Daily Los Angeles herald., 1884-08-23
cmAmpAcnr WATERS
How They Make FORTUNES out OF g
too ConfidinR Public.
fBoaton uIobe.

Boston Ulobe
"Do you see that fellow over theres"
said a we'll known restaurant keeper,
pointing across Washington street, the
other afternoon. The speaker pointed
TO a young man, attired in a checked
suit, kersey hat and light kid gloves.
"How should you imagine that he
made living!'
"W,ll, possibly. that be had compe-
tency in his own right, or that his par
ents we're wealthy"
HIN. That man Is waiter, and a
mighty sharp one, too. ] hired him
once. but he was too sharp to suit me,
and let him go. ! do not believe he
works more than half the time. and the
rest of the time he lives high and cuts q
swell"
"How does he manage it, anxiously
inquired the reporter.
''Well, he's what you may call pro-
fessional champagne waiter. he makes
speciality OF fancy balls, wine houses
and high-toned summer resorts-in TACT,
places where large quantities OF wine are
sold. Why, I've known of his getting
as high as 81 rs each for corks.
"What do you mean?"
"Why, don't you know. Some wine
firms pay walters in that way Tor push
ing their wines The foreign manufac.
turers aud bottlers Of champagne have
adopted system Of branding the corks
with their names and the quality of the
wine in the bottle, and If they are not
bought for pushing the wine, they bring
good price from manufacturers OF do
mestic champagnes, who use them to
palm off miserable rash on the unsus-
pectinQ public. I'm told that Mumm's s
agent has recently indicted no less than
fourteen manufacturers of domestic
champagnes for this offence. But that
isn't the only way that fellow makes
money. He has other lodges.
"For exampley"
'fWell, when he is waiting he invaria-
bly carries a Jules Mumm cork in his
pocket. A guest calls for bottle of
'Mumm's dry He runs to the wine
cellar, gets bottle of inferior foreign or
domestic wine, which should not cost
more than dollar, opens il in the pres
ence of the guest, and places it together
with the extra Mumm cork that he has
Just drawn. A glance at the cork salts
lies the guest that the wine is all
righ,-there is good deal of i'm
agination about those things, you
know-and he pays $3.50 or s4 for it,.
The waiter turns over dollar to the
house, and pockets the difference. But
he reaps his rich harvest at fancy balls,
such as the Arion in New York, Cham
pAgne flows there like water, literally by
thnusands of hottles Parties oct into n
box and order wine, none but the best,
of course They get it at first, but how
much attentian do you suppose they pay
to the brand they are drinking after they
have had a few glasses: None whatever.
The waiter supplies them with
bottle after bottle at SIS each
miserable domestic stuff, which has cost
him at the bar perhap, one quarter of
that sum- He makes in another way
too. Few people realize how the curled-
haired, winedrinking 'darlings of soci-
ETY. are bamboozled. Two thirds over
they pay as little attention to thenum-
ber of bottles they have ordered as they
do to the brands, and it is the easiest
thing in the world for waiter to collect
pay for dozen or fifteen bottles when
only ten have been ordered. That fell
low pointed out is worker, when he's
at it, and bold one. | have no doubt
that he could clear at Liederkranz or
an Arion ball over 500. Do You won
der that he dresses well!'