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6 p.m., January 31, 1912. "Making hair-brushes. Hausner family, 310 East 71st Street, New York. Frank is 6 years old and John is 12. The mother had a sore throat and wore a great rag wrapped around it, but she took it off for the photo. They said they all (including the 6 yr old) worked until 10 p.m. when busy. Their neighbor corroborated this. She said, 'It's a whole lot better for the boys than doin' nothin'.' The mother said the night work hurts their eyes and John said so too. He was not very enthusiastic about the beauties of work. All together, they make about $2 a week. Father is a motorman." Photo and caption by Lewis Wickes Hine. View full size.
That looks very tedious. And what is the light source? Seems like they would need good light to even see what they are doing with those tiny bristles.
[Which were probably pig bristles. - Dave]
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