River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1893-06-15
SYSTEMATIC HoUsEwoRK.
Business Methods Are Necessary in the
IOuSehold.

Business Methods Are Necessary in the
Household.
One of the greatest hindrances to an
improvement in domestic labor is the
want of business methods among mis-
tresses who engage servants. The girl
is generally engaged to come. and has
but the faintest idea in the world what
are to be her specific duties. She judges
Of the methods of her new mistress 10y
the methods of her last one which are
often Numerically different.
Before engaging a servant the daily
duties which are required of her should
be carefully gone over. She should be
told plainly and clearly just what will
be expected of her. what day ont" she
will have ard what wages She viii re-
ceive. She should he engaged on trial
for a week. On no account should the
routine of her duties be interfered
with except on the occasion of
some serious accident in the family
II is the common thing for careless
ouseholds to put back the washing
Gay for the weather or change the iron
ing day or regular cleaning day; but
this is mistake that is fatal to the or
der of the homework. The stitches of
W ~yk thus dropped are not easily picked
up. There must be a daily routine of
work laid out in every household sys-
tematic sweeping and cleaning day for
certain rooms, a cleaning day for the
kitchen and for sweeping around the
kitchen door. If the work is methodic-
ally laid out the mistress of the house
- i
If. on the contrary, there is no speci-
fled time for doing the work, and the
maid of all work is called off at odd
times to do various out-of-the-way
things. her lot IS a most deplora bile one.
and tine London term of slavery" best
describes her position. On the
other hand. a girl whose daily
tasks are laid out for her, and
who knows she can sit down and
rest or sew for herself when they are
done. is much more likely to do her
work punctually and well. The great
objection which girls ordinarily have
to kitchen work land it is a reasona ole
one) is that their duties are never done
In too many houses the mistress claims
the time of the maid every moment she
is in the house. No hotel or business
establishment would do this, except
where the time during certain hours is
specified; the girl then has certain
hours of each day that are as much her
own as the hours she spends in sleep
In the ordinary household. when the
girls work is done. it is necessary for
her to be on hand TO answer the bell
and i'm ease of special need. but the
time should be her own To sew or work
for herself if her homework has been
properly done; and IL is for the interest
of her employer that she be encouraged
to he domestic and industrious in the
matter. On washing and ironing days
no girl is likely To have much time after
her work is done, but ON the other days
of the week. except Saturdays. she VIII
usually have several hours when she
can sew or knit for herself. The Ger
man women, who are most industrious
in saving spare moments. always keep
a little crochet work or simple sewing
on hand in the kitchen. and while they
are waiting for a pot 10 boil or the fire
To come up, they pick up their handi-
work It is amazing to note how much
they accomplish in time which is Ordi-
narilv wasted. 1t is true that the Ordi-
nary German woman OF this class Is a
woman of the most robust health. Her
nerves are like iron, and she works
with that mechanical precision which
tells 50 magnificently in the end. but
which would be impossible for WON
an of less robust physique and strong
nerve.-N. Y. Tribune.