Pike County press. (Milford, Pa.) 1895-1925, 1900-06-08
TIPPING
It Seems to Be Legal as Well as GEN
eral In Germany.

eral IN Germany.
The question Of giving gratuities to
walters and servants is as much o
vexed one in this country as It 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 OF 1unched with you,
and 1t 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?" I have even known
mistresses to hold out as an induce
ment to servants the fact that they
entertain a 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 a "trinkgeld' the
equivalent of the French "pOurboire, y
under which name the donation is
more familiar to English ears. The
feature is curious, because the Teuton
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 halfpcnny 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 a halfpenny for doing so, but
look very sour if 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 a hotel may
expect a gratuity l. ON the guests
Now, the porter does little more fol
you than hand you your key and take
off 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 youl
portmanteau for you if need be wher
| you WANT W LUCK IL. NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.
this 1t often happens that he comes of
second or third best in the way of re
| wards.
1t has, however, always been sup
posed that the largesse assigned tC
him was a voluntary one. This ides
has now, according to the decision o
a court at Chemnitz, in Saxony, beer
shown, at the expense of a certain
commercial traveller who recently
visited that town, to have been al
illusion. The man in question re
mained at Cremnitz for four weeks a
local hostelry, performing his mer
camille duties, and on leaving hand
ed to the boots for the usual servic,
rendered by that functionary the sun
of four shillings as a gratuity. TIL,
boots demanded twelve shillings, tina
is to say, at the rate of three shilling
a week AS the higher sum was no
paid he brought an action against tn,
traveller, and the court declared tina
the latter was to pay ten shillings
The reasons given for the judgmen
we're that although the boots receive,
board and lodging from the landlord
he was paid nothing in cash; on tn
other hand, he had to give remune
ration in money out of his own pocke
to two assistants who helped him t
do the work.-London Post.