[To THZ EDITOR Of THE " SPECTATOR."] Sni,—As a domestic
servant of nearly thirty years in one family, I have read with much interest the letters from ladies and servants which have appeared in your paper dealing with the above subject. I quite agree with those who say that two great drawbacks are (1) lack of social standing, (2) lack of liberty. It lies in the hands of the mistresses to remedy both. If they respected their maids outside the house as well as inside the house, other people would also respect them. For instance, why should a girl, because she happens to be a servant, be Mary or Sarah or Ermyntrude to the tradespeople or the charwoman ? She is not their servant. If the maid's name is mentioned at all, why not use the surname. I don't see why it could not be Miss So-and-so; I mean the older maids. No superior girl would take advantage of that, nor expect it in the house. And with regard to liberty, as "F. W." points out, it is humiliating to a respectable girl to ask permission to run to the post, &c. Yes, a lot could be done by the mistresses to make their maids envied and not looked down upon by shopgirls and school-teachers and such like.
I certainly do not think that the eight hours' work would answer, and I should not like it either. As others have said before, a good mistress can get a good servant. I was amused at any one doubting +those letters written by " Domestic Servants." Even a servant has a certain amount of intellect. —I am, Sir, &c., A SERVANT.
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