Suggestion for Arrangement of Servants’ Sundays
First Sunday—Morning
Cook is in, gets lunch and prepares as much of the dinner as she can.
Waitress is out from 10 A.M. till time to wash lunch dishes.
Chambermaid is in and in addition to her own work does any of the waitress’s work that is left unfinished after 10 A.M. and serves lunch.
Afternoon
Cook is out, after she has washed up lunch things, till 11 P.M.
Waitress is in, prepares and serves dinner.
Chambermaid is out, after she has served lunch, till 11 P.M.
Second Sunday—Morning
Cook is out, after washing up breakfast things, till time to cook lunch.
Waitress is in, and in addition to her own work, does any chamberwork left unfinished after 10 A.M.
Chambermaid is out after 10 A.M. till her lunch time.
Afternoon
Cook is in. Cooks dinner.
Waitress is out, after she has washed lunch dishes, till 11 P.M.
Chambermaid is in and serves dinner.
The third Sunday is like the first.
The fourth Sunday is like the second.
And so it goes on in twos, each servant having every other Sunday morning out and every other Sunday afternoon and evening out.
Well, Penelope dear, I had almost forgotten I was writing to you, these extracts from my letter to Hope have become so voluminous! It is fortunate that they need no comment, for I could not write another line, since it is the middle of the night and I am perfectly exhausted and disgracefully sleepy.
Very affectionately your devoted friend,
Jane Prince.
CHAPTER VIII ⬩ BEHIND THE
SCENES AT A DINNER ❧
York Harbor, October 15.
Penelope Pennington!
What is this that you tell me! You are to have charge of a formal dinner for your Aunt Sally! How perfectly dear it is of her to give one to Mr. and Mrs. Winslow in appreciation of Tom’s promotion. I have been to many of your aunt’s dinners in the past and know how smoothly she will want everything to go, so I am not surprised at your excitement at the thought of making all the arrangements for her, and I am very glad that she feels strong enough to be present herself. I understand from your letter that you do not wish for a menu, as you want to choose that yourself, or for any directions about wines, as you can find all that in cookery books, but you do want to know about preparations “behind the scenes,” as it were, to make everything go like clockwork. First, foremost, and last I am evidently to drop everything and write you at once! Do you realize, dear child, that I am off, in a few days, on that motor trip through the Berkshires about which I wrote you? But since it is for you, I will stop my preparations for a little and write this if it takes me all night!
To set a household like your aunt’s going for such an affair, after it has been shut off from social life for so long, is almost like starting with untrained servants, so I shall give you directions in minute detail. Since you can’t tell yet whether it is to be a dinner of eight or twelve, I will write a description for one of eight complete and then describe in general terms the difference between the two.
It will be delightful to engineer the dinner without a moment’s worry about expense, knowing that your aunt is so perfectly well able to afford it. People who make such attempts when they cannot afford it deserve all the worry that they suffer. Others always know that they are attempting something beyond their means and they lose, in a measure, the respect of the very people whom they have tried to impress. About the only difference from one’s everyday dinner is that nothing is served on the table and the courses are more in number, and it is well to impress this on the minds of your aunt’s servants. Don’t let the thought of a dinner mean only hard work to them, but let them feel sure of having plenty of ice-cream, cake, candy, etc., afterwards, so that there can be a festive feeling downstairs as well as up. There is a good deal of extra work, and also late hours, in connection with a dinner of this kind and the servants deserve some encouragement and reward.
Several days before the dinner make out the menu from the dishes that the cook makes the best, not attempting anything new. Give her confidence by consulting her a little, and also encourage her by praising the way she cooks these special dishes, at the same time cautioning her on the necessity of great care on such an occasion and of keeping her reputation up. See that she has the proper kitchen utensils needed in good order for use. Then go over each dish in a good receipt book putting down on a writing-pad exactly what is needed for each course, how much milk, butter, eggs, cream, seasoning, vegetables, meat, etc.
Your menu having been decided upon with the cook, then go over, with the waitress, the china, glass, silver, etc., to see if there are eight of everything unbroken for each course. Jot down on a memorandum what broken pieces, if any, have to be replaced. Go over the silver and decide how you will use that. Don’t make a great undertaking of this, but do it quickly. It won’t take long. Decide, at this time, what flowers you will have and what color scheme, and see if the candle shades are in good order and that there are enough candles. Once having done all this, should your aunt want you to take charge of a dinner for her again, the waitress, if she is reliable, can do this part herself and report to you if anything is needed. See that the broken china and glass are replaced several days before the dinner.
Now that you have decided on the menu, and what china, glass, silver, and candle shades you intend using, you can write out the directions for the waitress for serving the dinner, putting opposite each course what plates and platters you want used for that course and have these directions ready to pin up in the pantry. I cannot say too much about getting everything off your mind that you can the day before the dinner. On this day, in order to keep the cook calm, see for yourself that all the necessary articles, except very perishable ones, are in the house, and have her prepare the clear soup and anything else that she can on that day. Take this time to tell her (or to show her pictures from cookery books) how you like to have the dishes decorated, and also remind her that one signal (or bell) from the pantry means to dish up and keep a course hot, and two signals (or bells) to send it up to the pantry, and caution her how a few minutes’ delay in the kitchen seems a long time in the dining-room, so she has to be quick. Write out the menu very clearly for her and pin it up in the kitchen, and then decide on the platters and dishes to be used. In fact, have all your conversation with her about the dinner the day before. Write the place cards. (Plain blank cards are dignified and answer the purpose just as well as fancy, elaborate ones which are expensive, and the money saved can go toward pretty flowers that will really add to the beauty of the table and the pleasure of the guests.) Find out the day before the dinner just how your aunt wishes the guests to be seated and write this down, so that it will only take a moment when the table is set to put the cards at their proper places. (Of course Mr. and Mrs. Winslow being the guests of honor, Tom will take in Mrs. Winslow, who will sit at his right, and Mr. Winslow will take your aunt in and sit at her right.) At the same time address the little envelopes that come for the purpose, one for each man guest, and slip into them the card with the name of the lady he is to take in to dinner. Keep all these things in a sideboard drawer to be on hand when you want them.
In the case of this first formal dinner with your aunt’s present servants, you will have to be on the spot most of the morning if you want to take a rest in the afternoon. You can give the dining-room up to the dinner that day and lunch at a side-table or in the library. After your short interview of encouragement with the cook, you read to the waitress and chambermaid the directions for serving the dinner and see that they understand their parts in it, and try to make them ambitious that everything should go well and be a credit to them. You then pin these directions up in the pantry. These directions can be used for many dinners until they are worn out. After this you superintend putting on the under-pad and then the tablecloth which must be very smooth. The chambermaid must help the waitress, as it takes two to put on a large cloth without mussing it. Watch the waitress put the eight plates around the table, to be sure they are evenly spaced (two on each side, if the table is wide enough; otherwise with eight there must be a gentleman at the head and another at the foot in order not to have two gentlemen or two ladies side by side). Next have the waitress set one place completely, under your directions, with small silver, glasses, and napkins as in the family dinner (only more, as the courses require[[1]]), so that she can set all the places like it without your being there to direct her. Leave her to put fresh candles in the candlesticks, and a final polish on the china, silver, and glass that are to be used during the dinner, while you arrange the flowers. No matter how nicely any one keeps house, there is a great deal for the servants to think of for a dinner, and as they have never served one for you before, should you get the impression in the morning that things are not going on very well, you will have to be in the dining-room a good deal, quietly seeing that no time is lost.
[1]. If you don’t like so many forks and knives on the table at once, put enough for the first three courses and have the others brought on with the plates of each course as in the case of dessert.
After the lunch things have been cleared off and the servants have had their lunch, you superintend the setting of the side-table with the extra things that will be needed during the dinner, such as the plates for cold courses, any small silver that may be needed, a plate for the extra bread and rolls, and all the plates for the last course, on each of which is a doily, and a finger bowl one third full of water. All these things should be prettily arranged in a symmetrical manner, and if there isn’t room on the side-table some can go on the sideboard, as they must all be convenient.
After the side-table is set, you can go with the waitress into the pantry and have her send down to the kitchen all platters, dishes, etc., that are to be served from there and arrange, in a corner of the pantry out of the way and in piles, the plates for the different courses, putting on each pile a slip of paper telling what course it is for, so that the servants won’t get confused. See that the tray of after-dinner coffee-cups is arranged in the pantry with a spoon on each saucer, and with the sugar tongs on the bowl of sugar. Then go and rest and come down later when the waitress reports to you that she has finished setting the dining-table. You will probably find that it doesn’t look to your satisfaction, but don’t put the servants out of temper with criticisms. Take it for granted that they have done their best, speak well of what is right, and straighten out what is wrong with explanations, giving the finishing touches yourself. Then should your aunt give any more dinners under your supervision, her servants could do most of this themselves. After the dinner is over, and the guests are gone, be generous in your praise to the servants of everything that went well and wait for another time to show how to correct any mistakes that were made. They will probably go to bed very tired that night, but happy because they have pleased you.
Here are the details for the dinner:—
When you post your written directions in the pantry, it is well to underline the waitress’s with red pencil, the chambermaid’s with blue, so that each can see at a glance where her duty comes in.
The signals to be used to send the courses up at a dinner have to be carefully understood beforehand between the servants in the dining-room and kitchen. Generally it gives the cook about the right time if, when the first guest has finished, the chambermaid rings one bell for her to dish and keep the course hot, and when more than half the guests have finished, two bells to send to the pantry. This depends, however, so much on the quickness of the servants, etc., that they have to learn gradually, by experience, the proper time interval between bells. The standard of perfection to aspire to, is no waiting between courses and no hurrying during courses.
After the first two courses I will give you but few details, because in serving every course the following general method is to be observed:—
The same signs and signals are passed at the proper time between waitress, chambermaid, and cook for removing and bringing on every course.
In every course where there is a main dish and two other dishes, the chambermaid (after having taken all the soiled plates from the waitress and in return given her all the fresh ones) gives the main dish to the waitress and then follows her all around the table with a dish in each hand offering first one, then the other, to every guest.
Soiled plates are always replaced with fresh ones from the right side of each person, and all foods are always offered on the left side. The lady on the right of the host is served first.
During every course, where there is but one thing to pass, the chambermaid remains in the pantry, handing out and taking in plates and keeping the pantry in order.
One course is always entirely removed into the pantry before another course is brought on.
Let us take the following dinner as an example:—
First course, canapé.
Second course, soup.
Third course, fish.
Fourth course, entrée.
Fifth course, roast and two vegetables.
Sixth course, salad, etc.
Seventh course, ices and cakes.
Eighth course, candies.
Ninth course, coffee.
You can omit either canapé or entrée or both if you prefer.