The Washington herald., 1918-08-06
B. DwIc

New York. Aug. S.-Back In our
town we had hired girl" who re-
ceived 81 a week for doing everything
from cooking and washing to keep
ing me out Of mischief. When ! refer
to our hired girl" in New York there
is always an attitude of amused toler-
ance.
Before the war Fifth avenue spoke
OF the hired girl as a member OF
the domestic service. and now 1t is an
occupation that is going out Of fash
ion entirely. 1t seems that hardly
any one really likes to be called SER
yant-except the President or some
other great statesman.
The problem Of domestic service In
one OF the knottiest that New York
householders has ever faced. Cooks
are impossible to obtain. There are
many men In New York. with good in
comes, who keep expensive establish
ments and give all kinds of enter
tainments and who would rather
practice any economy than lose their
cook.
Artists down in Greenwich village
and Sheridan square, both male and
female, do their own cooking, but
they are serious thinkers and, of
course, that makes it different. But
a blueblood of the avenue would
sooner manicure the avenue In q
white duck suit than do his own cook
ing.
The war has diverted so much serv-
ice into public or industrial channels
that domestic service has become a
sea OF troubles. Wages were never
higher or hours shorter. A good cook
is q patriot because she can do more
than any other individual to conserve
food.
New Yorkers are generally like lot
Of sheep and psychology could be used
in making cooking a popular pursuit.
II the late Pierpont Morgan's esti-
mable daughter. for instance, would
accept a position in a kitchen as cook
and the news was breezed about there
would be a rush Of women to 60 into
domestic service.
When Mrs. Vernon Castle. on ac-
count Of an illness, bobbed her hair.
scissors were busy all over the town.
and a bob-haired girl was as common
as an actor on Broadway. Should II
happen that Mrs. Castle announced
she was going into kitchen service,
an army Of domestic servants over
night.
Up In an old garret at No. III
Broadway. where William Edgar
Marshall lived. painted and en-
graved his portrait of Lincoln. II
Is now more than interesting to re-
call that Clemenceau had his New
York home during the period Of his
exile from the country that now
holds that name in highest honor.
The two men had become friends
in France, when Marshall. barely
thirty years old, went to Paris with
an engraving of Washington. He
painted the janitor of the Louvre,
and the two were exhibited, purely
on merit. at the Paris annual ex-
hibition, a privilege never before
enjoyed by an American.
Around Columbus Avenue
neighborhood he was known as
Boots" He came from Italy seven
years ago and has been running a
shoe shining parlor. He was called
to the colors and after training in
South Carolina he returned the
other day and visited his old neigh
borhood for the last time before
going over there. He was, tanned
and lean and proud of his uniform.
"Mebbe not come back" he said.
IT like to go over the top. Mebbe
I could-a die for thees countree.
That would be what you cali
grand" And he smiled hopefully
and departed.
Art Young declared at the La
fayette dominoe room the other
afternoon that he had solved the
question as to why the German o.
boats were sinking barges. II is
his theory that the Americans are
using barges to send bricks to the
Irish regiments.
There is a successful business
man in New York who applies sys-
tenn to everything. By a checking
system he knows when he wore any
one of his 43 suits and in this way
he can tell when any suit is in need
of pressing.