LODGING-HOUSE FOR WOMEN

Evening Star, Issue 14512, 2 November 1910, Page 8

LODGING-HOUSE FOR WOMEN

A long, irregular, artistic room, green and white painted walls, parquet floor, large plant-filled windows, through which the sun shines brightly to-day—-and a crowd of interested people, listening with delight to the speeches of the women and men who occupy the small platform. The Lord Mayor (Mr Gustav Boh reus) unlocked the door of Ash ton House, the first Manchester Municipal Lodging-house for Women, and in happy phrases declares the building open. The Lord Mayor, Cr Fildes, and Cr .Jackson, whilst admitting that the Sanitary Committee had done their utmost to provide a fine building, attribute this achievement to the initiative and untiring zeal of women, and not least to Cr Margaret Ashton, in whose honor the building was named. Miss Ashton seconded the vote of thanks to the Lord Mayor, and expressed the hope that this homo would do something to lessen that crying shame of England’s great cities—the fact that over" night some women had nowhere to lay their heads, because their scanty .earnings were not enough to pay for a decent shelter. A few words about the, home itself. On the ground floor, adjoining the dayroom where the speeches were made, is a large dining room, and beyond this is the kitchen, with its cooking ranges, boiling-water apparatus, and stacks of earthenware and cooking utensils, any of which may he used by the residents. Close by is the store room, or shop, where groceries and cooked meats can be bought. A visit to the basement reveals a number of baths, footbaths, lavatory basins, and mirrors, whilst a long clipboard erection proves to be a series of 2 18 lockers, a most useful adjunct. Next to the baths is a wellequipped laundry, and nothing makes one realise more the hapless plight of many of the women for whom the home is intended than the thoughtful provision of cubicles in which to wait while the clothing dries in the hot drying apparatus. And now upstairs. Tliree stories containing !218 cubicles, each completely separate, each having its bed and chair, and—an important factor —its own window. The three dormitories are lofty, we 11-lighted and ventilated, and each is supplied with water. The beds are all alike, the prices 6d, fid, and 4d, fixed according to the floor on which the rooms are situated. There are rooms for attendants on each landing. The cost of tfao home was £II,OOO. It is fitted throughout with electric light, and the extensive use of white tiles, green and white paint, lightcolorod woods, and largo windows gives an impression of air, space, and beauty. The women who live here will be made to feel that they are not outcasts or forlorn, but a part tho-jaroat sisterhood of women.