Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1886-01-21

"A shop Girls Protest Agaiut Rude Man
ners Of Customers.


ners Of Customers.
Fgon, The YeaS York Wfy u.3 ErDre,s.
A lady with heightened color and angry
ewes swept into the private office Of the
proprietor of big retail store on Four
teenth street the other day, with the COM
plant that one of the saleswomen had
created her rudely. The merchant
smiled YEARLY. and, promising to in
squire into the matter, bowed the lady
out.
"Now. there's case in point, "said tine
merchant to am iuquiring visitor. cit may
throw some light upon the subject Of your
erraud-tne insOleuce of clerks. Here,
Johu"-to a porter-"ask Miss Black TO
come up
Presently q well-appearing bur tired
Cooking sales-girl came into the private
once. The merchants face was like a
stone.
'.Wel, MISS Black'-and his voice
was ike the cold gray day out Of doors
what is this compliant near ABOUT
your"
Mrs. Brown? A Lady in sealskin;
auburn harp asked the girl IN slow,
sven voice.
The merchant nodded.
"She was insolent 90 me, continued the
EHl "lnsuItng, / should say. she has an
5dea that shop-guls are slaves. she aud !
,are Old friends. We worked at the same
-touutpr tor tWo years before she married
Brown, the builder
That VIII do. Miss Black I am salts
fled. Thus, you see" he continued when
1ne giil had gone, ''the fault is On both
sides. The sales-woman cannot bring
herself TO believe that she Is Il machine in
capable q feeling aftront, nor can the
customer leave her thoughts of social dis
junction IN her carriage outside. America
as free country, and labOring ls honor
able says the clerk, and i expect OOedl-
sHce and subseryience,' says the custO-
Iner. Both are right, and both are wrong.
We never shall come to that point where
IN customers are kind and reasonable and
clerks invariably polite aud attentive.
Human nature must change before II can
De done. / have tried All sorts OF ways for
Improving my counter service with very
gitue effect. Discipline wouldn't DO; fines
were a failure, and dismssals defeated
Ghe very object is view"
DID you ever try increasing salaTiesT
was asked
"0ace- OF course, 1 got a better grade
or clerks and better service, but 1t cut
into my profits SO materially that had TO
give it up. Ihad 70 increase the price OF
my goods 10 keepeyen, and my customers
sGltme and went 10 cheaper places. Com
bcLiLlDu Keeps PRICES 1OWq OU TIE utSL 4
can. Pm not here to harmonic the dis
cordant elements Of mankind, but to make
money
The Young woman whose attendance
had been complained Of by the lady in
sealsdn took very sensible view Of tn e
matter when questioned about rude man
hers in clerks. .'lf lady customers would
treat clerks as human beings" said she,
F'there would be 20 trouble at ali. Why
- a. zhD 4nf IA nFi MI
uOmmeering manner toward employees in
stores is more than 1 can explain. Sue
doesn't treat her own servants ia that
.maunef. N rs. LOTUS has a social posi-
.tieB, have none, Is that any reason why
she should look at me with contempt
sieTOss the counter. There is great gulf
Between us. / know, bat / don't care for
1hat. l have other things 10 think of.
Airs. Lotus and her carriage are nothing
TO NE. she is simply customer to Yhom
4 Will sell certain goods. It's a plain busi-
neEs transaction with no social sentiment
about it.
why can't we conduct the tran
BaetiOn from purely business stand
point, as men do? Mrs. LOTUS Is not
satisfied 10 bring her carriage up to the
door; she must needs bring it inside aud
set it up, fOotman, pug dog and al, on my
cOanter. More than that, she gives this
social chasm material form and spreads
at out between US. She brings society into
the store with her, and treats me as
though / were an unWOrthy applicant for
an invitation 60 her o O'Clock tea. ! treat
her from a business standpoint, neither
bringing nor bending, and she, shOrt-
sighted creature, thinks that | mean TO be
impairment. That's all there Is TO IL.
Women aFesO unreasonable. A man will
90 into a store, make his purchases from
a male clerk, and 90 out without once
thinking OF the social difference between
him and the clerk. Such a thing never
enters his head. tie treats the clerk
Aasfs Rely. and the clerk dees his best to yet
,Vriyl5is waited in the shortest possible
- Tie clerk tries to keep the mans
,m, so that his value to the store
hAlNeA0e enhanced. II women were more
and men in their business dealings
would be small cause for COM
Ihe on the part OF either clerks or
poses ners.'