Friday, April 13th, 1831
Manchester, England
Dearest Dairy,
Today, all I could think about was how I miss life on the farm. Things were so simple on the farm. I used to get breakfast and supper, and even a real dinner. I miss my brothers and mother so.
The reason we all had to move from our family farm to the crowded city was because Father had past away. Even with my brothers working the farm, we didn’t make enough money to keep all the cows and horses. So, my mother, my brother and I moved into the city, looking for jobs. Before we left, my mother had cut our hair, so it shall not get caught in the machinery. Yet she did cut my hair for another reason. My mother hoped that if she cut my hair and dressed me in boys’ clothes, that I could pass as a boy. If I did, I might be able to be in the same dormitory as my brother. I would also be paid more money than a woman would.
By chance, I was placed in the same room as my brother. All the boys in the dormitories have to share a bed, so I was willing to share with my brother. It is not a big change, because on the farm, I also had to share my bed with my brother. In the house of about 25-35 boys, there is only one toilet and water pump. I am now grateful for growing up with 8 brothers, because I now do not have to use the restroom that often. On the farm, we also had only one pump, but there were not as many people there.
Outside of our housing, the streets are littered. It smells much worse than the barn at our farm. I would gladly smell the familiar smell of manure than the disgusting smell of the streets. Apparently, people think that the streets are waste baskets, since there is trash and sewage covering the dirt roads.
When we arrived here, the jobs weren’t open. We had to wait for and opening in the very low paid, hard jobs. There were lines of people, waiting around, ready to fill in those positions. Though, my mother got a job that very first day. My brother and I had to sleep on the gross streets that night. The next morning, my brother got a job in a mine. As he walked off to his job, I felt a twinge of worry for him, as I knew mines could be very dangerous. That night, I had to sleep by my own, for the first time since I was two. I couldn’t quite fall asleep, because my mind had wondered to my brother. I felt so worried.
As the next week went by, I was worried that I might not get a job. But, one morning, a man dressed in a suite came to get a child to replace one that had gotten sick. He saw me and told me to go with him. He showed me how to replace the bobbins. Then he left me to my work. I discovered how hard some people’s lives were. Now I work 13 hours a day and have 15 minutes to take a break and eat oat-cakes.
Even through the bad times, I think being in the city is cool. There is a bunch of inventions that I would never have known of if I was on the farm right now. I’ve over heard the bosses about voting. I wish that I could vote some day, but I’m a female and females aren’t allowed to vote. Although, people here believe I’m a boy.
I just want to go home. I want to see my brothers again, I miss them so much. I also miss Father. I wish he could see how I’ve changed; that his baby girl is all grown up.
Sincerely,
Petunia Pendagraph
