The times., 1898-09-25

worn only by the field hands
The housemaid attends to the actual
chamber work. She cares for the upper
floor. the sleeping apartments and the
| lower story. except the dining room and
| pantries- She polishes all Of the floors.
and with a rhythm. too. Housemaids
take great delight in playing sort OF
| clog dance with their cocoanut brushes
1 especially IL a guest is within hearing. II
/ Is her duty TO wash the windows, dust
| the rooms She Is expected 10 have all
| of her work done and be out of the house
1 by 10 O'Clock. or not later than IL. every
morning. The midday hours she has for
washing her own cloths or mending or
\ tidying her room, and after luncheon she
/ dons a white cap and apron, previously
wearing gingham apron.
| The waitress attends 10 the dusting OF
/ the dining room, sets the table. cares for
/ the silver. glass and linen, and serves at
meals She also keeps the pantries, at
/ tends TO the candles or lamps and some
times makes the beds, or assists the
housemaid If necessary. At bed time she
takes up her night tray-a tray with the
! whisky decanter. syphOn of seltzer 2
4 pitcher of water. and some tumblers. This
/ she deposits on the masters bedside Ia
/ bic. Then she makes the beds ready for
1 the retiring. II is a saying among house
maids when the tumblers are discovered
| unusued OF a morning. Keep clear. mas
ters tumblers were dry" In a tone OK
warning sufficient for the wary.
From the time she gets out of bed till
she retires she is never seen without her
cap and apron, else she goes out for her
/ own pleasure. She is the artist of the
! servant world. She can rub white spots
from the mahogany breakfast table with
a mixture of vinegar and sweet oil and
/ heap of elbow grease, or chill champagne
/ TO perfection. She it is who turns lady S
\ maid when necessary. She can shampoo
( ones hair to that most delightful point OF
/ fufiness or give one an ice pack like a
/ trained nurse. And always with some
/ homely panacea for every ache or pain
/ She is a walking household companion.
/ indeed. for all domestic needs
! House servants have no specified day
/ out. When their work is done their time
is their own. They must only say 20
I their mistress that they wish to 90 out.
+ II she is entertaining Unexpectedly that
/ day the leave is postponed. A maid never
( leaves any work undone for an outing,
nor expects holiday on general princi-
/ pies.
/ Laundry work for the family is usually
/ done away from the pen. unless a larger
/ force of servants is kept, when there is
laundress for this work Otherwise wO-
/ men living at their own homes do most
/ of this work They wash out Of doors and
| have a large white fiat stone known as
: the blackstone After washing and rub
bing the clothes well by hand, they put
them, well sOaped upon this stone, and
either use a jet, as they call the hose, or
dash water from buckets over the clothes.
The clothes are actually washed twice.
and rinsed three times before they are
wrung out by hand, and hung upon the
wire line or small trees about the yard
I
are starched- This can be done, as there
is never need of haste ,
A cleaner wash was never known,
thanks TO the slow. thorough process and
the fresh air and sunshine allotted TO
them. These washerwomen do UP laces
exquisitely, and delight in fussy gar
ments. They are expert irOners. They
use starch more freely than our women,
especially in the linens, and are more
generous bluers, but their clothes are
beautifully sweet smelling. No atm0s-
phere OF ham and eggs and clay pipes
Is returned with the family wash A
torn garment is a disgrace and iron rust
or slack ironing are things never mem
TONED.
to the size of the family and the amount
of work required. In a family of three.
where three servants are kept, a waitress
is paid usually from s 10 9 shillings q
week-s2 to s. . The housemaid's wages
would be shillings and the cook would
receive 10 shillings- When a butler IS e1a-
| plOyed he receives about II shilIings.
This income is nearly doubled by tips.
1t is a time-honored custom with guests
| TO tip the house servants-usually not less
/ than a shilling each, and much more II
some special service has been rendered
| There is very little changing about
| among maids. service in one family OF
/ five or six years being the rule. By law
| notice of two weeks is required The
/ maids take great pride in their references
and keep the written certificates of their
character to their dying day, even though
! they marry OF leave service. The laun-
dress charges about shillings a dozen.
A most elaborate gown viii be 2 shillings.
In speaking Of pens I mean the home
| steads just out Of the city proper Like
| our Southern plantations, they include a
| variety of different sized buildings The
| dwelling house, including all of the living
| rooms, is usually square, with wide veran-
| das The kitchen is detached from the
main house, except for the shOrt-covered
porch, or walk. which leads into the back
pantry, or perhaps a hallway. In the
| back pantry is the meat safe and the safe
for vegetables for immediate use. The
ice vault is always five or six feet from
the floor. A crane IS used, and the ice is
! raised by pulley suspended from the cell
ing and lowered into the vault The safes
! are what We term cupbOards with wire
screening at the sides and door
| The servants quarters are built under
! separate roofs. some. lines in cottage yla
or two-story structure. When there IS
! bungalow near the entrance to the
| grounds il is occupied by the butler and
| family. 1t is, in fact, the lodge and IL
two-storied the gardener has the lower
| floor The bathhOuse is near the main
| house, and has large marble tub. which
| is kept snow white; the floors are CEMENT
| ed. Hot and cold water is piDed in the
| bathhOuse of the modernized pen. Some
| times it is fetched in buckets The wash
house or laundry is on the far side of the
kitchen. 1t is also supplied with running
water, and has soapstone tubs. Beside
| these buildings are the springhouse
woodhouse, and the usual complement Of
| a plantation.
After the days work is over the ne
| groes come up from the fields and the
| girls ''sit round" and go over the DAYS
gossip. If the least pretext offers dreams
| are the subject of conversation. and all
sorts of meanings attributed to them for
| jamaica negroes are highly superstitious
| To dream of being turned into fishes
| means trouble to somebody, sure To ba
turned into an alligator means sickness
| in the household To be pursued by an
| alligator forewarns the dreamer that he
| is the intended victim of some malady
And TO see the man in the moon means
death to somebody in the pen. II he car
| ries a bundle of wood on his shoulder il
| means sudden death
/ met a waitress who for the first time
in her life. saw the man in the moon
1 with his hf1pdla This she raIarad 70 the