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Reservoir St.
Lest Durham, N. O.
September 7, 1938
I. L. 1.1.
NANNIS RUTH PARKS
Her eyes are weary and underlined with dark,
pouchy circles. There is a grave passivity about her
face which brings up thaughte of age. Her stomach
bulges as with middle-cge neglect while the hunches
over in her chair and rocks in her lap her pale,
scrawny, nine -months old baby. In the cummertime
her bare feet are usually grimy with sand. She loves
the feel of the rough earth against her feet and
several times a day she walks slowly up the sanded
street to her mother's house. She,malks with the
stodgy heaviness of an old woman but she is only
seventeen.
When he talks to a stranger her manner is that
of an undeveloped and untsught child. It is then
that one notices that she to not old. Occasionally,
though, the makes a statement with s knowledge born
of poverty which makes her seem egnin much older than
she really is.
liannie Ruth married Will Parks a few months
before she was fifteen. Will wee thirty-two. He
was born in Tennessee in a section so isolated that
it had no schools. Will has newer lerrned to write
his nee. He worked for awhile at a foundry in
Chattenooge End later went to Columbus, Georgie, and
secured work in e cotton mill. Via wenderinga led
him to Zurham End there he met Ronnie Ruth soon after
she lied started to work in the mill.
Rennie Ruth says it was no trouble for her to
start keeping houee for herself becauee she'd been
looking after the things at home since she was twelve.
She had finished the sixth grade end meant to go
further with her schooling but her father took the
*wonder fever" and left her mother to support the
five children. Her mother went into the mill End
Nrnnie auth had to stay at home to keep house End
care for the younger children. For two years Kannie
Ruth's, fcther wandered about from place to place end
then suddenly he decided to come back home. ;Ennio
Ruth was fourteen then end she had just met 411.
the vas old enough to work in the mill but efter e
few months tt her job the decided ehe would rsver
like it. That was one reason she wae so glad when
Will asked her to merry him. *Us raised no objections,*
she core, "because the thought eill would make ma a
livinl. Besides, will was a steady sort of person
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end she (mid he vented her girls to merry men who
wouldn't up end leeve them without any cense."
There wesn't a vaunt house in the mill villege
for Hannie Ruth end Will so they rented a TOOM from
a young couple who hove no children. In that room
where they cook end eat and Sleep Uannie Ruth's baby
wee born a year later. They've crowded a baby bed
in there pith the big bed, the dreseer, the eating
table, the oil stove, end the chairs.
"Age don't make no difference; it's whet you
get end I've got a fairly good livinl" lanais Ruth
eyys es the site rnd looks Et her things. 'It's
better then Lhed et home anyhow. If Will gets full
time he draws t13 a week beceuse he's a loom fixer.
Cource, he didn't get but one day lest week, but you
dan't never know when the mill'll get more orders.
The beby don't cost much yet, just e little for her
Carnation milk. y milk didn't agree with her and
I put her on canned milk. She never would take a
bottle so I just give it to her out of a cup.
*The most money we plena for emusements is on
somethir0 to reed. will buys me love story megazines
and be gets Westerns for hiseelf. I reed his to him
of e night and
'urtn' the evenin' while I'm settint
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here holdin, the beby I reed my own."
It it not of her own living that Nennie Ruth
has any concern at present beceuee the and rill still
Sieve c fea dollars, and, ts she Eye, the mill might
give till more than one eight of work *Ude week.. She
does feel concerned over her mother and the children.
Three of them ere of school ece now end today when
they sterted to eohool there wasn't a nickel in the
house to buy t notebook. Her father who hesn't hed
a day's work in two veeke left home yesterdey in
eecroh of c job. Meanwhile hiu wife end four children
stay et home end wait.
"They've provided schools end they've made laws
for forcint poor children to go to 'cm," Nennie Ruth
says while her face teket on Eger Meat they've got
to do more figurin' on how folks can get pencils and
tablete Erd clothes for their children when they've
cot no job end no money."