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Forms to be Filled out for Each Interview FOLKLORE
ND; YORK
FORM A
Circumstances of Interview
STATE NewrUrk
NAME OF WORKER Ray Swenson
ADDRESS 291 Morton Street, N.Y.C.
DUE March 21, 1939
SUBJECT Rational Biscuit Company Workers
1. Date and Um° of interview
2. Place of interview
3. Name and address of informant
4. Name and address of person, if any., who put you in
touch with informant.
This story is continued from the
diary of Anna Saitta, -written in
192849.
5. Name and address of person, if any, accompanying you
6. Description of room, house, surroundings, etc.
(Use as many additional sheets as necessary, for any of the forms, each
bearing the proper heading and the number to which the material refers.)
FORM C
Text of interview (Unedited)
STATE New York
NAVE OF WORKER May Swenson
ADDRESS 291. Morton Street, N.Y.C.
DATE Lerch 21, 1939
SUBJECT National Biscuit Company Workers
FOLKLORE
NEW YORK
JUNE 21, WEENESDAY
The heat is terrible. The forenan was every five minutes
hollering at us today, because we oouldn't work fast. Our fin-
gers were bleeding from the hot crackers that stick to the pans,
and nearly everyone of us had to go for plaster to the nurse.
One girl fairisd in Building A. Apanish Nary got fired in spite
of the busy season, because she danced the Tango during lunch
hour lifted up her skirts above.her knees the girls clap-
ped and the men workers hollered. But the foreman, that old
joy -killer, came in, and later we heard she got the air. 114
were so sad, this made 111 more sad than agi sad story told by
Shirley. Not even the joke about the Irish man and the Jewish
man could cheer us. Jewish Shirley and Irish Gertie got in an
arguement. Shirley was telling about a funeral, how the husband
of a woman died, haw the widow fainted, how every,,ody cried and
how the Rabbi prayed. Ha, ha, so the Rabbi prayed. Hmm. So
it made you sad? How are you able to eat that sandwich, and a
ham sandwish too, :while you speak of a funeral and a Rabbi
you Jewish hypocrite. This is what Gertie said to Shirley.
Pray! I never pray. When I want something, I pay for it,
-2-
Gertie said to Shirley. Shirley said Gertie was nothing but a
whore, and Gertie said, Well, I am no hypocrite, I am a whore,
you are too, all of you, but I withdraw every word because you
insist to make believe each other, although you don't, that you
are virgins. Virgins! Daddy Browning should whistle once, and
you all would run after him, he should show you a thousand dollar
bill and you all would sleep with him. You're wrong Gertie,
German Erna said, Hundred dollars would do. Listen, said Gertie,
Poor people can't be good. Ihy? A poor person has no money and
wants to have also nice things, for instance I walk through
Fourteenth Street, see those coats in the shopwindows, nice
coats, dresses, shawls. While my shoes are torn, my dress is
dirty, shabby. I say first, if God would perform a miracle and
I would find a purse with thousand dollars, I could buy all those
things. I walk through the street, look on the pavement and
there is a hope in my heart, maybe find some money. I look
my eyes out, but no sir, I see bannana peels, old apapers, cig-
arettes and sue* junk, but money? NO! Then I say, if there be
a God, I must find money. God has to prove me now that he exists,
not only in the bible, but real life. So I say to myself, if there
isa God, I'll find money, if there is no God, I wont. And of course
I don't find it, and I wish to hell heaven itself. And that's a
sin I know to cure God is a deadly sin, and I say the poor ones
are all like me, and they'll go to hell after (Leath. And as long
as I know I'll go to hell, what's the difference how many sins
I have. As long I have to suffer after death, I try at least
to have as much sins as possible. And anyone who has brains will
agree with me.
We all looked at Gertie, and were waitin for the lightning
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to strike her to death, but all stayed the same, and not even
the foreman took any notice of us.
The friend of Shirley is Nelly, Cornelia, who works next
to her on the machine, and she is always telling stories to her,
confidentially, but in such a loud voice that all of us can lis-
ten. We like to hear Shirley talk she is always talking in
a sad voice even if it is a joke. But Gertie says she is a
hypocrite, and whenever she is relating some very gloomy story
and almost made us cry, Gertie says something mean, and spoils
everything.
Shirley was telling Nellie about her girl friend. Nelly,
listen to this, Nelly, I have Ev.girl friend, this girl friend
told this story which is a true story. This girl friend of
mine has a boy friend, that boyfriend of my girlfriend has a
sister and that sister of my girl friend's boy friend has also
a boy friend.
So listen, what happened. So this did happen. That sister
of my girlfriend's boyfriend was deeply in love. She fell in
love with a fellow, too much. Young girl, foolish girl, eighteen
years old, you can imagine. She was crazy over her lover. Crazy,
I am telling you. So her brother spoke to his mother. Mother,
Ella is deeply in love. So said his mother, What shall I do about
it? Let her be in love, I was in love onoe abs, but not with
your lather. But mother, this is a serious thing, she is deeply
in love, I am afraid something will happen. So, said his mother,
you think something will happen, well if somethinb will happen
I'll break her head, and her lover's too. But you are the brother,
so you must watch your sister, that something shall not happen as
long as she isn't married.
So the poor boy was very sad. Imagine, a brother should
watch a sisterl that somethingihat hs to happen shall not happen.
So he was very sad. He came to his sweetheart (my girlfriend)
and told her. Listen, Ella is deeply in love, I am afraid some-
thing will happen to her. Mother is aim worried, so please
watch her and try to be near her when she is together with that
sheik.
So my girlfriend promised to vetch over her lover's sister
that nothing should happen. Try to watch a girl, a young girl.
So what happandd? Well, my girlfriend was everywhere, with Ella.
She went with them to movies, to the Chinks, to the park. Where-
ver Ella vent, my girlfriend was after them. Believe me she had
some hard time*
One day Ella oame to my girlfriend's mother, and began to
complain. Mrs. Smith, said Ella, I don't feel well. What's the
matter my child? asked she. I lost my appetite, I an never
hungry, I feel disgusted at everything. Well, you must go home
Ella, and consult a doctor, go to your mother and tell her you
sick. My, Ella got white like t4 all, then she got red like
the red pepper. Finally she began to ory. Mrs. Smith tried
to console her but in vain. At last Ella confessed, what do
you think what did she confess?
We began to rear from laughter, but Gertie said, that's
nothing so new, a bastard is born every minute, it'll be your
turn too, Shirley look she's getting fat like horse.
Shirley ignored Gertie and said, in a sad voice, I am tell-
ing you, no use watching a young gir, when she wants to do same-
thirig. Nothing can stop her. My girlfriend watched. By god,
how she "Oohed over her.
-5
JUNE 23, FRIDAY
This afternoon, we received our little, but well deserved
wages, $14. Again to the machine to pick up the hot crackers,
sweating and quarrelling as usual with the men workers beoause
they put too much work on, and before we get our wages, the
foreman is always snooping around telling us to work faster or
we will get canned today. Gertie was cursing, she said she
would spit in the jaw of the foreman next time he said something
to her. Shirley was talking as usual to Nellie in a sad but
calm voice. Nelly, I have a girlfriend (believe me, it pays
to be honest) Hmm, pays to be honest. Like hell! said Gerties.
This friend of mine was a poor girl, continued Shirley, she was
an orphan, she had no parents, and yet she was honest. So what
do you think happened? She married a millionaire, we all said.
Far from that, Shirley said, but she did get married, honesty
pays! she married a truck driver. Gertie said, If that's the
reward for honesty, the hell with honesty. You heard of Peaches?
she said to Shirley. that a question, of course I did. Who
didn't/ Was Peaches honest? said Gertie. I should say she
wasn't! Did she marry a truck driver? No, she married Daddy
Browning, the millionaire, that crazy old he -goat. Well, tri-
umphantly said Gertie, now you see whether it pays to be honest.
An honest girl marries a truck driver. A whore marries Browning,
divorces him for money, and gets rich. I never heard that a
poor man got rich from being honest. But a dishonest person,
though poor, has always luck. For example, ford, Rockefeller,
or other such rascals. Everybody thinks they got rich from work.
But, hell, they got rich fram cheating. Now all the papers write
of them, and after they die, they'll have SOMB funeral. An honest
man goes, on living, suffering, and when he drops dead, not a dog
.6
barks after him. I an telling you, it's rotten.
Oh, you are always bellyaching, Shirley said, and she turned
to Nellie and started talking. And this is what Shirley said only
to Nellie, but so loud that all hand the luck to hear it. Listen,
Nellie, did I tell you yet about my boyfriend? No, Shirley, you
told me nothing about him. You know I have a boyfriend, Shirley
said. This sounds interesting, said I to German Erna, but Erna
asked me to keep quite because she wanted to hear the story.
So my boyfriend after I knew him for a few weeks, gave me
a friendship ring. A diamond ring. Bought for ten cents in
Woolworths, interrupted Gertie. So I wore the ring every day.
Did I show it to you, Nellie? Well it was a beautiful ring.
The other day I look at my finger, and want to see my ring.
What you think, the ring disappeared. The ring wasn't there.
My heart jumped, I almost fainted. You know, the ring of my
boyfriend. I didn't mind the money. Gertiel I bet your boy-
friend forgot to pay for it. I didn't mind the money, although
it costed him $50. I should live, so it did. He showed me the
bill. But to lose a ring has a meaning. So I had a foreboding,
i0MB misfortune happened. I was so soared, I am telling you, I
didn't know what to do. So I went to the foreman. So I said to
the foreman, Mr. Hick, I lost a ring. That's too bad said Mr.
Hick. Yes, I said, and the ring was a present. Is that so?
said again Mr. Hiok. It was the gift of my boyfriend, I said.
Ur. Hiok,said, that's still worse. So I told him, I lost the
ring in the factory. Mr. Hick promised to make an investigation
and try to find out who found or stole the ring. I went hams,
I couldn't sleep all night. I knew something will happen to
my boyfriend. Next day while I was on my relief, the forelady
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told me to go in the office. So I went in the office. Mr.
Hick asked me, how the ring looked. I told him all I knew, and
he said, Shirley, don't be sad, here is the ring. But there was
another girl too, end she claimed the ring as hers. So he asked
her haw the ring looks. She couldn't describe it. So the fore-
man gave her a bawling out because she had the nerve to demand
a ring which wasn't hers. This will prove it to you, how dis-
honest people are. I am telling you, she was red, she was em-
barra:.sed, she was ashamed. And I, I said, it pays to be honest.
And what happened. Well, my heart didn't lie. I received a
letter from my boyfriend, in which he informed me he fell down
from the elevator, freight elevator, and broke his foot. I am
so worried. Nelly, I love him so much, I was crying all morning.
My mother said I should stop to cry. You fool, she said, don't
cry, crying can't help him. Be calm, he'll soon recover. But
try to Desatisfied and calm when somebody you love is sick!
We looked at Shirley, and two big tears rolled down on her
face. Erna tried to console her, but Shirley said with a mel-
ancholy smile, I need not your sympathy, my dear. We all felt
sorry for Shirley, only Gertie kept on laughing, she laughed
even at such a sad story. Shirley turned to Nelly and said,
Nellie have you a sandwich left from lunch, I am so hungry.
Nelly took out a sandwich which shirley devoured with a sad
face. We didn't know whether to laugh or wonder. Because it
is strange that a girl after relating a tale that her lover
broke his foot, shouad eat with such good appetite.
Gertie couldn't stand any longer Shirley's sadness and began
to quarrel with her. So you have a boyfriend. Well, be careful
that something shall not happen. What? said Shirley. I mean
-8
something that happened to your girlfriend's boyfriend's sister.
Shirley, honestly you are getting fat.
Shame yourself! said Shirley. But that's your business, said
Gertie, you have the right to do as you please. But what bothers
me is how in hell are you a lo to eat after such sad event a sand-
wich. Why, said Shirley, my stomach has nothing to do with my
heart. Ridiculous, you don't want me to lose my appetite because
my boyfriend broke his foot/
It seems to me, said German Erna, the more sad you are, the
more you eat. Be happy Shirley, otherwise you'll get too fat.
Gertie lauged. What, fat? Look at that shape! She is
already fat like a horve.