The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1902-09-28
A SERVANT GIRL FAMINE
HOUsEKEEPERs At THEIR WITS
END TO SECURE HELP.
An Amusing Incident in Which q
Swedish Girl Was the Prize
Sought by Many.

ers much worry and distress. Complaints
are to be heard on all sides that 1t Is next
to impossible to secure competent cooks
and housemaids at the usual wages. The
employment agencies of the city are being
overrun with people who are willing to &C
cept servants of any nationality or color.
lust so long as they can and will do the
work." and for once the agents are ac-
knowledging that they simply cannot sup
ply the demand.
There is certainly more than enough
work to go around here In Indianapolis,
said an agent yesterday, land no girl who
wants to earn her own living need be out
of employment a single day. The trouble
is there is such foolish impression pre-
vailing among working girls to the effect
that they are lowering themselves by taxi
ing employment of a domestic character,
and most of them will wear themselves out
toiling in some factory store for IS
week rather than accept position in some
household where their wages would not
only be every bit as good. but where they
would not have to pay for their board and
lodging-a mighty important factor in the
case of the girl who does not live with her
parents. And then the girls that are will
the housekeepers to pay them much higher
wages than it has been the custom to pay
in the past. They say, oh. well. If you
won't pay us what we ask we can get en-
ployment-we don't have to do kitchen
work It's rather a difficult problem to
solve-this question as to where the serv-
ant girls of the future are TO come FROM"
Nothing could better illustrate the utter
desperation of Indianapolis housekeepers
I'm their attempts to secure servants than
a fanny incident that occurred one day dur
ing the last week. An advertisement was
printed in an evening paper which set forth
the information that a Swedish girl wanted
a situation in a private family, and that
said Swedish girl would be at liberty to
discuss terms and other things with pos
sible employers at the home of her sister,
on a certain little street near the arsenal,
the following morning at s o'clock. The
East Michigan-street car speeding north
eastward from Washington street toward
the arsenal the next morning between 1880
and o'clock was pretty well filled with
passengers, nearly every one of whom got
off at the street mentioned in the adver-
tisement when that little thoroughfare was
reached. All of the passengers that dis
mounted from the trolley car looked
askance at each other as the company Of
"early worms" made their way, single file,
up the side street to the cottage whose
number was given in the advertisement the
evening before. When the door of the cot
tage was reached the assembly came to a
sudden standstill and then the humor of
the situation, becoming too irresistible. a
oh ha Of
neighborhood as the servant seekers all
gathered together in the tiny front yard
while one of them pulled the doorbell.
The woman that opened the door proved
to be the sister of the much-desired one,
and it soon became evident that she was
also the much-desired ones chief adviser.
press agent and business manager. She
surveyed the party of early morning visi-
tors with a cool and calculating eye, and
then, like the celebrated spider, asked the
callers to step into her parlor.
NIGHTLY EMBARRASSED.
ct never was so embarrassed in all my
life," said the young housekeeper who re-
lated the story. az entered the house with
the rest of them, sat down feeling decidedly
sheepish, and waited my turn for few
moments conversation with the woman
For, mind you, the Swedish girl herself
the one who was seeking employment, 1
mean-was not at home. AS early as our
little party had arrived upon the scene
somebody else had stolen a march on US,
for we soon were informed that a lady in
the north part of town had sent the girl
a special delivery letter the evening before
asking her to please call at such-and-
OF ~ ha ouyip
ing, and that the girl, DESTROYS of securing
situation in the northern portion Of the
city, had hurried away half hour before
our party put in an appearance.
"'But Ay tank you had better all Law
your names and addresses our hostess
told us, patronizingly. and If Lena doesn't
gat dat odder yob Ay will send her to see
you And we not only left our names and
addresses on separate slips of paper, but
also, acting upon the womans suggestion,
stated just what wages we were willing to
pay and exactly what we expected the girl
to do to earn her money each week. l felt
as If / were at an auction Of some kind,
and I imagine the others felt the same
way So far / haven't heard from the
much-desired, and I'm afraid somebody
outbid me-
1t is an easy matter for the owners of
flats and apartment houses to rent their
property nowadays for the reason that
many housekeepers. dreading to face the
cold winter months without servant girls
to tighten their burdens. turning to
the coy little fats and suits of rooms
where servants are not absolutely neces-
sary as the only means of rescue from do
nestle worries during the next five months.
Many Indianapolis families that have been
living in their own houses for many years
are for the first time deserving their homes
to take up their winter abode in flats and
apartments, and ell because of the search
ty of servant girls.
"It is really amusing TO notice the want
advertisements in the local newspapers"
remarked a well-known citizen, land to
observe the alluring bait offered in them
in the hope of attracting some working
girls attention. A few years ago all you
had to do, If you were in need of a cook
or a girl for homework, was to state the
fact in as few words possible in the
want columns Of any paper and II was 10
to 1 that you would secure the right girl
for the place within few days. But in
these troublous times just take notice of
the way that the advertisers for domestic
help go about framing up their advertise
ments. 1 counted over twenty ads in
one of the papers the other day which read
like this: 'Wanted-Girl to cook and do
light housework no coal or wood for her
to carry: no washing for her TO do; pleas