the wedding will be made merry, and good wishes will follow her to the new home, where it will be hoped that she may have as much comfort as she has given to others during her years of faithful work as a waitress.
Truthfulness in the Waitress
A waitress should be truthful in spirit, as well as truthful regarding the letter of her contract. We are told sometimes that this is impossible; that it is necessary to tell some falsehoods in order to secure a good place, or to keep one after being in it for a time. But this is not so. An expert waitress need never be without a place, and she need never stay in a place for lack of another after real difficulties have arisen in her way.
How do I know this? Because perfect service never goes a-begging, and if her work is perfect there will always be a demand for it. Think of our servants of the public—the clergy and the doctors. Does a minister who satisfies his congregation ever lack a congregation? Does a successful doctor have to drive
about looking for patients? We know very well that he does not; we know that his office is crowded day after day. How did he come to be successful? First he studied, and then he practised, and when he began to practise he found that there were many things which he did not know. Was he content with the knowledge he had acquired? By no means. He studied more, and put the new knowledge into practice. How did he gain the entire confidence of the persons he serves? By doing well what he professed to do, and by being ready for any emergency. And this is what a waitress must do. First she must study, then she must practise, then she must study more and practise more, and she must be equal to emergencies.
If word comes to a doctor that a child has fallen down-stairs and broken its arm, does the doctor send back word that his hours are over and he cannot go to the child? And if an accident happens in the waitress’s department—if a piece of ceiling falls, for instance,
when she is about to go up to bed—will she say that her hours are over, and some one else must clean up the mortar in the pantry? If the doctor thinks he is all through for the evening and another patient comes in, will he dismiss the late comer without a word? And if, after a table is all laid, an extra guest comes in, will the waitress fail to lay another cover quietly and quickly?
Yes, many will say, so many patients, so much money. But it is not so. The persons who take up a doctor’s time and try his patience almost beyond words are often those who have no idea of the value of his time, and who have no money to pay him for it.
When a maid calls herself a waitress she is not truthful unless she has studied her work until she is familiar with it, and this familiarity can come only after some amount of practice.