The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1866-08-27

her lace flushed. Another ana most repulslVe-
looking woman came to her, ana again the
whole matter was detailed.
Have got TO wash up, mum 7"
Certainly; and you have to place the break
fast on the table, and should we require any
thing during the time you will have to attend"
"Then mum, ] shouldn't suit you. | want to
get a superior place"
"But mine is, | think, superior place, and a
very comfortable one" tie lady condescended
"Cooks don't never wash up things in superior
places, and / haven't come to that yet" the
woman muttered, as she turned to 60.
Others came in their tuTn--one could not get
up early, "Good families never required them
to do it;r another always paid the household
bills herself; and, again, one hoped that The
kitchen cloths we're washed out; and so on to
the end of the chapter; when the poor girl-wife
looked so worn-out aud wearied that pitied
her: still she made no advances to speak, and in
turning to look down the stairs her eyes en-
countered the most cunning-looking woman
coming up that had ever seen,
The poor lady sat down almost in despair, but
contrary to her expectations, the woman de-
INJURED to nothing; she accepted the situation
as it was offered to her, making no stipulations
whatever; and so, contlngently upon her char
acter suitlng, the woman was hired; and as she
stood at the table while the lady wrote her ad-
dress. she gave TO her companions IN the passage
such dlabolical wink of the eye as had never
witnessed, which spoke as plainly as possible.
GIVE done for her. The lady, glad to be re-
leased went on her way rejoicing, little sus-
pectng how she had been duped.
i afterwards heard how the affair ended, for
the lady was a newcomer in the neighborhood,
and q near neighbor of mine, though had not
then seen Eer The woman entered her service,
and behaved SO badly, that sooner than have
the annoyance of her for month she had been
paid months wages, and had been sent away.
Several friends whom / have since known,
have been served precisely the same, these
women actually gaming their living by their
misconduct and fraud.
M1ycs 1t,I1 1ayi in 40
to close. Some servants would not go out OF
town. others would not live where children
were, others objected to wash, some wished to
have their friends once week, Others must go
to church twice every Sunday, and so many
obiecnons were raised, and conditions imposed,
that it seemed as il / was never TO get servant.
| no longer looked at the dTess-fit were only
a.llttle decent was all | cared for: | was reluc-
tant TO Oegin the teaching business offered
good wages, and the same allowance that my
mother said was usual, and | offered TO put out
the washing; all was readily accepted, but when
| came TO inquire into their cooking abilities
and | always commenced by asking how sOles
we're tried, how greens were boiled, and other
simple matters-the variety OF replies was
amusing, but their character showed how little
the girls knew of the subject. | had one days
grace; if | could not succeed in finding help
then, | must perlorCe take a girl AID teach her.
The folio wing morning, as | was entering the
Office, met TWO young women who wished TO
ind places together; both were dressed in black,
and consequently looked tidy. l iorbore to
question them as to their capabilities; they had
a twelve-months' character, and personal in
terview could be obtained with their mistress
at no Ereat distance. | observed that the house
maid appeared extremely delicate, If not i'll, but
was told that she had looked so from child.
To make a long story short, they had not been
IN the house more than week when the poor
palid girl was taken seriously ill, and obliged
after week to be removed to her home; case
OF suppressed illness, my husband called 1T, on
purpose to get nursing and medical attendance.
| afterwards heard this was no uncommon occur
rerye. Then the cook got unhappy after the
first month, and she too must go; notwithstand-
ing looked over much shortcoming got girl
in TO help with the children, and attended to
much of the cooking myself. | afterwards un-
derstood that a gas-htter in the neghborhood
had persuaded her TO leave her place for dis
tant town where he had employment.
Repeatedly had to endure this same trouble;
every two or three menths my visit to the re-
9istry office was thing to be anticipated As
for cleanliness in the house, thorough cleanll-
ness, l had TO give up as unattainaDe; my
kitchen looked dingy, the tins were unsecured,
excepting when had woman in for this pur-
pose, who helped 10 make the house still more
unsettled by gossiping and relating the news Of
the neighOorhood. | began to find that l was
but an upper servant, paying high wages to in
competent persons and doing the work myself
So the teaching business had to be tried. 1t
may be said that had guarantee for my SER
wants. conduct in the characters | received with
them. Not so. One-half OF the characters were
made up OF false statements and the other half
concealed just what should nave been dscov-
cred, under the pretense OF not 'injuring poor
eirlsn by exposing their shortcomings. Thus
the new mistress is deceived, ana the girl pro-
badly dismissed with ignominy, to meet ques-
tionabe fate. Ii mistresses were true, servants
would be honest and Industrious; at least, they
wonld endeayor to be so; but SO long as they
can obtain fresh places without difficulty, by
false representation, so long will they set an
orderly, methodical mistress at defiance, aud
give the best place bad name. This opinion is
the experience of lifetime. The chief reason
why servants are so indifferent, is that mis-
tresses have themselves helped mainly to make
them so, by giving them undeserved characters,
and by concealment of their chief faults.
So to begin my servants education, and
realize some comfort myself, sought and found
a clean, pleasant young woman to take care OF
the children, and required from her neither
needle-work nor any personal attendance. She
had to attend to the nursery entirely. There
the cook never entered. And soon after, was
recommended to take young girl, industri-
ously brought up, and teach her cooking; but
this did not happen till | had tried several ser
wants, who dlsgusted us with their slovenly y
ways, dirty habits, and extravaganza. began
almost to doubt whether the happy days oi
Susan and her mother were not entirely myth
cal-whether they were not the remembrance
of some happy dream.
The girls name was Keziah; she was cleanly
intelligent, and observant, three qualities had
not found in any before.
"HaVe you a love for cooking ?" l asked.
"Yes, ma'am; | would do anything to become
cook"
"Simply to cook is easy enough; but can you
have place for everything, and keep everything
in Its place? The saucepans must be kept Tree
from grease. The cloths be clean and ready tol
use. The larder be neat clean, and free iron
| all that would taint meat or butter. The bread
| pan must be wiped out daily, and the pastry
| board and rolling-pin be kept white and sweet
| All these things are necessary for cook to at