The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1912-07-25
IIHEI5I
DALEYI
CHAT.
By RUTH CAMERON
rHE uEREAs6 NAsLE MAID.

A maid was once sent out from III!
employment bureau to q position, anu
On finding that the room in which she
was expected TO live was wretched
little hole. mlserably furnished, with
nc paper on the. walls, no arrange.
ments for heating and one tiny win,
dow, told the lady OF the house tina,
she did not wish to stay, because she
felt she could never make thai. room.
look bomelike.
Whereupon she departed. And now
the lady OF the house goes about tell
ing this experience as an illustration
OF how abomiiIaby presumptuous and
uppiRh housework girls are becoming.
And almost everywhere she tells it
she receives sympathy. The idea,
exclaim her friends, The idea. You
simply cant do anything with them
nowadays, they are SO independent.
Wouldn't stay because she couldn't
make the room look homelike. What
dc they eSpect-guest chambers
My friends, 1t seems TO me that In
that little Incident Is illustrated one
Of the chief causes OF the maid prob.
lem.
That homework girl should want
TO have her room look homelike and
should refuse TO stay in a place where
she couldn't make 1t SO. seemed the
acme OF abstndlty. 10 these good wo.
men. ThegiFegafl4d Il as. unwarrant.
able Independence; on her part.
And yet ID lfnaid,st.bedroom means
much more To- her than. her mistress.
chamber does to the mistress, for the
maids bedroom mast also be her liv-
ing room.
II these women, VINO were most OF
them kind-hearted in other relations
OF life, had thought of the maid who
wanted a homelike room as a human
being like themselves. they wouldn't
have seen anything extraordinary In
her demands. But they were so in
the habit OF looking upon her as dis.
tinct species of animal life-the gen.
Jus maid. that they didn't think OF APP
plying TO her the test of simiir de.
sires and needs. ~
There was little story ihLthe joke
columns of one OF the magazines the
other day, which, to my mind, came
almost as near pathos as humor. II
ran something like this. A maid has
asked leave 10 go home to her moth
er who is very ILL., The mistress says
she may 10, only she mustn't stay
long as she Is much needed. At the
end of week the maid writes some.
thing to this effect: Dear Mrs. -.
! will be back real soon, and please
! keep my place for me. Mother is dy.
| ing rs fast as she can
J Probably that never happened, but
l. maids would assume the attitude
many mfstresses try to thrust upon
them 1t certainly could have come 10
pass.
Undoubtedly there is fault on both
sides in the servant problem. I'm.
doubtcdly maids are often trying, In.
competent, untrustworihy. and a thou.
sand other things. But don't believe
that anything can excuse mistresses
from this unfeeling and unintelligent
attitude towards TIE maid as crea.
ture instead Of human being.
When mistresses cease 10 assume
this attitude, and get the thought that
their maids really are women with
natural desires for happiness and
| homellke rooms and appreciation and
pretty clothes, perhaps girls will not
consider housework the most dcgrad.
ing OF occupations and will not pre-.
fer 10 1t the most exllausting and III.
paid work in shop or factory.