When comparing values of today and those of yesteryears they become almost humorous. These same values are naturally in evidence when we consider status symbols of the past as to those of today. What we have illustrated is a scene of the past, I personally haven't seen this done in many years. It's just another example of progress or technology. Some may even think washing ones clothes has little if any relationship to either technology or status symbols but they do. I can surely remember this form of clothes care because of both reasons.

At our home we had neither, a washing machine or someone to come every other week, as some neighbors did, and "boil" our clothes and linens. One of my good friends had this service, the "washin'lady" who'd come do your clothes in your own back yard. Most everyone did their own washing, even though it did not cost much to hire it done. This was the status symbol, to have it done was like the woman of the house being a queen. I remember my mother doing the wash. She had a low bench with two tubs on it, one to wash in, one to rinse in. She did the heaviest and dirtiest, such as my overalls, by scrubbing them on a rub board. The thing that seemed hardest was the ringing them out when finished. This was another way besides whippin'

I knew how strong Mama really was, I'd try it just like she'd do it but got only half as much water out. This must've been why she had to iron so much, you could see the twist marks in the stuff after she hung it on the cloths line to dry. When this "washin'lady" came to my friends house we used to observe how efficient she was. We would always marvel at how good she could build a fire under that pot but if you did get to see that, it was only if you got up early enough to, because she'd come practically at dawn get the fire going and start hauling the water to pour in it. Then she'd take the big bars of soap and shave them up with a sharp knife. Used Octagon soap on the dirtiest rough stuff and ivory on the finer fabrics. She also had a special piece to punch and stir them around with. It kind of looked like a thin blade paddle and she'd use it to pry up the clothes forcing the water thru them as an agitator on a washer would. The fire was kept hot enough to keep the clothes at slow boil.