=158. Vermicelli.= Vermicelli is moulded by passing through a machine and being laid on frames until the next day to partially dry. Then girls cut it in short pieces, and twist it. The twisting requires a little art acquired by practice. They receive from $2 to $3.50 a week. It is cruel for females to be kept on their feet all day while at work, when they might sit. At a factory I saw a French lady, the wife of the proprietor, cutting and twisting vermicelli. A young Frenchman was at work, who told us he was paid 75 cents a day; but women, he said, would not be paid as much, because he had to attend to the machinery. The lady sat, as girls in factories should do if they wish.
=159. Vinegar.= A plant is now grown from which vinegar is made. "In addition to the consumption of vinegar in culinary uses and the preparation of preserved food, it is indispensable in several branches of manufacture, as in the dressing of morocco leather, and in dye and print works." The labor of making vinegar is too hard and heavy for women. The handling of barrels, changing of liquids, and constant exposure to heat and cold, without cessation of labor, are too great for the female frame to sustain. The workers often pass from a temperature varying from 92° to 105°, to one of extreme coldness." A Boston vinegar manufacturer, writes: "Women are never employed in making vinegar in large quantities. They are not adapted to the occupation. It does not agree with some constitutions. It requires but a short time to learn the business. The prospect for future employment is poor." Some women make vinegar from parings of fruit, tea leaves, &c., for family use.
=160. Yeast.= A manufacturer of yeast powders writes: "There is but a small part of the work that women can do. It requires the strong, muscular arm of a man to do most of it." We know women are sometimes employed for putting up the powders, and are paid by the number of packages.