The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1902-05-06
ELECTRICAL COOKS.
Demand for Women Who Can Use
Modern Inventions.
Only "A Question of Time When Nine
Tenths of the Servants VIII Under
stand Electricity as Well as
They Now Understand Fires.

"Wanted, q cook who is also an ex-
pert electrician"
"Why," said the woman behind the
desk of an intelligence office that
makes a speciality of servants for rich
and fashionable families, reports the
Chicago Record Herald, "there's moth
ing SO very out of the way about that
ad. put it in myself. You see, we
are little short just now of electric
cooks, as we call them, though within
the next six months | think there is a
fair chance Of filing at least one-haf
the applications that reach us for
cooks, buffers, kitchen maids, etc, who
understand this new domestic force.
That is because all the enterprising
men and women who aspire to become
high-priced private chefs and stewards
are taking special courses Of instruc-
ton in electricity in order to take in
telligent command of the thousand and
one electric appliances in the new
houses.
just moment ago one of my regu-
lar customers was in here looking for
that very individual mentioned in my
advertisement, a cook who is also an
expert electrician. My customer
tripped in from her coy motor
brougham, and almost dissolved in
tears she told her woes, which illus
trate clearly enough the importance OF
electrical knowledge to the modern
servant. That particular customer is
wealthy and for years she has enjoyed
the services of an unusually accom-
plished and reliable English cook. This
year my customers husband built for
! her a new city house with every mod
ern appliance from an electric apple
corer to an electric lift. The English
cook came up from the country house
looked about the spacious new kitchen
and experimental for three days, ano
then sent in her resignation.
with the innate conservatism, not
to say prejudice, of the British mind
she fatty refused to monkey with new
kitchen power. She did not understand
it, and she sent up the dishes raw OF
so burned that nobody could eat them
The master of the house offered to pa.
for a series of lessons in electricity
but she refused all such induce me is
and has gone back to England. Mean
time that family are eating around a
restaurants until can find cook wh'
is qualified to run kitchen where TIL
window sashes are raised and lowered
the egg beaten whirled and the flap
jacks turned by electricity.
"Of couNe it is only a question o
time when nine-tenths of the servant
will understand electricity as well a
they now understand the simple cd
fashioned dome site utensils, and
though this new power that runs tn
carpet sweeper, peels the potatoes
beats the rugs and polishes the shoe
and silver reduces the manual muscJ
lar labor to minimum, the Who'll
tendency of wages is upward A smar
electric cook demands and receives
; per cent advance over the wages sh
asked six months ago. She rightly II
sists that she is bound to make u
some where for the time and money an
effort she expended on her electrics
course and that the introduction c
electricity has in no way diminishe
: the responsibility resting on the cook
shoulders nor the experience necessar
in her profession"