Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1897-07-15
DOMESTIC MATTERS.
DIFFERENCES BETWEEN NORTHERN
AND SOUTHERN HOUSEKEEPING.
The Question of Servants Race Barriers
and Discipline Peculiar Customs and
Dishes Entertaining Company Guests
In New EngIand-The Hired Man.
copyright. 1887. by the Author.I

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II III 1rs5fHER are many and
NJ NGNr wide differences be-
L( /FWIHI tween northern and
sE39s:.:Y ing, the result Of
climatic influences
and the old slave
system. In the balmy climate of the
southern states the houses are built for
the comfort of nine months of warm or
mild weather and have wide halls,
many roomy piazzas and numerous win
dows. All these require extra care on
the part of the homekeeper to remain
in order and attractive cleanliness The
majority Of the southern homes, even
in the populous cities, are surrounded
with more ample grounds than is usual
at the north. and the kitchen, store
house or smokehouse, servants quar-
ters, well and dairy are in separate
buildings at some distance from each
other and from the main dwelling.
This necessitates larger force of serv-
ants than would be needed in a more
compact establishment. The grounds
are beautified by broad avenues and
sanded walks, defined by evergreen
hedges. These walks must be kept care
fully swept free of fallen leaves and
the hedges trimmed in ornamental
forms. All this takes the oversight of a
man, who may also be dining room
servant and general butler It is his
duty to keep the grounds in order and
the lower part of the house-that is,
the parlors, dining room, piazzas, halls
and buffers pantry. He it is who wash
es windows and verandas cleans and
oils the halls, looks after the table and
silverware and serves the meals.
In the old times the bare halls and
piazzas were scrubbed daily to spotless
brightness, then laid over with wax,
which was rubbed in with a corncob
until it assumed CLASSY smoothness. /
once visited at stately plantation man
sion where an ablebodied woman serv-
ant spent her whole time in this work.
known as dry rubbing. The number
vi cCA dACC ACCCG6dAJ OyC41 AA uAiC D1C6CAU
time ia family in the south of mod
crate size and easy circumstances is a
butler, cook, housemaid, nurse if there
are small children and carriage driver
if horses are kept. Added to these will
be laundress, who usually does not
live 'on the lot, but does the family
washing on her own premises and keeps
it out from Monday morning till Satur-
day night. The respective wages for
these servants are: Butler, $15 per
month; cook, $40 to $12 per month;
housemaid, $8 to $40 per month; wash
ing, about $8.
As rule the house servants do not
room ION the lot, " though comfortable
quarters may be furnished them free of
cost Since Emancipation" they prefer
to hire rooms apart from their employ
ers' homes; 1t makes them feel freer
and prevents their being summoned for
untimely services. So it is not an un-
common thing for family employing
four or five servants to be left in the
lurch after or O'Clock at night to
wait on themselves and answer the
doorbell.
Now, in similar family in the north
the butler and coachman will be in one,
in many cases the nurse will be also the
housemaid, and almost invariably the
cook and the housemaid (the latter
known as 'sthe second girl') will do
the family washing. On these "wash-
days" the cook undertakes the brunt of
the laundry work, assisted by the sec
ond girl. . who is expected to prepare
the dinner, the cook going into the
laundry after breakfast and remaining
there until evening.
In the north the wages are somewhat
higher than in the south. They are paid
there by the week, in the south by the
month. The perquisites falling to do
mestic servants are much more consid-
cradle south than north. The negro has
no prejudice against cast off clothing
in fact. revels in it, and frequently be-
speaks dress or suit Of clothes before
the makers folds are out of it. They
never refuse to either accept or wear
any article of discarded clothing. 1t is
marvellous to see how they aecommo-
date themselves to the clothes of others.
They seem TO shrink or expand accord
ing to the demands of the garment.
Negro maidservants dislike to wear
caps. 1t is regarded as kind of badge
of servitude. and the old time bright
hued bandanna turban, once universal
" worn by the cooks and other middle
aged servants, has almost entirely dis
appeared. Now and then an old "mau-
ma we'll up in the sixties or seventies
will be found nursing the grandchildren
of 'tole miss. J" and she still clings to
the turban, either in colors or white
null, the long white apron and the
snowy kerchief crossed over her loving
and faithful old breast.
!. The southern housekeeper "looketh
well to the ways of her household.
She always has a key basket kept on
the sideboard or some convenient place,
which contains all the keys of the
household, pantries. storerooms, linen
closet and smokehouse. just after
breakfast the cook appears with shin
ing array of pans, plates and cups, and
the housekeeper goes on her rounds and
"gives out'' the meats, -four, lard, cof-
fee, rice, hominy. cornmeal, bacon and
such staples to last until the next morn
ing. Previous to this, while the dew is
yet fresh upon them, the cook has gath
cred the vegetables for the days din
ner and laid them away In a cool place
The fowls have been prepared or the
butchers order delivered.
Southern ladies treat their servants
much more confidentially and familiar
" than the northern, and yet there are
few breaches of proper respect or disci-
pline The natural race barriers and
usage prevent that, while at the north
the constant encroachment of the labor
ing people and the inborn feeling that
GRE white person is as good as another
make 1t necessary for the employing
class to hedge themselves about with
somewhat exaggerated stiffness and re-
serve. On the other hand. some OF the
negroes in the south, the new growth, e
who are very impudent and worthless,
make persistent efforts to bring about
some measure of social equality. They
speak Of their fellow servants as Mr..
and Mrs. -- whenever it is allowed
and often report a lady at the door to
son vn4.ts " vInr, ii IL a badrauUIed negro