The Sedalia weekly bazoo. [volume] (Sedalia, Mo.) 187?-1904, 1891-07-21
FEMALE HELP WANTED.

The cooperative kitchen seeks to
do away with the services Of a cook
in the house and yet give the family
. warm meal in its own home.
This scheme has been in successful
operation in Boston for some years
and is the same rs the plan adopted
by the ladies of Evanston last winter,
an account Of which was gwen in the
Daily News at the time. An assOcia.
ton 10 first formed, each member Of
which represents some family who
wish to avail themselves of the bene.
fits Of the cooperative kitchen. A
suitable building s then rented for a
kitchen and a mansl er, cooks and
helpers installed therein.
Wagons containing charcoal stoves
are obtained and the foad is cooked
in the kitchen, put into dishes called
kitcheners and placed over the Goals
to be kept warm while being deliv-
cred. 1t is then sent to the different
homes, where one servant or the PEG.
pie themselves can put it on the table
and serve it.
This is an ideal plan, and ifsuccess.
fully carried ou', wouli certainly
prove a great saving in the hire Of
cooks, the cost of fuel for cooking fires
and the retail cost Of provisions, be-
81 les saving the trouble in looking af-
ter the extra servant and fire.
The failure OF the cooperative kit
chen 10 Evanston Was largely due to
the Encouragement Of the manager,
but it is also thought that fifty fami-
lies are too many to be served from
one kitchen. To make this plan sue
cessful it would be we'll to try it with
only twenty-five families at first, and
the manager should either be a stock.
holder in the association or the pro-
visions should be bought by q steward
who is stakeholder to insure the in.
terest of the buyer sgainst the ma
chinations Of the local merchants.
Besides the relief it would be to the
housekeepers it is thought that this
scheme Of corporation, if it became
popular, would help to dignity house
hold labor. The cooks employed at
these kitchens would have to be ex-
perts and would receive higher wages
than at private houses; They would
be less lonesome and in many respects
more independent.
The ill-advised persons who attemp-
ted, without success, TO arouse the
prejudice of the servant cir of Evans.
ton against the ladies who were men,
berr Of the Cooperative association
failed to realize what is true. that CO.
operation will in the end benefit serv-
ant girls as much ss mistresses.
Like all o:ter things, tie co-opera.
tive kitchen meets With the prejudice
Of the people, which is sometimes
shown by jibes and jeers and some
times by open hospitality. To over.
come these prejudices the kitchen
must prove its right to existence by
winning its fight against the obstacles
srrayed against it, for nothing sue
ceeds like success.
But in our opinion decided success
will not come to it until private enter.
prise takes hold Of it with a vision OF
the almighty dollar behind it. What
is to hinder a private firm or corpor-
alton from starting a public kitchen
iu Chicago, sending out its bills OF
lare and advertising to deliver warm
meals ready cooked at certain hours
Of every day? Tuink Of the hundreds
Of families living in flats that would
g adly t.ke advantage of such an OPP
portunity to have their meals sent in.
With capital and push behind it sucl
an enterprise could not help but make
money. Of course such a business
would meet with opposition from
hotels and boarding houses and would
have to take time to overcome the
doubts and prejudices Of fine people.
but pluck and money can accomplish
great things in the way of business.
1t would be an especial adva ntage
if such scheme could be in good
working order in time for The Worlds
Fair. Many people will doubtless
come to the fair bringing their own
bread and cakes with them, rent
rooms on the European plan and
board themselves. II they know that
they can obtain hot cooked meats and
coffee from some public kitchen they
will be sure to patronize it.
The writer Of this article once no
ticed a man at an agricultural fair in
the country running a public kitchen
on a small scale with considerable sue
cess. His kitchen consisted Of a
medium-sized shoe box set on end, on
the tod of which was o small