Belding banner. (Belding, Mich.) 1889-1918, 1917-09-26
{ Continued from page two)


house after that hour unless absent on
special permit from the matron. Rea-
sonable leave is permitted each girl
at all times as the girls are placed on
their honor in this respect. Sickness
is almost unknown among the girls
and except for an occasional cold the
Bedding girls have gone through sea-
son after season without a single call
for a physician.
Miss Mile Zeimen, the matron' of
the Belrockton has occupied her pres
ent charge for ~ years and before as
Stunning her present duty, was en-
ployed at the mill, past of which she
is justly proud. Nature has we'll fitted
her for this important position of
trust and responsibility. Though of
commanding personality, she possesses
motherly disposition that wins the
confidence and love of the girls under
her charge, thereby supplying loss
many girls experience in leaving con-
genial home surroundings to enter the
world of self reliance.
The culinary apartments and kit
chen visited compared favorably with
any first class hotel. The kitchen is
supplied with every modern conven-
fence including a big electric oven,
from which baking of big creamy
brown crusted loaves of bread had
just been drawn as we entered the
| room.
"We bake every day" said Miss
Zeimen, "the food supplies are pur-
chased in wholesale lots and are of
first quality only" thus making a
pleasing feature in maintaining
the health and happiness of the girls
who enjoy these home privileges.
/ found on the basement floor a
large dry storage room that resembles
the storage room of wholesale gro
Gerry in which flour, sugar and canned
1 goods, cases, bags and boxes were
piled to the ceiling with large bins
of potatoes and other vegetables.
From my personal observations Of
the dormitory, kitchens and general
surroundings the girls at the Bedding
mills are assured of ideal living con-
ditions and every care and comfort
has been provided.
At the Ashfield Home
The Ashfield home is a beautiful
building on an elevation commanding
fine view of the park and river and
surrounded by broad well kept lawn.
Here / found Miss Caroline Broker
the matron in charge. She stated that
a number of her girls were. away on
a vacation but that the Ashfield home
had room for SO girls, though only SO
are living at the home at present. The
matron stated, "The girls all are very
much interested in the work of the
Red Cross and have their own auxil-
larry board under the town officers
They are church members as rule
and make splendid auxiliary workers
and leaders in church betterment
work.
"The health of the girls is kept
under close observation, and as a rule
they are very seldom i'll. Our girls
come from good homes. They are as
a rule intelligent and ambitious. Some
of them leave US for good homes of
their own, a considerable number 60
to schools of higher education and be-
come school teachers, ETC., and many
times the school teachers of whom we
have several, come here to work dur
ing vacation and some remain because
of the better wages earned and the
ideal home comforts enjoyed.
"Our girls are respected and self
respecting and self-supporting. Many
of the best magazines are kept on the
/ tables of our reading room. We also
have small library of good books OF
our own. Several of our girls are fai
musicians. We have a piano and tn,
girls have string instruments of their
own so we have improvised concerts
of an evening or on Sunday"
Miss Broker has been in charge of
the Ashfeld for period of six years.
Before being placed in charge of the
Ashfcld she was employed at the mills
so that she knows the girls and the
mill conditions under which the girls
work. Miss Broker is in fullest SYM
PATTY with the work of the company
! and is doing her full part toward
making her dormitory as cheerful and
! home-like as possible to the girls liv-
ing there.
What the Clergymen Say About Nit
Work and Dormifory Conditions
To check up on my observation
about town and at the Mills and dor
mitories called on three Of the repre-