Evening star., 1955-09-11
BY BRENDA HEtsER

class seems TO be riding very
high, indeed. The average
middle class housewife here
has life . darn sight easier
than nine out Of ten smart
young matrons living In FASH
ionable outlying districts Of
American capitals.
Sonora Spain has an easier
work life than even Madame
France and hers Is that much
more again more comfortable
than Mrs. Americas. These
are the educated young women
who "live graciously" but not
IN luxury.
a Pushes Own Buttons
FOR all her electrical gadgets
Mrs. Young American Mother
must push the buttons herself.
She is closeted with offspring
to such an extent that her
conversation degenerates to an
infantile level that embarrasses
her.
This is the great worry Of
American service wives In, for
instance. France. Even though
help is cheap It b difncult for
them to secure and hold 1t.
For one thing these Americans
insist on clinging to the Ameri-
can idea Of q full-sise house In
the suburbs. For many prac-
tical reasons It is not the
French thing to do. Servants
loath being stuck In the woods
and refuse to 90. II they 90.
they won't stay.
Then, too, the average serv-
Ice wife does not speak French
well enough to cope with a
maid, especially in the pinches.
Her pidgin- French is adequate
while all goes we'll: but the
moment q maid does not wish
to follow orders she can throw
her mistress for a total loss
by looking her dead In the eye
and saying, "Je ne comprends
mas. madame" Il do not under
stand. madame"
After q bit Of this an Ameri-
can girl worth her salt says.
TO aitch with thatl" and goes
back to doing her own work,
which she can usually do bet
ter than any old femme de
menage.
OF course she loses face with
her French friends. She's also
dead tired, because all houses
outside the territorial limits Of
the United States seem to have
been constructed deliberatly
TO keep five maids per room
busy all day.
Too Busy
90 Mrs. America Is too busy
and too tired to live up to her
background. her husbands po-
sition. and his salary. Keep
ing house abroad Is generally Q
pain In the neck for our girls.
Madame France, Of COM
parable status. has q full-time
maid who Is an excellent cook.
Full time Is dawn to midnight.
II she has children. she has q
nurse for them. Neither do
mestique" dresses the part. as
they did before the war. They
look 80 sloppy an American
woman might prefer not to
have them around.
Here in Spain, where their
last war was nearly 20 years
ago, niceties have not been
lost in the shuttle.
Even families that rent two
Of the extra rooms to tourists
have, ut least, one maid. one
cook, and o nurse for the
children. These are proper
" uniformed. especially the
nanny.
II the family has q car,
their stan includes 0 chadeur.
Ladies carry fans and know
how to use them elegantly
against the heat.
Little girls with boys hair
cuts and pierced ears wear
exquisite dresses usually white
or pastel in organdy with lace
or broderie anglaise. The
skirts are starched to stand
out stifiy as they used to
ON the old Shirley Temple
dolls. Marvellous ribbons are
tied In huge bows at the back
after trips around that region
Of o little girl eventually to
be recognised as o waist.
There IL no atmosphere Of
dictatorship on the surface,
although the last month had
two incidents Of English tour
lists going to jail on minor
charges they couldn't under
stand.
Not Impressed
There is no anti-American
feeling; In fact our name and
dollars impress them not at
all. Here and there on the
roads there are upheavals in
the promise Of smoother and
wider macadam. The works
are plainly marked plan de
Modernizacion; Ibero-Ameri-
cano." General Franco has no
desire to deprive us Of our
credit where 1t is due.
Maybe this essay seems or
trich- like for sticking to the
comfortable middle class. For
good measure let's remember
the remark Of a road worker
on one Of those Ibero-Ameri-
cano projects.
He and his fellow workers
were enthralled by our Dalma-
tians, as has been every other
European who has spotted
them. The Dalmatian. whose
meter is to follow horses.
coaches and fire engines. is q
rare dog on the continent.
Continental peoples are mad
about hunting. With the sea-
-. ~nn..an nt,is,0 fhnu fhirk nf