DUNEDIN SERVANTS' UNION.

North Otago Times, Volume XXXIV, Issue 775, 18 July 1890, Page 4

DUNEDIN SERVANTS' UNION.

The Otago Daily Times reports : A meeting of domeitic iervanfcai was held oa Monday night to forward the movement recently set on foot to form a Union among servant girls. Several speaker* addresßod the meeting, the general tenor of the remarka being in the direction of advooatlng the establishment of a domeatio training; homo, tho «bortening of hours, the granting of ft half-holiday every week, niovo Sun day leisure, and higher wages. IV Utter queition wob raised only on oh during the evening, and that in an ttlmoot inaudib'e voice from tho rear of the hall. One or two of the speakers started to ekttoh out idea] oervice lives for the girls, but they got so high up in the olondo that the auditors were quite unable to follow, apparently believing that ouoh blini could never be theirs, and the little dreams were at length interrupted by a general laugh vll round. One gentleman (idvocited that mffftroßsrs ebould supply tboir iiiaida with suitable books to rend, and another blandly asked what poaeiblo harm there could be in allowing Mary Ann's "sweetheart" to come round to >he kitchen at night to wtaper soft wordfl to her. Boi«terouB laughter followed both euggeationa. Even a propoeal that the hours of labor should be limited to eit>b.t found no favor in the face of a statement by one girl that she worked from 5 a.m. to 11 p in. — eighteen hours— and that oho had donethiß for years past, Tho whole matter hue been left in the hands of a Committee to draw up rules for submission to » luture meeting.