Cleaning Up on Soap Suds Row

I can always count on Texas Co-op Power to bring me interesting articles about rural life, homesteading, and days gone by.  My thoughtful husband tossed the June issue on my desk yesterday because he knew I'd be particularly interested in this little gem called Clean Living on 'Soap Suds Row'.  It chronicles how in 1802 the U.S. Army put the "lowly" laundresses (also known as washerwomen) to work on the harsh Texas frontier.  It all sounded pretty unfair, until I learned that while the soldiers whose uniforms they cleaned made only about $13 a month, an industrious laundress could earn up to $40 a month! 

Put that in 'yer pipe and smoke it boys!