The evening light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1881-1883, 1882-11-16
BELL BOYS AND WALTERS.
The Tribulations they Occasion to Hotel
Managers.
On Splurge, in Railroad Employ and
Singing Hash to BOar,lers

l9u can writra short article about our bell
boys. said Col. tur!Ss Davis, one of the pro-
prIrtors of the Mrngrr Hotel, to a reporter for
the l.iGrT this morning.
What OF them
"Thcrc they are. Gaze on them. Aren't
they sight for the Gods? Hold on: you've
missed It; there's only one now, but if you wait
an hour or 50 you may see the others. This
beng their headquarters they don't stay about
here long N time
Scrious y, the hotel managers have lately ex-
pcricnced Il great deal of trouble with their
nelp NO sooner do they acquire good waiter,
dish washer or other servant than lO he is gone
ana they have to till his place with the first
conner, often staggering cOlOred gentleman
whose life has been spent AS cook in a stock
iiil'h or as man-of-alI work in IL shepherds
Jackai The trials and tribulations incidental
I" posing AS a Bonitace have effects in keeping
WIN the trlnpcl1tmcntS of the gentlemen m pst
directly concerned. Col. Davis grows tiesui"r
nhn l"'ilcr,"nothing worries me, my dear
boy, Col. Hord forces his horses to greater
speed; Nr M"n2"r assumes an EXPIRE s-ion OF
cam rcss nation, kuic iieathcrly smiles cyni-
% Ty taNrrt starrs bankly; the two
Baker chews toothpicks. Dock" ell
deaH0rS to secure the use by others of his it,
IlEoratlng Cordial, Wolf rants and wastes to
taking lessons in pugliSn, longs for the ap-
Prilr,nre OF drunken men who will insult his
guests.
Most of the troubles arise from tho conduct
OF the walters and bell boys. They all receive
an average salary of SIS Il month and their
board. They seldom work longer than three
or four weeks, ut the expiration of which Dc
rlou tncy DIy suit OF new clothes, Il many col
ortd nccktic Il small cone, and then ''Splliryr."
\ on can see them Strolling down Commerce
street or on the pl.Iz'tS. their heads high i'll the
ping rs gracefully us Il nud-scOw in rough
weather. their eyes open for a buyOm quad
room and their mouths tor the m.rkshccsh ct
th'lr acquaintance. The Old ones do ii much
neItcr than the younger: for, like slingin:
hash and carrying Is dishes in the palm of Al
hand the art of ''Spurring" is only acquired
after long and arduous labor and requires for
the task of learning superior sort
or person with natural aptitude for mimicry
ana an ambition to seem the shadow of ONES
pearnnce-such as Col. Belknap, Col +. ID.
l.. Wickcs, Charley Hcrh, Tom. Johnson,
Harry Fowler, Little Phil Del, the horScy
theless all hotel walters know how to make
their presence known and never fail to make
use OF their knowledge. Since the decline of
the art of street MASKING, Il practice 10y the
way, OF which Pliny spok" rcrrclrully several
decades since, it has fallen to the hotel walters
us something worthy of preservation, II sort OF
historical remnant OF the days of l,arbaric fas-
clnatlOn so Suggestive Of ice cream and CAKE. in
America, DOn-bOnS and commits in France fruit
ana flowers III Italy, beer and prctHcls in Ger
many things entering daily into the life of
the subjects of this notice. ami without which
there might be Il subject or two less.
After their ,,sp!' lrge" they go back to work
again, generally in another hotel. Some time
IN the course OF their culinary education they
hear narratives of hairhrcadth escapes,
peril by flood and field, from fcl-
lows whose brief experience rs track
men for railroads have furnished them
with sufficient foundation for their roman, g.
Eventually their spirit of enterprise is aroused
ana they decide to leave as soon as the back
gate Is opened by one of the contractors agents
who now and then appears To engage new
kworkmcn. From now on dishes are broken,
damp napkins furnished to cOnsiimptivcs,
tough meat handed to bald, rOtund old pcOulc
of
ccStcrshirc sauce taken from below IN English
nose to grace the foreground Of an aesthetic
maiden who commonly dimes on fruit and lilies
Uhc latter by aromatic means and II reckless
sort or Im-gOing-awHy-and -,on' It pay for
dlshes-anyway strle affected that makes even
the blo1d OF tn" most desperate cowboys
cnirdle, II they are hungry, with apprehension.
Iher time comes of cours,: they arc dis
charged, they cock uhcir hat over their left
ear, spit over their right shoulder, and
ieternlngd TO make a break for
liberty; This is to their manager. When they
leave they sometimes take with them Souyc-
mrs OF thcir late employment and once in a
abrupt departure that the services of a Texas
ranger or deputy sheriff are called in to secure
their return.
Bell boys are not quite so bad as walters hut
they too have their faults They invariably
hand cards to the wrong prrsous, take hot
ShaElng-water to the rooms of ancient spin-
STEERS, yell loudly Heres your brandy and
soda at the door of Young ladies and kindly
inform guests in the rOtunda that "that Teller
as bin here wild his bill agin an he seq as how he
won't wait no longer" When their services
are not required they spend their leisure otium
cum dlgnitatc in making unrOmplimentary
remarks about bnardcrs who pass before
them, hunming i'll high key snatchc-s
OF popular songs, tapping the floor
with their feet and running their fingers up-
ward through their hair until their head be-
comes surmountcd by a shock of astounding
magnitude and frightful shape. At train time
when they are needed to carry parcels they
can commonly be found block away from th,.
hotel playing marbles or swapping lies about
the strength OF their big brothers. The par
GELS are carried by the clerks. the managers
swear, and the boys assume an expression of
injured innocence which touches even the
metallic heart of IL Chicago drummer for a hard
ware firm. That scene Is repeated several
times daily. The boys are discharged and new
ones obtained but, unlike their cOmpeer who
in large cities operates an elevator, they have
no inclination to rise in their profession and
for all time, be they white or black, thev stead
liy remain In the groove established by their
predecessors.
For Rent.
n. EwN.