Wichita eagle., 1888-09-20
WATERS IN ST. LOUIS.
ENTERPRlSlNG METHODS OF AMBl-
TiOUS KNIGHTS OF THE NAPKIN.

Graduates of Oxford and Foreign Noble
men Who wash Dishes, Wait at Table
and Pocket Big Fees-A FraternaI Or
ganization.
you would be surprised, SIR" remarked
the head waiter of a leading hotel to a re-
porter, "to find the sort of people who pre-
sent themselves to US head walters for posi-
tions. You couldn't tell some of them from
real gentlemen, they are SO handsome, and
| polished in their manners. Only the other
day a man presented himself ct the door of
the dining room. He was tall, stout, finely
| formed, and as dignified as prince. bowed
| as he approached and was about to conduct
| him to a seat at one of the tables, for l was
| convinced that he was foreign nobleman.
Are you the head waiterr he asked i am,
sir, l replied; pray, Of what service can l be
to your Give me position said he. lam
a waiter, and 1 come from Saratoga
Il would have been more surprised than
was if had not often had applications from
men of similar bearing"
did you employ the fellow"
| "Oh, certainly, and an exceptionally good
waiter he has turned out He is in demand
| all over the dining room, and the ladies are
particularly fond of having him wait upon
them He is graduate of Oxford university
and talks Greek with the fluency Of an Athe-
man. We have Greek scholars in the house
one OF them professor-and / have been
told that his Greek and Latin are unusually
| fine. One night he gave the help in the hotel
| a reading and one of his selections was
| chapter OF Virgil He was applauded so Wig
orously for this that 1 questioned my men
concerning their knowledge of Latin, and was
surprised to find that quite a number Of
them were acquainted with the dead lam
| guages. Nearly all of my men speak French
and German, and those of them who have not
| received good schooling are in the minority.
you must know that there is no trade or
ganizationsso compact and fraternal as that
| of the hotel waters They are good hearted
fellows, as rule, and will never see one of
their kind want for anything that they can
supply. Those in position supply those who
are out of it, and nobody is whit the wiser
Masonry itself is outdone by their regard for
this rule of duty"
care the unemployed walters who are here
now supported in this way?'
''They are mostly. Nearly all of the recent
arrivals came here too soon, and whatever
they brought with them quickly disappeared
Their condition was made known to the other
walters at once, and the latter supplied them
with means to secure lodging and enough
change to keep them alive
How much does it cost to keep an unem-
ployed waiter alive and cheerfu!'
Every little, ii the men are fly and they
generally are. A smart man whose room
rent has been paid can live gloriously on ten
cents day. There are saloons in this city,
both north and south, which supply an II
o'clock lunch fit for any mans meal. In the
bill of fare are two or three kinds of hot
meat, potatoes fried, stewed and in salad
form, tomatoes, chicken croquettes, cold
slaw, pickles, bread, mustard, beets, etc. All
a man need do TO entitle him to hack at
this magnificent hungry mans banquet is to
purchase one glass of beer"
"But q man can't have much fun on one
meal day. can he?"
"He doesn't need to confine himself to one
meal He has still five cents left, and with
this he can purchase one beer later on.
"The unemployed napkin artists now in the
city, attracted by the exposition and its ac-
companying festivities, are certainly sorry
looking lot, Notwithstanding their sumptuous
living Their coats are threadbare, and
their toes, when not peeping forth from their
boots, are struggling to get there. Despite
the fraternal care with which their more for
tunate co-laborers regard Them they are not
appetizing to look upon. But one-half, at
least, of these will be shortly engaged to
help out at the leading hotels Few will be
able to recognize III the smooth shaven model
in boiled shirt, spo;less cravat real cuffs and
cutaway, The wretch who is today haunting
the free lunch coui-ters, grasping at whatever
comes within range of his watery vision.
There isn't labor union in the country
that takes half the care of its own that the
walters do of theirs. Occasionally they are
economical and put their earnings away, but
the great majority spend freely and give
away what they can't spend. Like most
people in their walk of life, they are imita-
tive, aud the conversation of guests at table
is rarely lost upon them. A first class waiter
can listen without appearing to, but he misses
little that is worth remembering. Often
when we have had distinguished guests at
table, have heard their speeches rehearsed
and dissected in the kitchen. Sometimes |
have heard the argument of prominent
statesman torn to shreds by the fellow who
was waiting to fill his order behind the
SCREEN
where do most of your waters come
from'"
"They come mostly from Europe. although
it is only once in while we get one direct
from abroad here in St. Louis The first stop
ping place for walters is New York, but they
are a rowing set ard can't rest even there.
AS soon they begin to hear of the glorious
west they take of their aprons and start.
Sometimes they come west in sleepers and
sometimes in box cars, but they get here just
the same Once in while a man comes
along and asks for work who has seen better
days. Among these are noblemen and col.
lege graduates. They may have had plenty
of money when they reached the west and
spent it in high living; then their remit
tances fail to materialize and they are on
their uppers. These men make splendid
walters, but they have to begin as dish wash
ers and get accustomed TO stepping around
lively before they are intrusted with table
Still, when they get there they always give
satisfaction. They appreciate the importance
of scrupulous cleanliness, and are invariably
polite without betraying too much humility.
Il have man under me who is such cor
rect judge of character that he can tell al
most to nickel often, and sometimes TO a
cent, what the amount of his tip will be. He
can size man up like fash, and ne does it
without giving offense, either. / have seen
gentlemen upon whom he had waited rise
from the table with no intention of paying !
him anything, and vet he would draw their
chairs 50 deity away and inquire so earnestly |
IL they had enjoyed their meal and whether !
he couldn't help them to some little extra |
delicacy, that they have put their hands in |
their pockets and feed him well st. Louis |