The Savannah morning news., 1900-08-05

WORLD.

The Occidental woman. newly arrived in
the Orient, finds that her daily and do
nestle life differs materially from any
thing her widest Imagination had pictur-
ed. She had been, told that she would be
free from the servant question, that con-
stantly recurring question to which no
solution has been found in this country:
that daily burden which makes the lives
of American women miserable. She had
been told that she had only to give or
ders and things were done; that she would
recline upon her easy chair and call upon
Boy to fetch and carry at will But such
state of affairs seemed too ideal, she
could not take 1T in; she never dreamed
how thoroughly she would be relieved of
that ''old man of the sea-" who hangs
about the necks of American housekeep-
ers.
1t must be remembered, says a writer
in the Philadelphia Record, that in speak
ing of Europeans in China, Americans
are meant as well as any other national
!ty To the Chinaman all white people
are alike, and all European; he cannot
grasp the idea of any world outside of
China, except Europe; and this he does
in very vague sort of fashion.
In Hong Kong, as in all the Orient
there are servants galore, and good ones.
too, to be had for the asking. True, one
must be surrounded by a small army of
them, for 1t requires the services of three
TO accomplish in a day the work of one
good one here, but the wages of the three
amount TO not much If any, more than
what is paid for the one here, and the
comfort of the housekeeper is very appre-
ciably augmented by having, not only a
place for everything, but a servant for
everything.
One of the first things a European wo-
man must learn, and then learn 60 ignore,
is the fact that Chinese servants have
little or no respect for womankind, Eu-
ropean or otherwise. They will show
their disrespect in a variety of ways which
the uninitbated fails to perceive; for in
stance they will come into their pres
ence with the queue wound around their
heads, which is most disrespectful: but
they never attempt The like with man,
for they stand more or less in fear of
men,
The women servants are not far behind
the men in this respect. but there are
Caste prevails to an alarming extent,
which accounts for the necessity of
Large number of servants.
The Boy is the most important person
age in the family. good one is treas
ure. for he oils all the wheels of the do
mestic machinery, so that there is never
a hitch or delay of any sort. He wears
pair of fun white cotton trousers, tied
tight GROUND the ankle; they are so full
AZ he hat IN folds.
over these he puts a pair of dark over
als, without any seat which makes him
a grotesque figure. When in the house he
wears a long white gown, Immediately
clean; short dark coat, or several of
them. according to the weather, is worn
in the streets.
The Boy maintains very dignifed atti-
tUde toward the master, and never or al
most never offers advice or suggestions
regarding his work; his attitude toward
the mistress is that of armed neutrality.
Occasionally one bursts through his
frozen manner. and gives the master a
'talkee. talkee."
A striking instance of this came under
my own observation. gentleman and
his wife. my host and hostess. found.
when they came to compare notes for the
day, that they had both made engage
ments for the same hour, and thus both
wanted the chair-cooies at the same
time. The gentleman, like all good hus-
bands, waived his claim, and gave way
20 his wifes plans
As he was leaving the, house the boy
came to him and said: What for you
give misses chart coolies? You man, you
take coolies; missee woman. no count"
1t would require a whole page and a
volume of explosives. to which I am not
accustomed. were I to repeat the lesson
which the Boy received that morning. For
days he scarcely looked at madam. and
then out of the tail of his bias eye. but
ever after he was respectful and courte-
GUS TO that same little woman.
When bachelor marries, as one some
times does in the Orient, his Boy, who
may have been with him from time i'm
memorial, Immediately gives warning.
He will not take orders from a woman,
and the newly made benedict must find
another one who has been accustomed to
women.
The boy Is butler and housekeeper; he
takes all orders and repeats them to his
eubordinates. whom he has hired and who
are under his enire control. He receives
the complaints and pa sses them on to the
kitchen servants, and the last one I'M
doubtedly goes out and kicks the dog"
having no one else upon whom to be-
stow It.
There is a curious free masonry among
tne servants by means or winch all seem
to know what one knows, and that al
most upon the moment The Boy feels
responsibility and faces an emergency
without complaining to the mistress; he
borrows anything he may chance to want
in the most bareface1 manner.
For instance II a dinner party is to be
given and he doesn't find silver or glass
enough, he goes direct to the Boy, whose
people are to be guests, and borrows what
ever he may need. Thus 1t frequently hap
pens that, although dining out, one eats
eff his own China and drinks his toasts
out of his own glass; everybody knows,
but nobody minds.
IL The family is large one, with small
children, there must be an Amah, or
nurse. for each child, and one who acts
as ladies' maid to the grown ups" there
Will be two or three in the kitchen to
help the cook, who, as elsewhere, is an
important parsonage. One, IL not all OF
these, will be what is called "larn pid-
geon;' that is, a Boy who gives his SER
vices for what he can learn like the old
time apprentice.
Then there is a coolie who carries wa
ter for the morning baths, though what
ever else he did l could never find out.
Perhaps his caste would not allow him to
perform any other service!
Most families keep a dhoby, or wash
man, for the hot climate necessitates thin
clothes in great quantities. Many keep a
sewing man for nil these wash clothes