Los Angeles herald., 1907-01-27

kinds OF amusements. often at chill
dren's parties she attends, to help out
in amusing them, and on her child list
are the names of two little ones whom
she takes once every week to visit
their grandparents, from whom the
parents are estranged.
From some of the fashionable schools
outside the limits OF town she meets a
group Of girls every fortnight and
takes them TO luncheon and then to the
matinee or concert. She does not leave
them until the train pulls out OF the
station.
Another of her interesting duties Is
the entertainment of guests who want
to shop or go to places OF interest OF
which their hosts are tired. BY fllllng
in a day of this kind she relieves the
situation and brings the guests back
at night tired and happy, to find the
woman of the house delighted to well
come them, having had her own day
free.
Among these customers Is n wealthy
bachelor whose mother makes him an
annual visit and with whom she takes
delightful trips of all kinds this en-
gagement is Il from year to year one,
and the week of that visit all her
other duties have to be rearranged
once when she was Ill the visit was
postponed until her recovery.
Convalescent nursing is another Of
her offerings. She can give no regular
trained service, but for the patient
who can take short walks, wants to
be read to or reused from moods of
languor and depression she makes a
capital substitute for the professional.
AS Private Detective
The private detective work she has
been called upon to do now and then
for well known law firm, she admits
is the most exciting. She may go to
smart hotel and stay, take hurried
trips out of town, or whatever may
be required.
In speaking of her experience of this
kind the emergency woman displays q
sense of humor which may be one of
the elements of her success.
"In one of my cases a man and wife
had been divorced, the court had given
the child to the father and the mother
had promptly kidnapped her; she had
married again and lived in a beautiful
house on Riverside drive. The father
was anxious to have his little girl, but
hesitated to kidnap in turn or resort
again to legal measures, for the girl
was IA, and he thought he would
rather win her regard then attempt to
coerce her
II watched my chance and one MORN
ing met the little girl on her way to
school, for the time unguarded. I
spoke to her and told her of meeting
her father and how anxious he was
to see her. She agreed to meet him
and promised to keep that meeting
secret. l telegraphed the father. who
came way from the south. He talked
with her and they came to an under
standing that she was to visit him for
three months, and If at the end of
that time she wanted to return she
could do so.
Too Much Like Her Mother
"Six weeks afterward 1 happened to
be in the neigh hborhood and there was
Frances-the little girl-walking nom
chalantly to school. l spoke to her
again and she acted very embarrassed, |
admitted that she had been with her
father, but said l had better write to
him.
LAS to the money part of the trans
action, that had been settled long ago,
but / was curious so l did write, and |
he answered my letter, saying that 1t |
had been a great mistake trying to
change existing conditions, for when |
he came to live with Farnces he found |
her so much like her mother that he
couldn't stand her at all and had to
send her back.
II have been asked what l don't do
in my capacity as emergency woman,
and frankly l don't believe 1 could tell.
1t is a profession that grows by use.
Sometimes when / am called upon to
shampoo a lady's hair we get talking,
and before I have finished l have dis
covered some household or social need
which l can fill and the hours work
may extend to a whole day or even
longer Naturally 1 take these oppor-
tunities to advertise myself, as that
is the best, in fact the only way to
get known.
How She Is Paid
my scale of wages, of course, f1uc-
tuates with circumstances. Sometimes
I am paid by piecework, whatever that
may be; again, with great many of
my customers I receive monthly sum
for all services rendered. I keep an
account of what l have done during
the stated period, and the items of
time and services have their separate