Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-01-28
THE AGENTS BOTHERS

The much despised and reviled employ
ment agent arises to explain that she is
sometimes an injured party. This remark
was the result Of fiery interview which
recently occurred in a fashionable employ
ment agency. A man had announced that
unless he was supplied with servant by
10 o'clock the next morning he would re-
port the agency to the authorities as swim
dlers. and he had made the threat in the
most businesslike way. After he left the
room the woman who managed the ex-
change laid down her pen with a gesture
of despair.
'Of course it is my fault. It always Is.
That man paid me 81 to cover two months
enrolment in this Office. and informed me
that he wished a German maid. sent him
one, and he comes back here this morning
wild because the German maid cannot
speak English He forgot to stipuiate that
he wanted an speaking German
maid
MANY of these differences between en-
ployer andagent arise either through care
less expression of needS.or downright as
honesty on the part of the employer.
For instance, last week a woman en-
gagged an extremely nice-looking girl for
general housework, stating that there were
three in her family, but adding, with mark
ed emphasis that they entertained quite
little company. When the girl went TO the
place she found that the company consist
thought that If she could once get the girl
to the house she could induce her, by fair
means or foul, to remain l have given
that woman back her money ana put her
my black list
Another woman asked me TO furn1Sh her
with an especially neat and attractive
looking girl, as there were only two IN the
family and the servant was practically one
of them. She particularly emphasized the
fact that the girl was supplied with most
comfortable little bed room in the place OF
the cubbyhole usually provided for serv-
ants in fiat houses. The girl stayed in the
given that nice bed room in order that she
might wait upon the woman's invalid nus
band at night. In fact, she was expected
to combine the duties of trained nurse and
general housework.
do YOU see that young girl In the cor
ner?" she continued, pointing to dark
haired foreigner who was furt1vely Wipins
her eyes. II sent her to a place Where
they wanted an immigrant to train. They
knew she was of Jewish parentage, and the
most orthodox Jews at that, and the mis-
tress agreed to furnish her with a small
set of cooking utensils so that she might
religious belief. AS the girl could not
speak English. 1 paid a boy carfare to take
her to her new place. This morning she
was sent down here in the care of a mes
senger boy with word that she was Slckly
and could not fill the place. / found that
she had not been supplied with the prom
ised cooking utensils or kosher food, and
as a result she had had nothing to eat but
some crackers and water for three Gays.
No wonder she was weak.
These are only instances of the UNFAIR
ness with which servants and agents are
treated. There seems to be general pe
lief among women that any Ola story WI!
do for the agent, and the mistress Will
square herself with the servant arterWaru,
SO it's no wonder that servants ana agents
have grown suspicious