The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, September 13, 1903, Page 9

AFT2 WORK SHE 7785 A JOLLIFICZIION., nd her new life e most atirac- w type, for he ragged edge of elt ip a tiny without difi- fai stories sh days in which iably bestowed few rather than un- t a few fanes n this advanced age, for bands of contented ed with them- urrou s. entirely their environments and tely uncomfortable, but thanks be, poured from unexpected shape ¢ cheior girl of vore ri suddenly he w poverty staring her in the face. 1t is true she made a brave front of it and hustled from one place to another until she had secured some kind of employment ! off by a sex line from this earth and her ¢ from the day ght in her con- and without trying to aiter in any respect she settiéd 1 te follow out a life narrow “old maid” and Uf ever the part she did after a Instead of keeping her- weif looking to please ber friends she went about withk that don’t-care expression eternally and for- ever on her face, and of a truth she @idn't care. for the simple reason that pone entered her life that was worth troubling about. Esach hum-drum week weas the same a8 the one that bad gone before it At twenty-five she was drab and siow Thirty found her too faded to be attract- fve and at thirty-five she ranked with her own grandmother and all the maiden sunts in the country. Butl the gods be praised we have a Brand spanking new kind of an “'old maid.” And she isn't an old maid at all. Best of all no one even ever thinks of ber summers, and winters are positively never mentioned. No matter what ner age may e is alw into the and in she is attract- ad, in fact, just'as long as she re- r maid there is a cer- nation about her that makes charming and worth cultivat- ing. And how this woman is abused! It has always been the mark of femininity to do housework. to understand the art of boilin otatoes and grubbing gen- era b she added letter? to her name, passed from college into the world with a profession at her fingers' ends, It was positive fact that she was mas- culine, that she was forward and apt to be a decided crank And really that isn't the way of It at all. Wkat is her move after finding employment? Why, the hunting and fit- ing up of a home, no matter how small and cramped it may be, for after a busy day’s work it affords her the rest, the quiet and the peace that every home lover finds in a pet corner. This home, as it chances, is what gives this business woman her new name, and incidentaily it is the halo which throws the glamour of a subtle charm about her Her rooms and her life are her very own to do with as she deems best and it is this very freedom that is her unquestion able right which makes her the center of many wondering eyes Her home, be it large or small, is by courtesy dubbed an apartment, for she rarely can afford a flat proper and be- sides a perfect network of small fami- ljes sc far away and yet so near have their compensations Although she 1s alone it is quite another thing to be lonely. And family! She has none. That is ex- actly the reason which makes her a bach- elor maid and that makes her position in itffe peculiar She stands alone without @ prog or a support she asks no odds of any one and she even denles herself the privilege of having things made easier for her just because faté decreed that she must be a woman She stands shoulder to shoulder to man and when she de- manded his rights she accepted his bur- dens quite as a matter of course, And thie home of hers Of course, the bachelor maid is always a professional woman, for what other excuse could she offer for cutting herself free from soci- ety and people in general to live by her- self and spend her days in a dreary, lone- some fashion. So in selecting her flat she keeps a weather eye out for conven- fences and arranges her numerous be- longings so that she can do her own work with little’or no trouble and then skip away to her duties. It might be all well and good to keep a maid, and no one will deny that they are mighty useful about dinner time, but comparatively speakimg they are too much of a luxury. e is limited, money is limited and time is limited. The evening of a bachelor girl s her day time and she is forced to use it a such unless she is contented to yvork, work, work and live otherwise in a’ state of vegetation, It is true she may be weary body and soul, but society demands just so much of her time, and whether she will or no it must be given or else some bright day she will wake up and discover herself a complete nonentity, Friends are queer beings. If you are ever before them they remember you, but per- mit a few months to keep you apart and 1o and behold, you are as though you had never been 8o she dons her sweetest frock, tucks a bow or a flower in her hair in a cou- quettish fashlon and prepares for war generally If it is war to the death she takes the trouble to discover individual tastes and to find out what pleases each ohe the most. and then with a slyness and a deftness all her own, manages to see that the right thing is forthcoming at the right time. She receives her guests, both masculine and feminine, with as perfect freedom as though a chapeton was standing at her back and watching every movement with her eagle eye. She is ever courteous and she demands respect and courtesy by her simplicity and easy manner, If she entertainsher friends with a wee, small dinner. the evening is the time they are invited. and she cooks and serves it herself, because, forsooth, there is no one to do it for her, but in doing it she makes such rollicking fun out of it that each and every guest feels it a distinct honor to be there and enters into the frolic right royally. There is.no stiffness about her or her home, but always that name- less charm called ‘“‘manner.” But, of course, e\ *vbody knows ang understands full w3 that the bachelor girl is quite unlike ® .y other and they yentionallsms and cares less what folks grant her almost unlimited leeway. They think of her as long as they do not pass know that she thinks but little of the con- the ‘‘erratic’” mark. for her life has wid- / ened and she no longer treads the beaten path, but has little side tracks paved with individuality. Yet to be the popular girl, the attrac- tive girl, there are personal qualities that must. be her: She must know how to recelve gue: and how to speed them on their way. She must know how to en- gage them in light if sometimes frivo- lous conversation, and above all she must bave tact, presence of mind and the abil- ity to say the right thing at the right time. With these tucked under her arm, she could brave the world and be sure of coming out on top of any shuffle, But there are a few things that this wondrous maid must positively not have. Her little reception room must be fitted up in good taste and to represent noth- Ing else under the shining sun but a re- tion room. There must be no wash- . but half way concealed, a couch that has bed written all over it with capital letters instead of pillows, or an array of suggestive cookery articles These things positively must not be. The bachelor who makes her apart- ments a study appreciates the cozy ef- fects. Her belongings may not be worth more than a handful of pennies, a pot of L AN FIHERGENCY 108 BACHELAR GIRT, 2075 10 28 HER OWTY L0570 QF Al WORK . palms, a candlestick, & trinket beve and there and some gimcracks that take the place of bric-a-brac, yet they are so ar- ranged.that they give the appearance of a homey home. In one corner she finds that the chafing dish with its bubbling mysteries gives her excellent opportunities for harmless frolics; in another she establishes a cozy corner filled with souvenirs of this, that and the other thing that never fall to be Interesting, and the rest of her ‘“‘sphere” is rounded off in cozy sections with individuality. If this maid bachelor can h her home a little before 5 In the aftermoon she may entertain In the easiest but one of the most effective ways In the world. Over her tea standard may bubble and boil a kettle, or if she prefers the 4 o'clock coffee, which so many do these days. she has a small spirit lamp that sends forth its appetizing fumes almost In the twinkling of an eye. No girl, no matter whether she is a bachelor, an old maid or a sweet bud, can prepare coffee in a second. The ta- ble must be daintily set, thin bread, sand- wich fashion, must be buttered and sweet cakes must be set forth, and in small apartments the bachelor dees not always eare to reveal her nooks and crannies. But she gets around this as she gets around many other things. A few min- utes In the morning count more than half an hour in the afterncon when one is in a hurry_so she prepares her little feast, draws a screen partly about it and feels secure In the knowledge that it s ready and waliting. There is such an alr of sociability, such an alr of good fellowship and so much simplicity connected with an informal coffee that the bachelor has adopted it as one of her favorite methods of en- tertaining. And then, too, she does not dispense her hospitality unaided. A chap can manage cups quite as well as she can—that is, If he is tralned—and no girl, no matter what her name may be, ever gets over the love of cracking the whip and watching others do their lttle dance. It is pre-eminently feminine. This girl has taken up a trick that has always seemed mannish and that is shak- ing hands with her friends when they come and when they go. She does mot trouble herself about a fellow’s overcoat, nor look to see whether he has forgotten his stick; these things he must look to himself and it would be worse than pooe taste for her to asxist in gathering Mis belongings; but she does extend her hand in a frank, cordial way and bid him wel- come when he wills.- An lovitation orse extended to coffee is & permanent one and there Is no need to repeat it unless un-~ certainty ls dectdedly noticeable. There are hosts of things that this ad- vanced young woman has added to her rights. In forsaking the cheerless board- ing house she took the biggest leap of all, but she landed high and dry and found herself not only happler and more con- tented but a creature whose whims and fancies are pampered more than they had ever been before. She instantly changed from the drab to the rosy. from the ordi. nary to the fascinating and all because she willed to be a happler woman than she could have been under any other olr- cumstances. Society has broadened and the woman who has afvocation need never be afraid of being lonely, neither need she be afraid of gossip and unkind chatter, for just as long as she adheres to certain rules of etiquette the bachelor girl will be an immense favorite, living Rhappily and radiating contentment aad cheerfule ness about her.