In 1834, when Harriet Martineau visited this country, she found only seven
occupations open to women--housekeeping, keeping boarders, needlework,
teaching, working in cotton factories, bookbinding, and typesetting.
Only the last four could really be counted as out-of-home occupations, for
keeping boarders and sewing called for no new knowledge or skill apart
from the training in housekeeping which all girls received.
It is safe to say that of those seven occupations, six at least were not
overcrowded. The work of the world was done in the homes and housekeeping
was the occupation of women. There were few spinning-mills, but the
old-fashioned wheel was in every house. It was not kept in a drawing-room
alcove to prove its long ancestry, but steadily, busily hummed all day
long as the soft rolls of wool changed into skeins and balls of yarn or
thread.
After the work of the spinning-wheel came the loom and the
knitting-needles. Cloth and stockings, blankets, mittens, and mufflers
were fashioned by the hands of the housewife and her daughters.
There were no factories for canned fruits, pickles, or preserves. All
these had to be made and stored up for winter use.
Now the stores furnish everything from a handkerchief to a ball-gown, and
from bread to canned roast beef. The washing and ironing can go to the
laundry and the family supplies can be bought.