Page:The Girl Who Earns Her Own Living (1909).djvu/200

 in a dry-goods or a department store who is past-master of the same tricks. And most certainly I should urge the young woman who lives in a factory community to investigate the conditions and openings for work in the local concerns before she puts her last penny into a "business training" built upon an elementary knowledge of English.

To the girl seeking factory work in sanitary surroundings the up-to-date plants of pure-food packers offer many attractions. To be sure, it is claimed that the model plants maintained by many of these manufacturers are part of the advertising methods of the firm, but this does not alter the fact that the workers participate in the benefits of pure food, cleanly environment and self-respect which result. At one of the factories maintained by a cracker and biscuit trust, I found girls working at wages from five to twelve dollars a week in almost ideal surroundings, and let me add that most of these girls were American-born. Every room in which I found girls employed was spotless, with dust absorbers, pure air and plenty of it. At various points of the building were splendid lavatories with enameled basins, tubs and shower-baths, a matron in attendance, cots for girls taken ill at their work, an emergency closet with simple remedies aplenty, and an attractive lunchroom. These girls wear-