The central record. (Lancaster, Ky.) 18??-current, 1911-09-29
A Sympathetic
Oriental
By EUNlCE IDA BLAKE
Copyright by American Press Asso-
citation, 1911.

my officer and have lived a good deal
of my time on the Pacific slope, where
the only servants to be had are Chi
nese. There is no doubt but the Chi.
nese make very good servants if they
wish to be good, but if they pyefer to
be bad they can excel at that too
married in the infantry and went
out with my husband to a station
where the Chinese were as thick as
blackberries. had the pride natural
to a bride of showing how well
could keep house and appreciated the
importance of winning the confidence
of my servants, or, rather, at that
time my servant. for the wife of a
second lieutenant-neither she nor hei
husband having anything but his pay
is not supposed to keep more than one.
My first Chinese servant was I'll
Wang. III was the smOothest, softest
tongued rascal / ever met. He had
enough duplicity I'm him for an eight,
eenth century European diplomat. To
him words were indeed intended to
conceal ideas.
"You velly young wife," he said to
me. You want velly good Chinaman
for cook. Muchy Cinnamon velly bad.
I'll feel solly for Mclean lady. III he
good cook"
All this was spoken with look Of
commiseration for a young thing like
myself that to one familiar with the
ba T. In
have BODIED no good. l did not doubt
that my servant would be a great
comfort to me. 1t was not long be-
fore his true inwardnesS showed it.
self. He first made an excuse of hav-
ing a sick brother who couldn't washy-
out of a months wages in advance.
Then he surreptitiously removed I'M
der his capacious coat and ample
sleeves all the staple kitchen provi-
sions 1 had bought to last several
months. Tea, coffee, sugar and spices
disappeared like magic. Then, having
received an offer of better wages than
1 was giving him, he took himself off
without so much as saying he was
going.
My next servant was Charlie Lii
Why so many Chinese are called Char
lie 1 don't know, though Ii is an ap-
prOpriate name for them. Charlie
was recommended by the majors
wife, who had him in her kitchen for
awhile when her regular servant was
Ill. She told me she would rather
have Charlie than the other. l had
no fault to find with Charlie except
that he stayed with me but a day.
He didn't stay long enough to ask for
any wages, and since experience had
taught me not to pay Cinnamon in ad
vance he didn't get any.
After this servants were passing
through my kitchen. none staying with
me more than q week. In vain l re-
fused to engage one unless he would
agree to stay a month. Something
must be soaring them away. l didn't
see how they could see anything in a
young woman of nineteen to brighten
them. and l was the only person with
whom they came in contact. One of
them, who was about to depart after
three days Of service, 1 asked why he
left.
"YOu get Mclean cook. Chinaman
not velly good in this house"
'Why notT
-'Donno. Chinaman won't stay
here"
"Why do you go so soon after COM
ingr
81 am velly WELL"
He did not seem to care whether
1 believed him or not. Indeed, he knew
he was lying, and knew 1t too. How
ever, l had had such bad luck with
Chinese servants-and there were no
others to be habitat l made up my
mind to do my own cooking for awhile.
Meanwhile my husband, who had
been making inquiries for me as to
servants from brother officers wives,
began to be considerably vexed that 1
could not keep any of them. There
was no such loss of servants among
those who sent me mine, and it APP
peared that / must either be too ex-
acting or have a frightful temper or
some other blemish that prevented
as the truth was that after the earlier
ones left I simply gave up everything
to those who came later, granting all
requests and opposing them in moth
ing. I didn't even dare criticise the
cooking of single dish. The first tiff
had with my husband was when he
ventured to remark that perhaps 1
didn't give them quite free rein
enough. / resented the imputation
with fervor that sent him off to the
officers club and prevented his ever
making any such suggestion in future.
One day I put the tin bread box out
In the sun, turning it up on its side
and exposing the bottom. l was sur
prised to see Chinese characters on it,
/ wondered what they meant. When
q woman begins to wonder what is the
meaning Of anything it is preparatory
to making plans to find out. I called
The servant of my next door neighbor.
who was beating rug, to come over
and translate the characters. He did
so as follows:
This is a very bad woman. She
doesn't pay the servants wages and
gives no extras"
That smooth tongued villain III
Wang, who had pitied my youth and
inexperience and had robbed me be-
side, had chalked a notice on the
bread box warning all other servants
against me. WAITED patiently till my
husband came In from his duties and,
showing him the characters on the bot
tom Of the box. handed him q transla,