Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-08-26

He Wants His Comfort
The rates charged for rooms depend upon
the location of the house. the style OF its
furnishings. the regular rates charged In a
town OF It's population. and the earning ca
pacity of the men to whom its mistress
caters. As a rule. man Will pay just a,
wen Tor room in n private house. If II
suits, him, as in a hotel. and the woman
who go about cutting rates is doing an. in
justice not only to her competitors but %
herseif The iaborer. particularly I'm
rooming house. is worthy of her hire
When a woman has only one or two
spare bed chambers. she cannot make A
living by taking roomers. but If she has
Good-siZed dining room and is herself D.
good cook. she can make a comfortable Ily-
ing by taking table boarders. provided she
acts as her own steward and chef The in
slant she hires some one to do her market
ing and cooking the leakage will reduce her
profits.
Most OF the women in large cities wn,
are today at the head of fashionable board
ing houses started on a small scale and 10
this day buy all the provisions and person
ally superintend their kitchens The only
way in which the new landlady can com
pete with hotels and restaurants Is to give
what her masculine customers are hunger
ing for-home cookery. Tho woman who
starts out with the Idea of buying ba keshop
and delicatessen food will soon find her
self In the class Of third-rate under-paid
clearinghouse keepers. But offer real home
made bread. cakes and puddings. even hast
or the sort mother used to make and Won
may dare to raise your rates of board "a
your fame spreads.
She Must Not Gossip.
The woman who has decided 10 take either
dodgers or table boarders should register
one solemn vow-and that is to keep per
sonalities and gossip out of her intercourse
with customers More women have lost Gus
toners by detailing n a sad. monotonous
drone their tales of better days and their
trials with servants, han by tough steak.
soggy cake or even p-or coffee. And COS
sip is the rock On which ,sauy business
bark has split. especially ~ women were
counted among boarders or roomers. /.
your house Is properly run Won viii hay,
little time for visiting among your patrons
and you VIII be happier IL you keep your
social and your business life quite apart
Women who have houses near the retail
business section or large cities or The fac
tory district Of small ones make a spe-
cialty of serving midday meals either din
ner or substantial luncheon, according
70 the custom of the town. woman In
New York city recently purchased 4 suhur-
ban real estate from the proceeds of serv-
ing luncheons to clerks in the department
store district. She charges only Is cents for
the midday meal, serving several sorts OF
meat, relish. one warm vegetable a des-
sert or cake and fruit. with tea coffee or
milk. She and her daughter do all the
work IN dining room and kitchen and she
serves neither breakfast nor supper. She
occupies a three-stOry house with base
ment. and in the latter she serves the
luncheons. On the first floor are apartments
for herself and daughter and the two upper
floors she rAnts unfurnished.
A Born Teacher.
A bright southern woman writes me that
she found herself suddenly face 20 face
with the question of self-support and her
one talent was a mediocre education In wa
ter color and china painting. AS she ex-
pressed it, she had to stay home because
she had no money to get away She start
ed in to brush up her knowledge in paint
ing, and first secured room and board Ia
return for teaching two daughters OF the
household. She 50 afraid that she
might lose this precious refuge that she
threw herself heart and soul into the task
of imparting knowledge and found to her
Amusement that with her teaching her own
style of work improved. Further, the two
girls, fired by her enthusiasm, got on ia
mously and showed such early results that
their work brought her other pupils FinallT
she scraped UP enough money to buy
terlals and made number of small low
priced novelties which she offered for sale
in the best drug store the town afforded.
paying the druggist commission on every
article he sold. Today that woman has a.
bungalow on the outskirts Of her native
city. with a studio on the north side She
has outstripped in the race for competence
and local fame women who went away to
study, who tried and failed In large cities
and returned to find the tortoise who COM
menced by working for her board more
than appreciated by her fellow townspeople
and scoring a substantial financial success.
Every woman who feels sudden call tC
come to large city should first look for a
hidden talent and FURNISH it in her own
town. 1t is discouragirg to work for mere
bed and board in your own town. but that
experience Is nothing compared to the life
led by four and five dollar a week clerks
in the big homes for working girls to be
found in every city. Beginners in largo
cities pay heavy price for experience.
which they might just as well obtain in
their home towns.