Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1920-12-01


that one never heard any more the question |:
How much do you earn?'
setf' ''0" "0'n 10 you
The reply of maid In an intelligence
once to another woman I know who was
looking for lady's maid was also charac-
teristic Of the change of attitude
The maid stated that at her last place
she had received certain preposterous sum
week, whereupon the woman who was CON
siderins engaging her baked:
That Is too much. l have never paid
such wages J" she said dccisively.
WELL" said the blase applicant coolly,
you ought to be as able to pay It as she
was"
Now that the, tide is changed and the
business houses and the factories and the
railroads are turning away their hands, and
the tide OF immigration has set in, and
has o, soM sns
applicants and for unskilled labor 100, the
whole question of domestic service will settle
on more natural lines.
/ 1NDOUBTEDLY, certain changes have
~ come to stay, however, changes that are
all to the good for the domestic employe.
certain types of mistresses can always
Keep servants, and always did keep servants
even in the most uncertain days Of the war.
They did not bribe them by nbnormally high
wages or cajole them by soft jobs or cater
to them by luxurious quarters or meals.
know many such. They never boast of
the fact when other women are taking it
for granted that all mistresses are In the
same leaky boat; indeed, they secretly won
der little ut their own good luck at having
no servant question
There are whole families and family con-
nections that from generation to generation
never have q servant question,
1t is quality of mind and behavior, a
point Of view that is almost instructive. 1t
does not follow that a woman who has good
servants and keeps them Is, however, always
easy for her family or her friends to get
along with. She may not control herself at
all times with a provoking child or irritat
ing in law or exigent husband, but for some
reason she can and does control herself
with provoking servant. She has the
knack of being firm and at the same time
pleasant, and she understands the art Of
being patient over a mistake, yet serenely
adamant that it shall not be repeated. She
knows what to see and what to overlook she
is never suspicious yet never taken in. And
she is all this very naturally and uncon-
sciously in her dealings with her employees
because she is mentally their superior, while
she allows herself moments of sheer exas-
peration with her peers that may shake her
from stem to stern.
LNAR more logical and consistently unself-
i fish women than those fortunate ones fail
where they succeed. 1t is not a question Of
knowing how to do the work yourself
some do, some do not. 1t Is not the diff
Guilty Of the work or the easiness, the kind Of
kitchen. the kind Of quarters, the hours or
the family; it is not popular manner or n
philanthropic interest-you may have mice
and common ways or you may be "hotty
Lady Imogene.'
1t is quality, point of view. a steady
hand. an instinct for getting things done,
an administrative rather than an executive
talent, serene expectancy of the best, a
quick perception of the reasonableness Of
slight deviations, kind recognition of little
acts of initiative, an interest that is never
curiosity. and a kindness that is atmospheric
rather than detailed. and power of appeal
rather than domination.
1t would be impossible to be consciously
any ten of these things or any five. The
characteristic of the attitude is that it is
instructive, but family tradition can give q
sureness of touch that is an enviable pos
session.
1t is the last thing man considers when
he is in love with girl enough to propose
to her, but 1t is probably the most important
of all her qualifications as a wife in the long
run.
He can really observe her inheritance In
this respect and draw his own conclusions
from her own ana her tamiiy's attitude
toward servants, while he is yet-so to
speah-oh tne "ay'
.Sr ,, ,r;.,;, so,,, ,,,o,,,,, -. .,.
40 ''nnet' within ie" "cehs Vi eaCh
hother' l nau occasion 10 observe the
family attitude toward their servants IN two
families who have always had devoted ser
wants: The one occasion was at time OF
rejoicing or, at all events, wedding fes-
tivity; the other was at time OF great sor-
row, funeral:
AT the wedding rehearsal at the church
Tho groom and the mother of the bride as 70
where in the church each should sit.
The groom $ mother objected to the tran
sent seats on the edge of the chancel at the
right and left of the choir as giving too much
room for all and sundry of the casual guests
10 crowd in directly behind the official
families. She wished to sit In the conven.
tional front pew on the middle aisle, with
n nicely graded selection of wedding guests
Loh;n5 har