A Dangerous Element

Evelyn tucked her black, chin length hair behind her ears as she concentrated on the task before her: painting the numbers on a clock face with luminous radium based paint. The allure of the pale green glowing substance, advertised as a miracle cure-all was somewhat lost on her. She never cared much for fads. She did try some radium infused toothpaste just to see what all the fuss was about, but it seemed to her that it was not much different than regular toothpaste. Putting that aside, this job was the most coveted, highest paying job a young woman of her status could get and Evelyn was driven to succeed.

She mastered the lip point technique quickly, drawing the fine camel hair brush between her lips before each dip into the paint. Its gritty texture and earthy metallic taste was at first unpleasant, but she soon got used to it. After only a few weeks on the job, her supervisor, Miss Lynch, began to take notice of Evelyn’s speed and accuracy. Because earnings were based on productivity, she worried that the other dial painters might resent her. But if they did, they never showed it. Evelyn easily became friends with all of them.

The factory had a darkroom where the painters would have their work inspected. Sometimes the girls would sneak in and paint each other for a laugh, eventually turning the wasting of paint into an art form. The job was fun and the wages afforded them all the latest fashions. She and the girls walked out of the factory at night still aglow with the luminescent material.

That spring, the company held its annual picnic hosted by the company’s president, Howard Belanger. He was a stout man with a woolly mustache. And he was accompanied by his beautiful wife, Vera. She was dressed all in white like a suffragette. Evelyn imagined she was one. The company espoused surprisingly liberal views about women’s independence for the sake of recruiting them into the workforce.

Miss Lynch ushered Evelyn over to the Belangers, introducing her as their top earner. Belanger took a puff on his cigar and looked her over. “Keep up the good work, young lady.” He shook her hand. “We could use more like you!,” he said. Vera, who stood not far from her husband, looked tired and melancholy beneath her superficial smile. It was not uncommon for the wife of a powerful man to have such feelings, but it made Evelyn curious. Today was supposed to be a celebration.

In the weeks that followed, Evelyn started noticing the higher ups making occasional appearances at the factory. Inspectors in white coats observed the girl’s work and jotted some things down on their clipboards. Evelyn didn’t think much of it even when Belanger strolled around the work tables with his hand in his lapel like Napoleon. There was even a photographer there to take pictures. Belanger sidled up to Evelyn and told her to smile, his hand landing gingerly on her shoulder just as the camera’s shutter snapped. Evelyn felt a bit scandalized when she saw the picture in the newspaper the next day. The other girls began teasing her about her ‘boyfriend.’

Evelyn sat at the same booth of her favorite diner after work every night for supper. Some nights the other girls would join her, but she had no qualms about eating alone. She finished her soup and asked for the check, but the waitress told her that the woman in the other booth had paid for it. There in the booth across from her was Vera Belanger. She smiled and beckoned Evelyn to join her. After that photograph in the paper, Evelyn feared whatever Belanger’s wife had to say, but she bravely slid into the booth across from her.

“I know this is going to come as a shock, but I think I should warn you -”

“I’m sorry...that photograph...I didn’t.”

“No dear, it’s not about that.”

“My husband is a dangerous man. I overheard him talking with the chemists. The radium. It’s poison. They are lying to you. Anyone who knows the truth...They are not safe.”

Evelyn laughed softly, but Vera’s face remained stoic. She reached out for Evelyn’s hand.

“I’m sorry, dear.”

“Why did you come to me?”

“You’re the company’s top earner. The other girls look up to you.”

“I...don’t believe you. Radium is safe. It’s a health tonic, for Christ’s sake! I don’t know what you’re trying to do, but I don’t want to be involved. Thank you for dinner.”

“If you change your mind, meet me here.” Vera slid a matchbook across the table. Evelyn slipped the matches into her pocket and walked out.

The next day at work Evelyn tried to keep her head down and focus, but Vera’s words kept running through her mind. Things that never phased her before suddenly made her think twice. The taste of the paint in her mouth was nauseating. She rinsed her brush whenever she thought no one was looking. She noticed that whenever people from other departments visited their floor, they kept their hands in their pockets. She recalled Belanger himself not touching anything in the room. The other girls started complaining of aches and pains. Evelyn even noticed one of her teeth coming loose and that was it. That night she went home and took a long hot bath, scrubbing every inch of her skin, then took a cab to the hotel advertised on the matchbook.

The place was very grand with a big spiral staircase and an equally impressive chandelier. Evelyn went up to the front desk and asked the clerk to ring Mrs. Vera Belanger’s room.

“We have no one registered here by that name, Miss.”

Evelyn felt a pang of betrayal, then started to worry that something might have happened to Vera. She had described her husband as a dangerous man. Evelyn’s emotions must have been written all over her face because the clerk took pity on her. “You might try the door at the end of the hall on the right.” She followed his directions only to find herself standing in front of a door with a sign that said ‘maintenance.’ Either this was a mistake or she was at the threshold of a speakeasy. Not knowing what else to do, she knocked. A voice inside demanded to hear the password. Evelyn opened the matchbook and read the word on the inside cover.

“Sk...Christ, this is hard to pronounce! Skłodowska?” The door opened. Evelyn entered a tawdry scene of men and women in various states of inebriation enjoying a variety of bootleg spirits. Evelyn grinned and made her way to the bar. Vera was there, her blond hair tied up neatly, her loose frock dripping with fringe.

“Evelyn, you made it!” Vera smiled, her cheeks flushed as a result of the cocktail she was drinking. She pulled Evelyn into an embrace and kissed her on the cheek, then handed her a drink. There are some people I would like you to meet. This is Ruth. She’s an attorney. And this is Maggie. She’s a reporter. These ladies are going to ask you some questions.”

**********************************

This fictional story was inspired by the real lives of The Radium Girls. You can read more about them in Kate Moore's Bestseller 'Radium Girls: The Dark Story of America's Shining Women.'