(To THE EDITOR OF THE " SPECTATOR."] SIR,—I have been
much interested in your correspondence in the Spectator about domestic servants. May I, as a domestic servant of thirty years' standing, say I do not think " Satisfied Mistress," with her bicycles, writing-tables, &c., is any more likely to solve the problem than " Scottish Minister's Wife," with her gulf between the drawing-room and the kitchen F The latter 1 should say gets what she deserves. One would have expected a little more of the spirit of Him Who said "I am amongst you as One that eerveth " from her. I certainly should not care to serve a mistress with her narrow views. No doubt there are faults on both sides, but I think if mistresses would look upon their• servants as human beings and not as a mere working machine it would go a long way towards solving the problem. My experience is that a good mistress can generally get a good servant and keep her, even if she can only give her what is barely necessary; and failing a good mistress, I do no think bicycles and writing-tables would count with a servant worth having. I may add I am one of six sisters who have all been in domestic service and served a variety of mistresses, and we have all known how to appreciate a good mistress when we
have found her.—I am. Sir, &c., J. P.
Previous page
