Evening star., 1902-02-15
THE CARSON SALLY
WORST OF ALL SERVANTS, BUT
YET IN DEMAND.
Terrible Dearth in the Way of Domes-
tic Service is the
Cause.
Written for The Evening Star.

Written for L he ITcnlns Star.
Carson, the capital Of Nevada. is prob
ably the only city in the country where
the hired girl is a squaw. The eastern
tourist is apt to think that the western
Indian is a myth. At Denver he will see
him only at the annual festival. In New
Mexico and Arizona he will find him truly,
but he is the Pueblo Indian living in his
own ancient village. The Indian of the
plains the hero of frontier romance, is Sc
cluded on the reservation. But at Carson
he Is an all-pervading element of the land
scape In the mountains round about Car
son live the remnants of three tribes, the
Piutes, the Washoes and the Shoshones.
They are not upon any reservation nor
do they receive government support. They
are absolutely free, left in possession or
these sterile upiands which the white man
does not want. Each day companies or
them come down into Carson, and, sWa thed
in bright blankets, sit playing Piute poker
upon every vacant lot. You will often see
the SquaWS sewing there also, making
garments of turkey red and other gorge
Gus cottons. The pappooses play about,
the brilliant sun throws out the flaming
scarlet of the blankets and the rich cop
perry hues Of their skim 1t is all wildly
picturesque.
Now it is this picturesque parsonage.
male and female, who helps to solve the
servant girl problem in Carson. Other help
is scarce and high, and In spite of the fact
that neither buck nor squaw can ever be
services are welcome. To the Carson
housewife every buck is Jim" and every
squaw is Sally" Sally opens the kitchen
door without the formality of a knock,
and says "Mahaylie twoman), you want
work done?" Or, simply, Me heap hog
adj" which signifies that she is very hum
CRY and desires to work for meal.
If you are an eastern woman, this is apt
it is likewise terrifying to look up and find
a bucks swarthy face plastered against
the outside of your window pane. 1t takes
a little while for you to thoroughly learn
that there is nothing to be feared. But
after bit you welcome Sally gladly. and
set her to scrubbing the floor or washing
dishes or clothes. Very rarely there is
Sally who will come regularly for a weekly
wash day. But generally they will work
only when they are driven by hunger.
Sometimes Sally comes shivering to the
door in winter with a baby under her
blanket She is heap cold" and wants to
morsel Of humanity her back at the
kitchen fire. They are often ragged and
tnsufficiently protected from the cold.
Somestimes Sally will bring an armful Of
baskets to sell at your door and then the
eastern woman welcomes her with joy. for
she knows she can pick up for few cents
baskets for which she must pay dollars in
the shops of Carson. The housewife likes
TO get a 1lute odHS 10 WOTh LOT III Sne
can, for she is cleaner and more indus
trious and adaptable than her sisters Of the
Shoshones and Washoes. When Jim is
heap hogadi' he will cut wood. NOW the
lawn and do other odd jobs.
The Indians never stay in Carson over
night, and no eastern woman fails to look
from her window at sunset and watch them
slowly making their way along the trail
in Indian file. In and out winds the long
line across the face Of the darkening
mountain, the last sunbeams lighting up
their barbaric trappings, each Jim invari-
ably with his own Sally: the squaw always
carrying the pappoose, but the buck some
times shouldering the stumbling toddlers;
up, up. to the brush tipi at timber line,
where each tribe In it's own place. sepa-
rate from the other two, cooks its scanty
food over its little campfire and goes to
sleep among the moaning pines.