The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1890-01-18
THE LADY'S MAID.
How Wealthy Women Are Waited
on in New York.

The duties of lady's maid, says one
| of them, are almost constant, If sell
dom heavy. One may have leisure
for half a day or scarcely get a breath
ing spell of ten minutes in twenty
four hours. There is not a great deal
| of variation. / get up at seven in the
morning and am through my bath
and toilet in time for breakfast at
eight. Immediately afterward take
a pot of chocolate and the morning
papers to my mistress, and while she
drinks the chocolate | read from the
papers aloud. Her mail is brought up
at nine o'clock and / manicure her
hands while she reads it. Then | pre-
pare her bath, and afterward arrange
her hair and dress her for her ten
| o'clock breakfast.
While the chambermaid is doing up
her room / arrange her toilet brushes
and boxes and get out her afternoon
dress. | have my dinner at loon. Ii
my mistress feels like mapping after
luncheon / read her to sleep. If she
goes shopping | usually accompany
her. At three | dress her for her after
noon drive, and at six for dinner. l
| have supper at seven, and the evening
is generally my own, but | go
to bed early when my mistress
is out, because when she comes
home / have to undress her, brush
out her hair, give her a cup of hot
bouilIon and read her to sleep.
Brushing, mending and making over
her dresses, attending to her laces
looking after her linen, take up most
of my spare time. Sunday afternoon
| always have to myself, and alto
gether satisfied. Ladies who require
the attendance of maids have to treat
them with a certain degree of con-
sideration in order to keep them.
Once | lived with a woman who
would not open her eyes in the morn
ing until / had bathed them with
rose water, and who compelled me to
brush her teeth for her. / found out
that before her marriage she did all
the housework for her father and a
family of several children, and the
discovery so irritated me that soon
conjured up a pretext for leaving her.
The lady's maid in mos4 households
ranks with the housekeeper and but
Ter and is not required to eat in the
kitchen. Her average pay is $25 a
month, but if she fulfills all require
ments the very wealthy often give her
$50, or even more. If she is a capable
dressmaker and milliner it is a posi-
tive economy to retain her at high
wages. English maids who have
lived with the aristocracy are the
first choice with New York women
at present. They are able to give
points. All the Vanderbilts have
maids who have lived in the families
Of English noblemen, and as much
may be said with slight limitations of
the Astors, Lorillards and other faIni-
lies. Mrs. William Waldorf Astor's
personal attendant formerly waited
upon the Queen of Italy, and Mrs. w.
K. Vanderbilt has one who served
Lady Churchill.
Recently a lady's maid was dis
charged because she was mistaken for
her mistress when the two were out
together. Another was sent flying be-
a she accidentally pulled her mis-
tress' hair while brushing it. A third
discharged herself because her mis-
tress insisted that she should admins
ter a hypodermic injection of NOR
phine every night. = NeW orleans
| Picna9k1le.