Raymond's Class Discussion

In class I read Chapter 25, working in iron mills. It was mostly about a group a people that had less rights than others. They said that everyone were free and worked for themselves except two groups; slaves and people who worked in factories, mines, and mills. For people who had to work in mills, they entered as young as 9 and left only when they died. They had to work 14 hours a day and 6 days a week. Just like there were abolitionists for slavery, there were also people who supported and help fight against this. A specific person mentioned was Rebecca Harding. She grew up in Wheeling and that was a place which had some industrial structures. When she grew up, she loved reading and later became a published writer. One of her most famous writings was the article she had written for a very famous magazine back then. The article was about the horrible conditions inside the iron mills. This article is famous because it helped inspire people to see the insight of the terrible things that was happening to these people. Those working in metal mills(mills for making metal, steel, iron, etc.), had to carry around vats of burning liquid, inhaled carbon monixide, and chemical vapors. Some children had to finish work that required men's muscles. Some of the work places were mentioned to be living hell because of the smell, vibration, and especially the noise. Even though this happened back then, it's still happening today. A very recent topic would be the 'slaves' working in China for very low wages. This relates because they had to work at an early age also, worked in bad conditions, and didn't get paid that much at all.