The Washington herald., 1917-06-13
Doing Ones Bit
~ DOROTHY DIX
The Worlds Highest Paid
Woman Writer.

LUIS terTaDle war has ADDED many
new words and phrases TO our vocabu-
larry. The one that like best. IS the
one which Is on the lips OF every Eng
hsh man and woman today. II n: -
am doing my BIT"
/ There could be no more inspiring
motto than that to 1--we by, or fight by.
One could wish no nobier epitaph TO
Be carved on ones tomb when one
died. for It means that one had done
nlled ones appointed role In the world.
Most OF Us live little hum-drum
nves. There comes 70 US no oppor-
tunity to do any great, heroic. spec
tacular act. so we drift unconsciously
into being slackers because i does not
weu or III, or even perform at al. our
small tasks.
This is particularly true Of home
keeping women who. Of all workers In
the world, work under the most dis-
10 iITutas,ng .a conaiuons. Hor " y ,,e. 1neir
They. spend their days and their
strength cooking meals that are eaten
and forgotten as soon as cooked: IN
sweeping ho0rs that must be swept
over again IN the next hour; In darn
ing holes In garments that are rent
and combing little heads that are dirty
and tousled again In I'VE minutes.
such woman can point 70 no vis-
ible thing with pride, as can the car
penter, or the writer, or the artist,
She cannot even jingle 10 her pocket
the money she has earned by her
long, weary hours of toll, for OF all
workers she Is the only laborer now
left on earth who IL expected 70 work
and be thankful for the privilege OF
working. for such board apd clothes
as her lord and master sees ut TO
give her.
1t is no wonder that such women
say enviously to their sisters who are
out In the world doing things that get
TIER ,h names IN the papers and bring
while!"
Nor is 1t strange that such women
lose heart and courage and go about
their daily grind Of monotonous duties
they degenerate into lazy, shiftless
housekeepers who feed their families
out Of cans and paper bags ana care
les mothers who raise their children
In the streets.
Every domestic woman In the land
should hang this motto: Il Am Do
ing Ny BIT" where she can see 1t
every time she raises her eyes from
her work. It will be an inspiration TO
her. II will make her feel that every
time she sweeps q floor she Il doing
her part in the great work of ssnita-
thrifttly or makes over an old gar
ment SO that II Is as good as new,
she Is solving practically the prob
lem Of the high cost of living with
which learned economists are wrest-
ling In vain; that every time she
scalds out the baby's milk bottle prop
erly she is reducing the infant NOR
tality rate.
1t would make her feel that when
she made q comfortable, cheerful.
happy home that her husband and
children liked to stay In, she was do
ing more to stop drunkenness and vice
than q dozen foud mouthed reform
ers; that every time she taught her
boys and girls self-control and obedi-
ence, she was fulfilling 9 high patri-
otlc duty by making good citizens for
her country, and that when she raised
up family of honest, intelligent, in
dustrious men and women she shared
with God himself In the great work Of
creation.
That is her bit of the worlds work,
and IL Is the one most important piece
of work in the world. II she does it
well she gives us the men and women
wo delight to honor. II she does II
i'll, she fills our jails and reforma-
tories with criminals. Surely II every
woman kept the words 'T am doing
Iry Bit in her thoughts as she. went
about her domestic duties II would
rob them OF all sordidness and petit
ness, and make them seem the most
worth while thing that any hand could
find to do.
And / would hang the motto ''I am
doing my BIZ" over every working
girls desk or counter. Girls fail in
business because the part they have
In 1t doesn't seem worth while learning
to do II we'll What, they subcon-
sciously argue in the back of their
heads, are q few extra minutes In
the morning that one should break
ones neck to be always on timer
What do a few more or less els or
is amount to in q word that one
should give up q party TO study the
spelling book? And what does 1t
| matter II now and then one makes a
1t will eventually be Strengthened out
and, heaven knows, no one has a right
to expect to get efficiency experts or
Noah websters at ten dollars a week!
II every working girl would make L
| a point Of honor to be able to truth
should not have to talk of a minimum
wage. for every girl would be en-
titled to and would get a maximum
wage. And the employer would be able
and glad TO pay II. II is the girls
who are not doing their bits, who are
shirkers. who cut down the profits
OF a firm SO that 1t has to hold down
salaries.
The working girl who is doing her
bit Is doing more than helping her
self. She is helping every other work
! ing woman in the world and making
the way easier for all Of the girls who
come after her. She is proving
woman's efficiency and reliability, and
making employers more willing to give
girls a chance and good pay. 1t must
surely send a very warm thrill to any
tired little stenographer or shop girl
to feel that she Is doing her bit to-
wards opening the door OF opportunity
to her sex
Nor have women altogether the
worst of II in the world. Life is
drear and drab enough to the aver
age man who tolls from youth to
age without ever gaining more
than lap or two on the wolf. 1t
doesn't seem to him that he has ac-
complished much when all that he
has done for forty or fifty years is
just to add up columns or figures
or sell groceries to haggling house
wives, and when all that his hard
A..