The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1923-06-11
Old Age or Its Knees Scrubblng
Do You Think That Any SURFACE Reforms Wll
Strarhten Those Tired Old Backs and Give the
Workers Relief?

preparing end long day.
At this the elevator stops and delivers 70 neI "A
an old past sixty.
She wears heavy black veil plain black dress Her
shoulders are bent and her face tired
She removes her bonnet and her veil, puts scruOOng
skirt her black dress.
Then gets her pail, soap and brush
For many hours while others sleeping and later as the
sun is rising SHE is ON HER KNEES sCRUBB1NG
She goes home in time to get late breakfast for some
children that she is taking Of
She sleeps just then works through
day, without pay waiting for the hour when she must
work through the most dismal lonesome hours OF the night
for wage that DID, defenseless woman can be
made to accept
While this old woman scrubs high up in the
office building an sits little stool the
cold corner of the street below selling newspapers
This old the street bent almost double thin
shawl her back
She stoops that when you buy newspaper from
her. put your hand upon her give her enough
money her off the street. she must her head side
ways to look up and see who it is
If that old woman with the black veil coming every
ing to scrub, were AN OLD SOLDIER IN HIS UNIFORM
WHAT INDIGNATION WOULD BE AROUSED!
Everybody would 1T dreadful that old soldier
should be forced at that to down his knees and
scrub"
be submitted hardship and hard labor that would
Is not the black bonnet and the black veil of the scrub
just truly the uniform of brave soldier any uni
form in the world?
That woman has borne children She has suffered for hours
the soldier suffers only for minutes
She has worried sickbeds put children thesgraves
worked for family and for husband put the husband his
gravegving her pitfu savings in the effort express
loyalty through the undertaken
not worse to see her in the cold winter morning going
her work at and scruDDng on her knees for hours
enough money to keep the roof over her head?
And that DID, bent the street. with the hands
wrnked and yellow is not her life dreadful reflection upon
the heartlessness OF what we call civilization?
that charity would take her.
knows only too well that your charity colder than the wind
She would rather stand there with occasional kind
from man who treats her human being
than to live your CHARITY ticketed labeled like
piece Of human furniture that nothing except
obige the community by dying.
easy help either of women or both of
But what you going to do FOR THE THOUSANDS
UPON THOUSANDS OF OTHERS AS BADLY OFF OR
WORSE OFF?
say them: You shall not earn your living
in that way unless you prepared to give them better
living of another kind
you give them money today does not provide for
the years that stretch ahead AND THEY DO NOT DARE
GIVE UP THE DAILY CERTAINTY, WITH ITS HARD
LABOR.
OF THE DEEP PROBLEMS.
The world has great deal Of work before will be
able to treat these and the millions other unortu
treated ~
tunltles must be given to them.
The savings of the poor protected against the
vampires that them through com
panes and the other companies upon which enormous for
tunes and our horrible poverty based
The intelligence Of men must solve THE RENT PROBLEM
as it has solved other problems
The intelligence of mankind which enables PROSPEROUS
70 cross the ocean in floating palace that is almost
nominal to the rich old woman with her
ent back and hard e at least to have shelter and
ecent food without grinding out her last spark vitality in
the effort to get them ~ -
The trouble with this is that its laws are made m
plans are made its battles fought THE POWERFUL
Inere are any number Of busy trying make the we'll
dav+
three-dollar man. ~' ~ WIG
But in the councils where laws made and in the fields
where the battles fought VOICES OF THESE TWO
OLD WOMEN ARE NOT HEARD wv
Their bent forms do not appear Congress when 1.-The
statesmen" are trying to realize their ideals Wv
Even in the churches, they humble bent and nm
noced as they to their work the darkness If the
night " - VIC
Before these old and the thousands of others that
are unortunaewhether old youngcan be helped there