Evening capital., 1900-02-08

Il Seems to BE Legal ~ Well - Gen-
ersi In Germany.
The question Of giving gratuities TO
walters and servants il as much
yexed one In this country as IL Is on
your side Of the Channel Even your
man servant or. maid expects in Ger
many a tip" from your guests after
they have dined or lunched with you,
and It constantly happens that on en-
gaging a servant you are asked:
How about tips?. Can expect much
from this source. and may keep all
/ get. or have to share the tips with
other servants?" | have even known
mistresses to hold out as an induce
ment to servants the fact that they
entertain q good deal, whereby the
wages are considerably supplemented
by gratuities from guests.
One very curious feature about
German everyday life is the readiness
of people to give "trinkgeld" the
equivalent OF the French 'pourboire.
under which name the donation is
more familiar to English ears. The
feature is curious, because the Teut0n
is by nature thrifty. and many of them
are more close than thrifty. And yet
the same person who will expect a
hard-working teacher of languages to
give lessons at from sixpence to one
shilling an hour will often be seen to
bestow a groschen on the shop serv-
ant who has brought a parcel to his
house or halfpenny on the tramway
conductor for handing him his penny
ticket. The postal officials who pay
the money orders and bring the
money to your house are entitled to
charge halfpenny for doing so. but
look very sour II you do not add an
other halfpenny of your accord. small
tips" all around are de rigueur In
German daily life.
1t Is always understood that the
porter and the boots at hotel may
expect a gratuity from the guests.
Now, the porter does little more for
you than hand you your key and take
of his hat to you as you enter and
leave your hostelry, and in small
towns he summons the boots at your
departure by vigorously ringing his
bell, and for these amenities he Is re-
warded in a sort of geometrical pro-
gression. The boots really doels rem
der services. He blacks your boots
and brushes your clothes and is ready
to assist you to pack, and sits on your
portmanteau for you If need be when
you want to lock it. Notwithstanding
this 1t often happens that he comes on
second or third best in the way OF re-
wards.
1t has, however. always been sup
posed that the largesse assigned to
him was a voluntary one. This idea
has now, according to the decision of
a court at Chemnitz, In Saxony, been
shown, at the expense of certain
commercial traveller who recently
visited that town, to have been an
illusion. The man In question re-
mained at Cremnitz for four weeks at
a local hostelry, performing his mer-
camille duties, and on leaving hand
ed to the boots for the usual service
rendered by that functionary the sum
of four shillings as a gratuity. The
boots demanded twelve shillings, that
is to say, at the rate of three shillings
a week AS the higher sum was not
paid he brought an action against the
traveller, and the court declared that
the latter was to pay ten skillings.
The reasons given for the judgment
were that although the boots received
board and lodging from the landlord,
he was paid nothing in cash; on the
other hand, he had to give remune-
ration in money out of his own pocket
to two assistants who helped him to
do the work.--London Post.