eminent in the matter was explained
in a statement given to the press: 1.-THE
front is at present the domain of ev-.
cry able-bodied man. says the an
nouncernent, while the woman work
ing for the army is the soldier at
home It is then pointed out that
every woman who works in a produc-
tive capacity assists the army, firstly,
by releasing some man to do military
duty, secondly, by keeping the eco
nonic machinery of the country in
motion without which the men at the
front would fare badly.
Thousands of Austrian women are
already doing work which men for
merly did. In deed in the branches
in which they are employed are
many which formerly admitted no
women. The street car conductress-
es have been a success from the start,
as have also the female postal en-
p1oyes, including the women drivers
and chauffeurs of mail vehicles On
the railroads they have also been
very successful, especially as tele-
graph operators, ticket agents, and
freight department officials. Most of
the clerical work of the various gov
ernments is being done by women.
Firms whose male employees were
called to the colors have been obliged
to replace these by women. In the
ammunition factories thousands of
women are said to be doing excellent
work In a plant visited some time
ago by the Associated Press CORES
pendent the female employees formed
| over sixty per cent. of the entire staff,
even the heavy 1a,thes on which the
| large shells were being turned were
manipulated by women. A few Junos
were handling huge ladies with mol
| ten steel like a kitchen spoon. Wo-
men already work in mines. mills,
! factories generally, wholesale and re-
/ tail houses, and this years generous
crop was largely raised by them.
One of the special aims of the pres
! emit movement is to train women for
executive work, so that the men en-
/ gagged in this may become available
for duty as officers
| A feature of the scheme is to pro-
vide half day work for women whose
| family ties would make that well
fcome.S In the morning mothers will
attend to their households and chill
dren, and so be free to work in the
| afternoon from Ave to six hours. To
| care for the children in the absence OF
the mothers, special nurseries and
! kindergartens will be established.
some of the women's organizations
favor the plan that <e1derly women
Etake the children of their working
neighbors into their homes
- The program for the undertaking is
now being worked out by represen-
| tatiyes of the women's organizatio
and the ministry of war. The larger
| of the organizations are: The Fede-
ration of Austrian Women's Societies,
Vienna Woman Wage Farmers Assoc
| cfation, The Catholic Organizations OF
| Lower Austria, Austrian Woman SUI
frage Committee, State Organization
| of Austrian Housekeepers, Austrian
| General Woman's Association, Social
| Democratic WomeTl's Organization,
Federation of Female Teachers ana
Educators, Federation OF WorKIng
Women, Federation Of z~arnale Postal
Service Employees. High School Teach
ers. Society, Federation of Social Set
! tlement work, and the New Woman
Clubs. Several dozen of smaller Aus
| trian, and hundreds of local women's
| clubs and societies are also assisting
| the movement.
| So far the plan affects only Austria
but it is expected that Hungarian
women will soon join the movement.
| The Austrian ministry of war is mere
| Iy cooperating with the women, and
ultimately the directing and manag-
| ing of the undertaking will be given
| entirely into the hands of women. The
| "soIdiers behind the 'front.' will have
| a general starr of their own.