The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1901-03-10
old SOUTHERN SERVANTS
Stupid and SlipshOd. But Generally
Good Natured.
The style i'm Which an Ola Nurse
Fixed Up the Baby 70 Keep 1t
Warm-Postni Carrier Boston's
EaSy-GoinE Wnys-',Hoppin' john

! to deal with, not the New York importt.-
| tions, who are well dressed and self-con-
scious, but the good, simple, siip-shod,
| Southern darkeys; though no doubt it
| requires "A strong of humor and a liking
for elemental things in one If he would
appreciate this. And certainly it requires
that one should not be responsible for
| them. to be harassed by their strange stu
pidities no doubt the mistress of a South
ern household finds them far from de-
| lightful sometimes, but to visit in such d
household and view their odd methods
| and simplicity with an irresponsible eye is
/ an experience which makes you say that
darEeys are delightful. l suppose South
ern people are too well accustomed to
] them to worry constantly over the I'M
| changeable: but l had a friend who was
\ married and went to I've in the South,
| and in a short time she could find very
| little humor in the peculiar arrangements
| and customs of her black servants. When
l went to visit her she said:
| You see, l have three servants to do
| the work in this little house and yet 1 am
worried out of my life half the time, and
/ never feel that l can really wash my
| hands of any responsibility
| They were like many children; she
/ never knew what was gong on behind her
| back and they told her fragrant false
! hoods with most serene simplicity. One
/ night when her nurse, "A nimble, kind,
| old woman, was going home. she peeped
| her good natured face into the parlor to
say joyously:
| DE chile fix up fine: she tucked up
| warm and she fast asleep" a few min
utes later my friend called me into the
nursery with "a look of evaporation:
Now this is what she honestly be-
lieves is leaving baby fixed up fine Fl"
she said In the childs crib were a soiled
towel, a brush, a comb. the child's bot
| tie, her wooden dog, and all the clothes
she had worn that day; soiled dress,
apron, petticoats. and shoes and stock
inRs. In the middle of this mess she lay,
fast asleep. We slipped out all the hard
articles, SO that she would not roll on
them and hurt herself The next morn
ing my friend tried to speak severely to
the nurse. and tried to point out to her
that this way Of putting the baby to bed
was neither clearly nor comfortable, but
the old soul was perfectly self-satisfied
and urbane.
''Yes'm, but dat keep her warm, all
dose clothes round her. II she git uncov
cred in de night, den all dose clothes
heaped up round her keep her warm"
We'll, how about her shoes. and her
bottle. and her hairbrush and her toy
dog-m-.do they help to keep her warm,
toO2'
What, Did she have all dem things in
de bed with herr" exclaimed the nurse in
hand-raised astonishment. wen, l never
seed de like O. dat chile, She must be
reach out after ! leave am pull dem things
off de chair OF course, this was plainly
untrue. but my friend had to content
herself with saying:
Nv ell put such things. up. on the bu
reau, where they belong, at night"
Il just guess / will, ma'am," was pro-
thought o such ting! Amt you asham-
ed, you naughty girl?' Wherest the child
rushed at her laughing and began rolling
her head about in her nurses apron.
The child is perfectly devoted to her."
said my friend afterward, Il never had
a nurse who could entertain her by the
hour as this one does, but you see / can't
go out in the evening and leave her to
put the baby to bed.
She had much trouble with the table
servant; ne was "A very obligiug young
man, who. | am sure, did the best he
could, and always did us the honor to
appear much Interested in our CONVERSE
lions, laughing out loud when anything
struck him funny: in this way he fire.
quently forgot to wait upon the table
My friend wanted him to serve the vege-
tables from the sdeboard; but he nearly
always forgot and put them on the table
until the reminder:
Peter, the sideboard" would cause
him 10 strike his head violently with his
silver waiter and eNcldim with grin:
Pears like l just can't recollect."
Once when she was n5vins company to
dinner she arranged a dish of asparagus
very prettily, told Peter tc pour the butter
sauce over II anI to brig f. 20 the table
covered with a napkin. petee covered 1t
with the napkin. -fen D-'r 90 the butter
sauce over the whC II. napkin, and all,
and put it upon tn tai : with a look at
+tas.f afgl "a
What do you think - that?"
To fish out the Graggled napkin, which
stuck to the asparagus, was impossible.
Take 1t away" said his mistress, Il
can't serve IT." She said this in a whis-
per. Peter, who was surveying the dish
with an expression of candid interest. ex-
claimed aloud:
What, faint right and regretfully
took the dish out. He was a very dudish
young darkey, and when spring came and
he had his head shaved he presented at
once so barbarously ornate and so comical
an appearance that it was with difficulty I
accepted his services at table seriously.
For all his thick kink had been shaver
away save for three round and fussy tufts
of wool, and these stood up on his head
precisely like the ponpons on a lady's hat
A more fantastic or absurd head dress can
not be imagined. But he was very proud
of these pOnpons, and he kept feeling
them 10 assure himself that they were ar
tistically round He ALWAYS wore a
swered the bell, and this little bouquet
formed of rose geranium leaf lasted him
over week, and ! have seen him out at
the ash barrel picking over castout flow
ers when he was hard pressed to find one.
He was firm in the conviction that none
but a white person should ring the front
door bell; and ! think ore reason was that
1t made him indignant to waste his APP
peaTance in bouquet and clipped head
upon niggers.' ! have often heard him
berate those of his own color.
What, dis you? How dare you come
ringing this bell? comm here wild your
black face! Git round to de back gate as
fast as your legs kin cay you, amt yo'
know dat de back gate is provided 70
niger an dog?'
But one niger whom he regarded
with respect and with whom he was
proud to show himself upon friendly
squatty, black man, very stout and very
conscious of wearing Government blue
His name was Boston, and Peter out OF
respect TO the uniform, called Elm Mr."
Boston. He always went the rounds of
his delivery attended by two followers.
one small yellow cur. which promptly
sat down when Boston rang our bell, |
knowing that his master would indulge in
pretty lengthy chat with Peter, and the
other barefooted little darkey. who did !
all the running up and down the steps
while Boston stood on the pavement and |
bowed. Such deliberate lazlness surely |
no other postman ever exhibited. Behind |
my friend 5 house there was a number Of |
darkey huts, in which some of Boston's |
friends resided, and We would often see |
him on the piazza Of one of these his boy |
in the yard chasing chickens. his dog |
blinking in the sun he himself comfort
ably swinging his legs on the rail chat |
ting away to an admiring circle with our |
undelvered letters in the mailbag over |
his shoulder. One day my frien;i became |
exasperated.
To- -I,.