The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-07-01
CLEANLINESS IN HOTELS.
How War Is Waged Against Dirt on
Scientific Principles.
From The CincinnattTribune.


From the CincinnatiTribune
There are expenses connected with
every first-class hotel that the average
guest knows not about and cares nothing
for, but the landlord groans in financial
agony every time he thinks of the ancient
and truthful adage, that cleanliness is
next to goodness" A dirty hotel is
damned "a clean )ne is sure of patronage.
The table may have its weak uesses, the
bar it's high prices, the building may be
old and the furniture antique, but all is
forgiven If the linen crinkles with clean
illness and the rooms smell sweet and
wholesome.
To keep 200 or 400 rooms in perfect
condition requires constant work on the
part of small army of women and
men. The work of Cleaning cannot be
done all at one time, for the hotel must
be open for business the year round, so
each room has its day to retire into OBJ
security and suffer untold agonies at the
hands of strong-armed scrub women.
The larger and better class of hotels
manage to give each room a thorough
cleaning at least twice year. The car
pets are removed, washed and busted,
the floor, walls and woodwork scrubbed
until blisters are raised and the furni-
ture is cleaned and the necessary repairs
pairs are made.
To do all this costs money, as several
gangs of cleaners are required. The
housekeeper notifies the room clerk that
certain rooms are to be cleaned the next
day and he checks them off. Then the
workers 90 at it, and it takes a marvel
ously short time to remove every trace
of dirt. Even when repainting is neces-
sary il does not prolong the agony to any
great extent
BY using the modern and tried inven-
tions for cleaning, the work is both has
tened and lessened, and four women and
two men can thoroughly clean an average
of three rooms day This method of
doing the work keeps the hotel in a con-
stant turmoil of house cleaning, but so
well is the work systematized that
the guests are rarely aware OF what is GO
ing Gu.
This thorough cleaning of the rooms is
made in addition to that done every day
in every room that is occupied. Each
morning the housekeeper is furnished
with a list of the rooms occupied the
night before, whose guests have departed.
Then every piece of linen is removed and
sent to the laundry, and fresh, clean
bedding provided. after the room has been
thoroughly aired, swept and busted. This
work req ulres about one chambermaid TO
ten rooms.
The upstairs cleaning is done early in
othce and public apartments are relieved
of their days accumulation of dirt Just
after midnight the scrub-women put in
an appearance, and the marble thing,
wainscoting and pillars of the Office and
lobby are given thorough scru bbing. BY
5 o'clock this work is all done and the
guests, when they come in, find the place
as neat as pin.
The laundry forms very important
adjunct TO a modern hotel, and the use
of machinery has cheapened and facili-
tated the washing of the bedding, towels,
napkins and other soilaDle things used in
large quantities. The washing and the
greater part of the ironing are done by
machinery, and each hotel has its linen
room, where the clean linen is carefully
mended and kept until needed.
10 keep hotel in running order costs n
great deal of money. Beside the cleaners
and chambermaids, there are porters,
electricians, laundrymen, engineers, car
penters, plumbers and upholsterers. The
electrician looks after the lights, the
plumber sees that the bathrooms are in
condition, the carpenter is constantly
busy fixing recalcitrant doors, broken
furniture, etc, and the upholsterer has
all that he cares to do in arresting the
wear and tear and the rayages of Time.