The sun., 1905-06-04
LIMIT TIPS TO 10 PER CENT.
EDITOR BOk WOULD AT LEAST
REGULATE THE EVIL.
IF the System Cannot lie Abolished He
Suggests Keeping Tips within Reason
--8ll to Get Out OF a New York Hotel
With Family and self.Rcspect Intact.


Some recent experiences of Editor EDWARD
Sok Of .,he Ladies' Home Journal with the
.,nnnu svstem in New York have caused
h;r,, to ,ri,a ~, article m the abuse of the
MN 10 Writs an ar''cie o'' ,no aou.. .,.
practise and the remedy. he says III p"'',
"A small tip still goes n long way In
England. q threepehny bit (six cents OF our
mnnevI beinp n universal tip while fee
Of a sixpenny bit twelve cents in our money!
uwentv-five cents OF our money! being
regorded Nv Enolshmen as given only
hy fools ard Anericans.' Only recently
the head waiter Of the Carlton Hotel. one
said that the average tip which he received
was not !, ner cent of the amount of the
,;ninn oy rooIo pe nhecLs
o'n "Annd i1, he smilingly concluded, that
average Ia only made possible because OF
The extravaoant tips" Of the Americans
sOther heal walters Of fashionable Lon
don hotels gave their average tips rs 3
,er cent ~ The amount of the dining room
BILLS. Stating these percentages roughly
in American Currency, the average English
tip is equal to three cents on dollar
check, or at the higher average OF the Carlton
head waiter, Ave cents, and only that be-
cause of American extravaganza!
Nov | nut il to any man: Fancy going
into the average hotel Of standing in any
one of our large cities ths oiaeIg t6ree eent
' if hs does % moi throw it in your face it is only
because he dare not. Certain it is that M lts
acceptance will be churlish. II not act''ahy
accompanied by some muttered insult;
AS matter of fact, we haye m nG hsr s.soe case
OF every man for himself. and generally
case of the last man outdoing the man
before him. ,..
aWhere a dime was once Courteousiy
accepted fee it is nov t frowneu uPot" .tPin rd
even that is beginning to look small IN
many places and Is rendered with an apoio.
getic air and rapid strloe W se' ou' Vi
the presence of the waiter! ,..,-,
Not long age was WIN neeE %y ft'e Il cost me
sll in fees to get out OF that hosiery win
any respect to myself or an avoidance OF
a scene before my family. There was the
head waiter 10 fee, the waiter, the chainper-
maid, the porter who checked my trunks,
the hell boy who carried two valises to the
office floor, the other bell boy taiways an an
other boy) who carried the Vallses thlrty
feet to the bus, the porter who carried my
yalses from the bus to the train the room
how who had brought me ice water that
didn't want and never touched and me
elevator boy who had let my little boy ride
up and down the elevator, ,.
aBut what is man to do? There stands
the solid phalanx before him; IKE row o5
With his family around him? A man OF
any self-respect can hardly do that; IL is
unpleasant enough to do that sort OF thing
when he is alone.
Il do not blame the help in s,ioh cases;
do what they are allo we'd to do by those
who employ them-what they are IN some
cases, understood by hotel proprletors TO
do when they are engaged at scarcely any
wages at all, and expected to make good
from the tips Of the guests. My experience
~ f,laas 0f hntnlS thTOuQ0Out
the country is. however. that this practise
ia not as general as 1t is sometimes repre-
sented to be.
aBut where hotel proprietor is known
To employ bis help below the no rmal rate
Of wages and tells that help either IN 90
many words or by implication to hook to his
guests to pay what he should pay. and what
Re really charges his guests for-then in
dividual effort should come IN, ana every
there at least is one point where men can
nut a peg in this tipping nuisance to Its
detriment
But otherwise there Is no denying
the fact that individual ehort Is aiinouit'
And that no man courts or enjoys.
What have wondered at Is. that hotel
keepers, restaurant owners or public P!ir.
veyors Of all sorts are apparently 30 blind
to the golden opportunity that lies at their
very doors ! believe there , Is +, a. harvest
man who would pay his help little more |
than they can get elsewhere-as they do |
at clubs; then make rigid rule prohibiting
the receiving Of tips OF any kind, posting |
the fact in every room OF the hotel. or IN |
conspicuous places in the restaurant, and
advertise the rule widely.
-Only few months ago this scheme |
was tried by a restaurant keeper In the very |
heart of business London, and within week |
his place was too small to handle the people |
who thronged to 1t. Within month TINS |
man declared that he had made more money |
on the new plan in thirty days than ne had in !
his restaurant, on the tipping plan during
all the previous year. and he had increased
the wa ges of his help 10 per cent. And this |
in tip beset England!
THAT non-'tipping' rule will work out |
in this country has been demonstrated by |
what Ia. perhaps, the most widely patron |
lied hairdressing shop in Philadelphia. |
In this shop are hung signs that no tips
of any kind will be allowed to the attendants,
the attendants are warned that any viola
ton of the rule will be followed by imme-
diate dismissal, and the rule is rigidly adj
hered to.
During the week preceding Christmas,
however the signs are taken down and the
rule is waived for that week at the pleasure
~ the customers. and on the day before
Christmas the entire proceeds Of the place
are divided among the employees. Tho plan
works PERFECTLY: the help il satisfied and
the patronage of the place is, as said,
rerhans the largest in the CITY, Men and |
women alike fock there.
aThe Initiative can. in measure. be un-