The Sentinel. [volume] (Trenton, N.J.) 1880-1882, 1882-03-25
Shop Manners.

| In an evil hour, writes Miss Kate
Field In Our Continent, ! was lured to
q shop where I was assured cheapness
prevailed. The shop was very, very
crowded, very noisy and atmosphere
cally poisonous. I wanted a dollars
worth of letter paper, and discovered
that the grea. advantage In patroniz'
| ing this part cular shop was that l
could purchase my paper for ninety
nine cents. The saving of one cent
has wonderful attractions for cert in
! formations Of brain. There are women
who will spend twenty cents on the
elevated railroad, or ten cents in car or
omnibus for the purpose of saving one
cent en- yard. This sort of economy
| fills the intelligent New Zealander
with amazement and causes him TO
acknowledge the supremacy of our
great republic.
The young lady who condescended
to wait upon me was an honor to her
sex. call her LADY, because she
calls herself so-proof positive that she
is lady. There are no women in
this country, consequently there no
saleswomen. Our laundress Is wash
erlady, and our seamstress is Lady
who sews by the day. Our cook Is the
lady in the basement, and our sales
women are salesladies. Soon there
will be no men, and we shall eventu-
ally invoke the aid or young elevator
| gentleman. If calling human beings
| by fine names made them fine, what
| lessons in manners we could give the
| universe
The cheap Young lady shifted at me
as though we're q creature too base for
consideration, and entertained an ap-
preciative public by humming a pop
ular air. In the course of time she
deigned to put before the woman
standing beside me parcel and change
which was taken by my neighbor,
who at once departed.
On hummed cheap young lady
In a most insulting way
until I ventured to AJAX for my pack
age.
Cheap Young Lady lin drawing
tone :)-What did you buy?
I-You surely know what 1 bought
writing paper.
The cheap young lady ceased to hum,
and even became languidly solicitous.
She disappeared, and on returning
spake.
G. Y. e. Ths lady next you took
your paper ana change and / think it
was very wrong of her.
Had you attended to your bust
ness she never would have an oppor-
tunity to take what belonged TO an
other. gave you threedollar Dill.
Return it to me.
The cheap young lady turned pale.
After all, though woman l was not
a worm to be trodden upon.
c. Y. L.-You must wait until the
floor walker comes around.
I waited. The floor walker con-
sumed ten minutes In coming round"
Then the cheap young lady reappear
ed with three-doll bill which she
flung st me. Thanking her humbly for
the great favor conferred, / retired. |
had breathed bad sir for twenty min
utes, had been pounded ID the back
by eager humanity had been insulted,
and emerged, without paper, an Irrl-
tated and wiser woman.
Upon unfolding my short but NOV
ing tale TO other women who have the
misfortune to be born into ". I'D
where clothes are de rigeur and shop
ping necessary, my sorrowing ears
heard of experiences in the light of
which my own paled its FIRE. Then I
asked questions of my self,
why are shop manners In
America the worst in the world?
Myself-Because the employees are
generally of he humblest origin, and
are too ignorant to appreciate the viz
tue OF courtesy.
I-Employees in Europe are equally
Of humble birth.
Myself-True, but Italians and
French, for example, are born superb
| cially courteous. An Italian noble
| man has no better manners then an
italian cook. In England caste makes
employees subservient rather than
civil. The effect of democracy upon
vulgar men and women is to initiate
them with equality-an equality " hich
they attempt to assert by treating
their superiors as no better than Them
selves.
Myself-Whatis the remedy?
IEducation eventually make us a
polite nation. Self-interest ought TO
| do so. AS honesty is the best policy.
so Is courtesy, and those shopkeepers
who bear this fact In mind will thrive
the NEST