The Brandon news. (Brandon, Miss.) 1892-1961, 1911-09-07
A Sympathetic
Oriental
By EuNICE IDA BLAKE
Copyright by American Press Assoc
citation, 1911.
By EUNICE IDA BLAKE

eNe~N~
nese. There Is no doubt but the Chi
nese make very good servants II they
wish to be good, but II they prefer 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 we're as thick as
blackberries. / had the pride natural
to 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 or
second lieutenant-n neither she nor her
husband having anything but his pay
is not supposed TO keep more than one.
NV first Chinese servant was II
Wang. ri was the smoothest, softest
tongued rascal / ever met. He had
enough duplicity in 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 Chinamen velly bad.
III 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
man from the Flowery Kingdom would
have BODIED no good. did not doubt
that my servant would be 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-
washy to provide for to wheedle me
out Of months wages In advance.
Then he surreptitiously removed I'M
der his capacious coat and ample
sleeves all the staple Kitchen provi-
sions / had bought to last several
months Tea, coffee, sugar and spices
disappeared like magic. Then, having
received an offer of better wages than
I was giving him, he took himself of
without so much as saying he was
going.
Ny next servant was Charlie Ii.
! Why so many Chinese are called Char
lie / 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
i'll. She told me she would rather
have Charlie than the other. had
no fault to find with Charlie except
that he stayed with me but day.
He didn't stay long enough to ask for
any wages, and since experience had
taught me not to pay Cinnamon In adj
vance he didn't get any.
After this servants were passing
through my kitchen. none staying with
me more than a week. In vain re-
fused to engage one unless he would
agree to stay a month. Something
must be soaring them away. | didn't
see how they could see anything in
young woman of nineteen to frighten
them, and was the only person with
whom they came in contact. One OF
them, who was about to depart after
three days of service, | asked why he
left.
"You get Mclean cook. Chinaman
not velly good in this house,"
"Why not?'
ssDonno. Chinaman won't stay
here"
"Why do you go so soon after com
mgr
81 am velly WELL"
He did not seem to care whether
l believed him or not. Indeed, he knew
he was lying, and knew it too. How
ever. I had had such bad luck with
Chinese servants-and there were no
others to be habitat I 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
could not keep any of them. There
was no such loss of servants among
those who sent me mine, and it ap-
peared that l must either be too ex-
acting or have frightful temper or
4 some other blemish that prevented a
i servant from working for me. where
as the truth was that after the earlier
ones left | simply gave up everything
to those who came later, granting all
requests and opposing them In moth
ing. ! didn't even dare criticise the
cooking OF a single dish. The first tiff
1 had with my husband was when be
ventured to remark that perhaps
didn't give them quite free rein
enough. resented the imputation
with fervor that sent him of to the
officers club and prevented his ever
making any such suggestion in future.
One day put the tin bread box out
| In the sun, turning 1t up on its side
and exposing the bottom. was sur
prised to see Chinese characters on It.
wondered what they meant. When
d woman begins to wonder what Is the
meaning Of anything 1t Is preparatory
to making plans to find out I called
the servant Of my next door neighbor.
who was beating a rug, to come over
~ - T1x&< ~ n