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39
Many mothers were ill, and worn out with child-bearing. Some
were consumptive and cowld not or would not recognise the seriousness
of their illness. For example, a mother was wasting and
had had a persistent cough for two years. After much trouble and
hesitation she was persuaded to take medical advice. She was
found to have consumption of the lungs. She refused to accept
the diagnosis, saying, "I have had this cough for very many years
and am now quite used to it. I consider it to be a family complaint."
When the mothers get ill they decline to enter a hospital
or infirmary until their illness has made considerable progress,
because there is no one to look after the children during their
absence. Very few of the mothers have good teeth, even though,
before marriage, they possessed teeth which were clean and well
cared for. In the slums the teeth are washed with ordinary soap.
In married women, dental caries is very common, and the need for
conservative dental treatment, at a reasonable price, is pressing
and urgent.
Some of the mothers were personally and domestically dirty.
One mother stated that she only washed herself when she went
out to visit friends or to do some shopping. During the first few
weeks of the war the mothers who were soldiers' wives were in
great distress. Later on they were much better off than they had
been for years. They received a regular allowance, more than
they had previously had from their husbands, and they had less
persons to feed because their husbands were away. So much was
this betterment appreciated that in mean streets the women became
most ardent recruiting agents. They pressed their husbands to
enlist because they heard from neighbours how well off those
mothers were whose husbands were now soldiers. Mathers, who
formerly used to work hard to keep the home, were able to
manage without employment when their husbands had enlisted.
Some of the occupations and earnings of mothers are appended.
The average working day may be taken to be of eight hours'
duration, but in many cases this time is much exceeded. Many
women consider themselves fairly well paid at the rate of 3d. per
hour—many have to be content with 1d., l¼d., or l½d. per hour.