The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-09-24
ETIQUErrE or TIPS.
English Schedule of GrntuiticS Mt
Public and Private Houses
From The Lond' n Te'osraph.

Fuhhc and Private Houses.
From the London Telegraph.
During the holiday season the ptrenn a!
question of tips is burn.ng one. 1t is not
that it Is not always with us, for any one
whose business leads him or her to go on
railway journey OF to eat meal in a
restaurant S. confronted with it, II PIE
bisc!te were to be taken as TO what Is
the beast grulged OF az tips 1t would bo
ihat to the railway porter. Many OF IN IA
ale mere outside men aiioNed TO De In at
tendance az q railway station, and as a
RUE they are always ub TO sci a recon
incubation that viii bear some scrutiny.
Probably tho r-aspn that The porters tip
Is so ChCerfully given Tor even the most
inhnitesima. service is that the railway
man has hal ihe sense never to show
himself dissatisfied. however small the
sum may be. he viii pocket his twopence
from the CverIresssd lady who is travel
ing hrst-class with cumbrous luggage,
and You would have 10 he a very keen OBJ
server TO detect the furtive expression
by which he would coavey his feelings
TO his mate. and with he shilling given
by quiet Old gentleman in the third-class
he viii phllosophically think that he Jaw
Of averages holds good in tips as in most
th,nEs.
Wbth regard TO The restaurant waiter The
cvse In different If is pretty generally be
hevtd that these mnistrants to our needs
rely upon the tips they receive to take the
place OF settled WAGES. but whether this Is
the fact or not. It Is often a problem 10
the non-eXperieuced diner to know what to
give. In the city they have settled 1t by
reckoning it a penny on each shilling cN-
pended on The meal, and the service OF
the modest chop and glass of bitter is
seldom more literally rewarded At the
ultra smart" establishments of the West
End q shilling for each guest at the dinner
is supposed to be the least that can be
offered to the livered servants and il is
even whispered that gold" begins to be
looked for in one or two But between
these, how Is the pain person who would
be neither stnsy nor eXtravagant, to adj
just his moderate honorarium?
Then there is the question, where shall
the line be drawn In giving tips" at ho-
telsP The bill win almost certainly include
charge of several shillings a day for
attendance" but the majority win not
object TO some personal reward TO the
head waiter In the dining room or the
chambermaid who has been in charge OF
the bed rooms on your landing. The lv
cried porter in the hail, who knows oil
about trains and boats, and can ind his
way through Bradshaw with facility
that Is simply marvellous. cannot be ig-
nored, for he is really a friend In need In
these days of travelling But as tax IL
becomes somewhat irksome when the
boots" the hall porter the lad al the
lift, and the page boy who bring out the
newspapers to the veranda ali hover anx-
iously around on ones departure on the
lookout for anything from shilling to
half a crown,
Serious. however as all these lmposts
may be- II Is the system of Tipping" at
country houses during the shooting and
hunting seasons that is generally regarded
with awe by all except those to whom
money is as the "circumabent air" II
is currently believed that the head keeper
looks at nothing under paper" The sad
cases of the penniless subaltern of the
line the rs yet unrecognlzed barrister, the
girl keeping up appearances on $40 year,
are an trotted out as victims OF this mis-
placed generosity, and through II are rep
resented MS hindered often from accepting
pleasant invitati tons to join the guns or go
to the county ball
But is Il quite as bad as this? This expo
rienced servants Of big establishments are
uncommonlv good judges of their masters
visitors, and have far too much sense 10
expect from Master Tom" or Miss
Lucy" the same as from the millionaire
who wants 10 shine as a shot, and would
do anything TO be placed in the particular
warm corner that suits him
In the matter Of giving paper, the case
of the lrish gamekeeper is worth reca ing.
gentleman gave him three soVerelgns
after "A "shoot" yer honor, we nyer
nave anything but paper" The visitor
was equal to the occasion, and gave one
pound Irish note 20 the gamekeeper' WHO
in delightful ignorance that IT. was not
flyer. pockcted it with smiles and thanks.
If rs caster to dwell upon the far-reach-
! Of a
any practical method for fairly remuner-
attnc, the extra services which visitors en-
ION Whenever royalty honors a private
person with visit there IS Well-un-
derstoc1 rule that no individual pecuniary
rewards will be given, but that a certain
and sufficient sum viii. be placed IN re-
sponsible hands for distribution among the
servants Al the government houses in
India a box stands I'm the hail, or some
similarly conspicuous place, with the re-
quest that no Rratuities may be given to
the servants personally, but that any sums
placed In il would be devoted 10 pension
fund and these Well-trained, well-disci-
pinned men fully understand this regula-
lion Bur for less exalted mortals than
Princes or governors the grave objection
is that such a course tacitly sanctions
tips, and he ordinarily hosp'table host pre-
fers 10 resemble an ostrich. and hide his
head in the sand to the existence of the
practice. once In a way will be found
one who recognizes The habit 10 the ex-
tent of positively forbidding IT, and an in
stance in point might be cited of a very
great Anglo-Indian administrator who had
printed notice hung In all the bedrooms
OF his house stating that his servants were
fully paid 10 perform such services as his
guests might require, and earnestly re-
guessing that no money should be offered
them. inasmuch as any accepting II would
be dismissed. In the everyday condi-
tons Of life It Is probable that the wheels
win continue 10 be creased by the tip.
and as long as this Is NOT extortionate peo-
PIE will grumble but submit.