Jeanne Bouvier

Extracts from Mes Mémoires

My mum used to wake me up before dawn. She was calling me many times, without succeeding to wake me up. Tired of calling me without result, she was taking me all asleep and was making me stand in front of the bed. I was shaking and sometimes crying, so much I was suffering from being obliged to wake up, while I had such a great need to sleep. I was dressing up in pain, without being completely awake and I was leaving fighting against the desire to sleep, which was not leaving me for a long time after leaving home. One cannot imagine what a child suffers to be ripped from sleep (45).

My parents, who until then had lived in relative comfort, were forced to sell everything: house, meadow, vineyard and even furniture and various belongings […] It was a disaster. I was about to leave the house where I had played so much, the trees I had climbed. I would never see again the cherry trees, plum trees, and peach trees which had made me so happy […] As we passed in front of my Aunt Marie-Anne’s house, my mother stopped to say goodbye. I took advantage of this stop to return to the house where my childhood has drifted away for the last time. I still contemplate it: the shutters, the doors were closed: everything was sad (55-56).

I remember one time amongst others when I stayed for nearly two days without eating. That evening when I came home from the factory, I started to work. My mother spent the night with me, shaking me whenever, in spite of myself, I began to fall asleep. She was telling me, ‘Don’t fall asleep. You know very well that you mustn’t sleep. Tomorrow we won’t have any bread.’ I was making superhuman efforts to stay awake. It was very cold. Snow was falling against the window panes. Despite all these tortures I continued to work until four thirty in the morning, at which time I got ready to return to the factory (59).

At eight o’clock we left the factory to have breakfast. I rushed home to finish my work. There were a few details to finish up before rushing to deliver it at last so that I could get the pay that would allow the whole household to eat. […] The lady paid me seven francs, just as she had promised. Because it was very cold, she offered me a cup of coffee with milk to warm me up. The coffee was served in a beautiful white cup and saucer. This cup had a gilt garland (what a pretty cup) and the coffee was delicious and hot. I did not really like coffee and milk, but this coffee served in such a beautiful cup, I liked it very much! I left the lady’s house feeling happy (1983, 60).

I had arranged my nutrition as following: in the morning I would have a 5 centimes loaf of bread and 5 centimes’ worth of milk—milk cost 20 centimes a litre —or 10 centimes for my breakfast. At midday I would take my meal with the other women from my atelier, and there I did not want to seem that I was deprived […] So I ate the usual 50 centime order consisting of boiled beef and vegetables in broth. I would eat the broth, in which I put a lot of bread, then the vegetables, but I kept the beef for the evening meal. I completed this lunch with a portion of cheese […] My daily food cost me 1.20 francs in all (82).

I continued to live frugally and was still doing extra work to keep myself afloat. I wanted to move for I wanted a room with a fireplace. Yes, I wanted to offer myself the luxury of a fireplace […] The moment came, when I could finally move and I had a fireplace in my room and also a cupboard […] When I had moved in the concierge told me: ‘I have a little side board in your room. If it is not in your way, I will leave it.’ I was delighted: a sideboard, a fireplace, a cupboard, a storage space and water; it was really too much! I could not believe I had so much luxury (88).

For some time I had clients who would have me work at their homes during the dead season. I would thus escape the period of unemployment, which gave me a certain comfort. In this way, I never missed work. But during the high season, these clients brought me additional work. Apart from the days spent at the atelier, I always had some orders to do at home to satisfy my personal clientele. After my workday I therefore had to impose on myself long late-night vigils. My time was divided up like that: get up at four o’clock; work at home until eight, then get ready and have breakfast within half and hour; at eight-thirty leave for the atelier, where I arrived at nine o’clock and got out only at eight or nine in the evening. I would rush home, eat dinner in a hurry, and get back to work until midnight, when I finally went to bed, to sleep till four o’clock in the morning (97-98)

In 1897, a feminist journal was launched by Mme Marguerite Durand: La Fronde, a daily edition on feminist rights […] One of my clients, Mme Norat was an ardent feminist. She became an assiduous reader of this journal and while I was trying her dresses, she was talking to me about women’s rights and the injustices of the law with regard to women. In this way, every fitting session was a lesson in feminism […] One day she told me: ‘I am surprised that an intelligent woman like you has not subscribed to the union of your trade […] There is a trade union for seamstresses, lingères and similar parties. I often see notifications of this union in La Fronde.’ There was indeed a campaign in La Fronde for women workers to become union members. This invitation to unionise seemed to me extraordinary. Unionise, me? Why? I confess that I did not understand anything. This idea seemed strange to me. But the lady was tenacious and every time we met she kept telling me: ‘Well, mademoiselle Jeanne, have you become a member of the union yet?’ (101).

During many years, I carried out regular research […] I was interested in this intellectual work that brought me satisfaction every day. I was also learning so many interesting things, that I had never thought about; I found such a big number of documents, either in the National Library, or in the National Archives (216)

I therefore go to a credit agency and this is the first question they ask me:

- Are you married?

- No I am single

- If you are single, then you have to bring a certificate from your concierge confirming that you are single.

I could not believe my ears (244).

The study of questions around work and particularly women’s work is exciting; and it has its rewards as long as the researcher manages to reconstitute a past of struggles, of injustices and miseries that workers or a category of employers had to endure (227).

Extracts from journal articles

I confess that my first impression was a bit confused and I have retained much of the inevitable trouble landing in a country whose language is unknown, the hustle and bustle of the crowd, the crushing sensation that give the fifty storey houses gave you [...] But what a cordial welcome awaited us from the American delegates on our first visit! We felt immediately at our ease: we found a family […] But the Government’s attitude towards the International Labour Conference […] was truly unique. Not only did the government systematically ignore the work of the Conference, but we felt much hostility: we were the ‘undesirables’. Some U.S. newspapers have even said that we should be deported or imprisoned as ‘Bolshevik’! Quite charming, is it not? [...] This was the first International Women’s Congress. We already knew about its inevitable disputes, but what prevailed during its meetings, was the great feeling of human fraternity. Thus, a place was reserved for German delegates and an association of black women was accepted by acclamation […] The Resolutions are known. First of all, the eight hours working day and the forty-four hours working week. Then, the right to rest before and after childbirth: all employed and salaried women to be entitled to rest six weeks before and six weeks after delivery and receive a state compensation equivalent to the minimum wage provided in the region. It is ultimately the regulation of admission of children to work at the age of sixteen and not before (‘Au Congrès féminin International’ in Madame et Citoyenne, c. 1919)

One also finds people in our times, who criticise women’s work, since they consider that their right place is at home. In this case every woman must have a home; but myself and so many other women have never found somebody who could offer us a home or the possibility to rest ( La Française; 17-11-1928)

Extracts from letters

My dear Mademoiselle Bouvier,

It is indeed a great joy to me to know that you will represent us, with Madame Duchene, as fraternal delegate at the International Woman Suffrage Alliance Congress. We feel the undoubted importance of the meeting itself, but also because it is the first international organisation of working women, to be represented. We also feel that it is most essential at this time, that the delegates to this Suffrage Convention should understand the point of view of the working women in regard to those questions, dealing with the economic independence of women and with legislation from women in industry. It is so very easy for people to be confused in regard to this matter, and it is for this reason that we need to have you in attendance at the Congress in Geneva.

We understand that a resolution is to be introduced to the Suffrage Congress by the Netherlands delegation, protesting against the enactment by the International Labour Conference of the League of Nations of draft conventions in prohibition of night work for women, on the ground that such regulations take away from women their independence and the women do not want or need such protection. We further understand that similar opinions are to be expressed by certain of the British Suffragists. I must on this occasion quote to you from a letter from Miss Bondfield, which I received recently, in which she says -The International Women Suffrage Association does not represent the British Labour Movement in any respect. The program is fairly unobjectionable, but if any of its members in America say that British working women do not want protective legislation, they are simply stating what is not true. The British working women recognise that as long as the capitalist system exists, the less well organised women workers will lack the protection of special legislation.

I have also learned very recently that the Women's League for ‘Equal opportunity’ one of the purpose of which is to oppose all labour legislation for working women has sent resolutions to delegates of this Suffrage Convention asking that they be introduced at the Convention. It is thus very easy for us to see that we are placing upon you and Madame Duchene no light responsibility in asking that you interpret to this Congress, a necessity at the present state of development and that you also show why it is true that lack of regulation does not mean equal opportunity.

You know of course, how eager we shall be to have some word from you and with what anticipation we shall look forward to having your report. We are very proud and happy to know that the International Congress of Working Women will be very ably represented and we want you to know that you will have our very warmest wishes for the success of your work at the Congress.

Fraternal lay and sincerely yours,

Maud Swartz

(Maud Swartz to Bouvier, letter dated May 17, 1920, while Bouvier was in Geneva).

As we are sailing through the Channel and past the shores of France, we are wishing that we could once more get off at Cherbourg as we did before and take the first train back to Paris. Then instead of writing to you, we could climb your stairs and find you there in your little house. (Hilda Smith to Bouvier, August 14, no year)

Extracts from La Lingerie et les lingères

The travail à domicile is work distributed to workers by an industrialist or a merchant, who then sell the manufactured objects. It is about a veritable industrial work. In opposition to the work at the atelier, which is called centralised work or agglomerated industry, M. Georges Renard called the travail à domicile decentralised of dispersed industry (252-3).

Here are the results of a research on the situation of some women workers. No 60, Paris. The worker is a 35-year-old widow and has a little daughter. She has been working for some years […] She works between 15 and 18 hours per day. She has very little work during the summer months […] At the time of the research she was expecting to be evicted on the grounds of a small debt to the landlord. In the evening or on the next day she would find herself homeless. Her troubles prevented her from responding to certain questions posed by the researcher (275-76)

No 189. Mme, R…. has been a lingère since her childhood. She has been a widow with 2 daughters; the youngest is 11 years old and is under her custody […] she works until her forces abandon her. This excessive work joint with deprivation have so much weakened her that at the time of the research she was found in bed, sewing. Her situation is so miserable that she cannot feed her daughter who gets a free breakfast at the canteen of the communal school […] She lives in a single room of an old house with narrow, filthy corridors (277-278).