Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1920-01-10
Diplomatic House Keeping


Most ho'tsokeepcrr find housekeeping
on the lqnal scale sufficiently complex -
engage the greater part ~ their attrr
tion Imagine then the responsibility Of
diplomatic housekeeping. with a rctinue
IF servants, who Are acclrtorned only ~
tho methods Of their country. and atso-
mtcly strange to the IDEAS of the aInIassa.
dress Mrs Maurice Francis Egan, wife
of the ex minister from ihe United States
10 Denmark iellp ~ the last issue of the
Ladies Home Journal Of the situation
facing newly arrived diplomat wife
Mrs Egen If 3 very clever Writer, and
some phaseH of her experience are very
interesting
"Thc wlfe of an ambassador or
minister she SAYS must make up her
mind that. i shc Is to do hcr duty ahc
must forget hcuelf, hcr predictions, her
prcjudices. and shr must put vanity
aaidr. as she bccoueR simply an ass'etart
IN her husband IN representing. As far as
she can. the country from which hc ~
accredited She cannot forro her manner
~ looking 81 things, her hRhifa. ths cus-
toms ~ her country or hCr deas on the
people around her The typral American
woman soon learns tine If shr hae mot
learned It before
In my opinion there IS nothing that
the European Of the fsest elUF respects 50
much AZ simplicity and nnpro'cntiousneEs
of rollruc these Tlalitrs fnus' hc ac-
cornpanled by power - adaptation -
the smaller ronyonancos ~ FurGrscau lifc
Americans arr often arcrzrd ~ 'rrr0g ~
force provincial manDcrs INTO . snciciy 10
which they appear crude ~ IN 4 he other
hand are hccoming tn fond ~ arls'1~ra'ic
or monarrhlral ways Tn my experience
I have aeen very little ~ tho former, ~
though I r1lsst say that snrnc American
women. wipo priic thrmgclv~ on fhcir
plasflcltV. rccm - find 4 much harder
han their husbands fn trrcpt customs
wiih which thrv nave hitherto l,ecn tn
acquainted on he other hand he
eaEr of life IN c0untrire where LIVING S ~
we'll ordered IN nigh ~rrlcr rhnre 'tcra-
tuve. art and nuslc are 4 part ~ everyday
convers alton. and wherc kings and queens
and princesa@s arc kind and Smpl" md
interested ~ All human affair makes Gnc
inclined ~ seek The advantages f ~
cirty wherr royalty and iristocrarv set
the fashion ~ urhanlty and tolerance
The business ~ the trained servants pf
the beat class there are ~ uany rlazs
RI servants IN Europe W. there orc n lsaez
~ society n ~ save their rnlsfreSzee from
All domestic difficulties They have
prIde N their work ia every diplornatlc III
arsfocratic house md IN the houses af
the higher middle class arr 'o 81 found
servants decorated NTH mndaIs 80 ong
service and good conduct, and woman
~ the same rank are rewarded
IN other ways Tn br L hrst-rate servant
81
There is rank among AZ servants. cheer
iully acknowledged and TIC assent from
pircolo nr page tuv - hiitlr- requires
quck observation, much experience md
/ ho requirement III 4 language 0r two 4
butler pr 4 second man who Knows three
languages hat ig, who ha.s + working
knowledge If three languages pad
threr tsmcs - much anr rho Knows
-mpy hls native tongue
llavtug acquired FOUR ycelen or
rante, The rest Fas casV frc hptlsr en-
Gagged the ether men .nd he Arzt cook
.he other Homen TIL understand hat
herr IS hierarchy among European ar-
wants on. bad only % catch be greeting
u our nr~t Ady nf the kltchcn when ac
met the porter Hife N the morning lhe
lortcr wiic Ivcd in i |plge under he
-eZ lie thaus4ee she MA an sTnuprtsut
1erson, pad ey all the -tHants Iii shn
,urious gray old palace in ahlch wc 4vcd
lut our hr4t lady" "a even nurr I'M
3ortAnt. Johanna. AttIred III stately hon
net and cloak, an her way 3 market.
would SAY with 4 light inclination ii the
read Good morning, Nlr. Head Por-
or To nhich The porter alip vauid
make n little curtsy. although -nc o;49 !.
married woman. and reply aI,h rhe proper
iood day Miss Firs, icga-
lon COOK This va. all done very -ol-