Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1880-06-12
SERVANTS FEES IN EUROPE.
MRgniIieently Uniformed Crea-
lures Hanging Round for
SiXpence.


A petty but endless trouble Of tn,
traveller in Europe for the first time i,
the matter Of gratuities. You give
trife all the time to every one who
does you the least service. Even fol
an apparently friendly word Of infor.
nation on the street you are expected
to pay in this way. In England it il
a tip in France, the pour boire; in
Italy, buono manu-, the good hand; in
Germany it is trinkgeld, drink money.
1t is net much money in any one in.
stance, but foots up pretty well after
an active days work. The practical
trouble, however, is to know what to
give. The inhabitants and the SER
wants themselves know exactly what
they are entitled to, for it is a matter
of right, just as much as any other
charge, although the amount is never
fixed or published in any written form
for the information of strangers. They
must learn it by experience.
We, as q rule, to whom the Euro.
pean measures are new, give too
much. Englishmen of rank and
wealth complain that Americans raise
the costs of travel wherever
they go.
For the gratuity of cab drivers,
walters at restaurants, ETC., the recog-
nized European usage is in England
one penny for every shilling
spent in fare or at the table, and in
France and Italy two sous for every
franc spent. This rule disposes of a
large portion of the cases.
For porters, two pence in England
and two sous on the continent, for
every piece Of luggage handled, lift is
only to carry it across the pavement,
An umbrella or a shawl is a piece as
well as a trunk. The driver of an ON.
nibus, cab or ~iacre, as a point of ETH
quette add out of professional consid-
Grafton for the porters, will refuse to
touch a piece OF luggage himself, even
to lift it from three feet away into his
vehicle.
Visiting at private houses of the
upper classes in England the servants
expect their tips in gold coin if your
stay is over a day or two. The small
est English coin is a ten shilling piece
$3.50. You fee the footman. who
attends your bedroom; the maid, if
you have ladies, who serves their
chambers; the butler, who has charge
OF the diningroOm and force of wal
ters; the keeper, if you hunt; the
groom you use, if you ride, or the
head Of the stables if there are several.
and generally any servant that you
especially use. You will soon learn
how to grade these fees according to
the rank of the servant and the length
of your visit.
On first class ocean steamers the
g%ratuities r much analogous to those
In a gentleman's house. The steward
who wait on you at the table, and the
one who attends your stataroom, will
each expect a fee in gold-10 shillings
(S2,5O) at least-from a single passen-
ger; a pound, ifyou have baths brought
into your room every morning, are
particular about having your wines
warmed or iced, or, in short, use the
servants up to their full capacity.
When the passage is $50 to $75 or less.
these fees are less-about one-half of
the figures above. The boots also
looks to be remembered, about one
halt the amount given the steward.
The expense Of this gratuity bust
ness in ordinary travel is in general
rather exaggerated. The sums given
are very small, and you get a great
deal for them-a willing, perfect.
kindly service which you do not eel
IN your country at all. To the travel
er the custom is an ANNOYANCE rather
than a burden.
The usage degrades and demoralizes
and humans him who takes the vail
or gift, OF tip, or bounty, or whatever
you please to call it yet a very great
portion Of the people Of Great Britain
and Europe do receive their wages in
this way, look for it, and feel no hu-
initiation in the transaction. You can
hardly insult anybody across the water
by Offering them anything, no matter
what appears to be his or their official
position. | have given a shilling In
London to uniformed policemen, and
a franc in Paris to magnifcent-lookinC
hotel managers, A Philadelphia ac-
q%uaintance in London had several
hundred dollars brought to him from
his banking house, one of the largest
there, by a clerk Of the establishment,