They were healthy in
appearance, many of them remarkably so, and had the manners and
deportment of young women; not of degraded brutes of burden."
Dickens continues: "The rooms in which they worked were as well
ordered as themselves. In the windows of some there were green
plants, which were trained to shade the glass; in all, there was
as much fresh air, cleanliness, and comfort as the nature of the
occupation would possibly admit of." Again: "They reside in
various boarding-houses near at hand. The owners of the mills are
particularly careful to allow no persons to enter upon the
possession of these houses, whose characters have not undergone
the most searching and thorough enquiry." Finally, the author
announces that he will state three facts which he thinks will
startle his English readers: "Firstly, there is a joint-stock
piano in a great many of the boarding-houses. Secondly, nearly
all these young ladies subscribe to circulating libraries.
Thirdly, they have got up among themselves a periodical called
'The Lowell Offering' . . . whereof I brought away from Lowell
four hundred good solid pages, which I have read from beginning
to end." And: "Of the merits of the 'Lowell Offering' as a
literary production, I will only observe, putting entirely out of
sight the fact of the articles having been written by these girls
after the arduous labors of the day, that it will compare
advantageously with a great many English Annuals.
Pages:
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105