The Sedalia weekly bazoo. [volume] (Sedalia, Mo.) 187?-1904, 1891-07-07
FEE.GlvING IN FRANCE.
4 Practice That b Very Costly and AAnoy-
Ing to Foreigner.

FEE-GlvlNG IN FRANCE.
4 Practice That b Very Costly and AAnoy-
Ing to Foreigner.
What American travelling abroad, and
especially in France, does not hate the
custom of constant fee-giving? says q
Paris letter. The ''pourboire" is Euro
pean institution SO firmly rooted in tine
customs of the people that it will be
difficult to eradicate it. Every one has
to submit to this species of servitude,
natives as we'll as foreigners. It is a
voluntary servitude, to be sure, created
by gratitude and perpetuated by habit;
but it now has all the force of an act of
the legislature. One is not legally
obliged to give fees. but custom has
made the practice as obligatory as any
law. Frenchmen We're able to over
throw the Bastile iO1 years ago. but
they are powerless against the pour
boire" of to-day. If natives can not
change the custom. how little can for
eigners avail? have often heard indie
pendent Americans eXclaim. on their
arrival in Paris for the first time, that
they would not give fees everywhere,
that they were Americans. that they
would not conform to such customs,
etc. Life was soon made a burden
to them, and they found that they would
either have to give fees or return home.
They were opposed to it on principle
more than from desire to save money.
The custom is all wrong. but in the
memorable words of Bill Tweed, ''what
are You going 10 do about it?"
Let us see how this custom of con-
slant fee-giving effects the traveller.
We will suppose that he arrives from
America by the French line of steam
ers. Before he lands at Havre he is
obliged to give at least 10 francs each to
his state-room steward. waiter, shoots,
and smoking-roOm attendant, In all
about s.. Then he must give 10 cents
to the porter who carries his luggage
to the train and from the trai 4 on ar
rival in Paris. and cents to q dirty
individual who opens the door of his
cab. The "cabby" expects q pour
boire" Of at least 10 cents. The hotel
Porter's assistant "a man found on the
street, expects - cents for assisting to
room, and the porter also as much. BY
the time the tourist has reached his
room in the Paris hotel he has spent
IS. - in fees alone. Now while he re-
mains in the gay French capital the
amount of fees that he must give de.
ponds upon his mode of life. II he
rides in cabs and takes his meals at
restaurants his expenses for fees will
he considerable. Stingy natives only
give to their cabby a pourboire Of 8
or cents, but most foreigners give
half a franc 90 cents, each time;
and the minimum fee at restaurants
Is sou Tor cent? in the franc. That is,
If the dinner costs 10 francs. at least
10 cents must be given to the waiter as
fee. Let ms suppose the traveller takes
his MONDAY breakfast at q restaurant
and if he is not stingy he will leave the
small change for the waiter, say %
cents Fees given at different galleries
and free exhibitions will amount to at
least 80 cents; fee to waiter who served
q glass of beer. : cents: fee TO barber
flor they expect i'll, scents: ''cabby." 10
cents: waiter at dinner. small change
left, IS cents: ''cabby," to theater, 10
cents: fee to inevitable cab-door opener,
twice cents; to the odious ''ouvreuse"
(who does the dnty Of usher at theaterl,
10 cents; programme. never free, 5 cents;
fee at cafe, between the acts, 10 cents;
''cabby." to hotel, 10 cents; total, 81. 81
for fees alone for ono person, one day,
in Paris, to which must be added at least
20 cents as the average daily proportion
Of fees he must pay the servants at his
hotel when he leaves, although ''ser.
vice" is charged for in the bill separate
~. The above is not exaggerated, it is
what the average tourist would pay in
fees; he might give less, but he might
also give more. 1t represents about rs
per cent. on the amount Of his ordinary
expenses for meals, cabs, thcater, etc.
There is league being formed
against the ''poWboire" at restaurants,
and by whom do You think? by the
walters themselves Yes. that is true,
and they have lately been holding .
conference in Paris with the avowed
object of suppressing fees at cafes.
The proprietors of such establishments
not only do not pay the walters any
salary, but they take for themselves
portion of the fees paid to the walters
by the consumers. Now the walters
wish to abolish the fee system and have
fixed salaries established for them. II
would be much better for them, and for
the public as well. This tax of sou in
the franc is heavy one. and amounts
to large sum during the year. Tho
price of glass of beer in Paris is
usually cents. but the customer has to
pay l cent, at least. to the waiter who
serves it If he ncglects to do so he
does not dare enter that particular cafe
again. But this ''pourboire" does not
obtain any extra service, and it is the
business of the proprietors Of res
taurants and cafes to have their GUS
toners served. and this should be with.
out any extra expense. Let the pro-