e house, went
upstairs, while the remaining fourteen sat down in the hall, and fanned
themselves with their bonnets.

"A. B." was a good deal astonished when the first applicant presented
herself. She was a tall, genteel-looking girl. Up to yesterday she had
been head housemaid at Lady Stanton's, and before that she had been under-
cook for two years to the Duchess of York.

"And why did you leave Lady Stanton?" asked "A. B."

"To come here, mum," replied the girl. The lady was puzzled.

"And you'll be satisfied with six pounds a year?" she asked.

"Certainly, mum, I think it ample."

"And you don't mind hard work?"

"I love it, mum."

"And you're an early riser?"

"Oh yes, mum, it upsets me stopping in bed after half-past five."

"You know we do the washing at home?"

"Yes, mum. I think it so much better to do it at home. Those laundries
ruin good clothes. They're so careless."

"Are you a Unitarian?" continued the lady.

"Not yet, mum," replied the girl, "but I should like to be one."

The lady took her reference, and said she would write.

The next applicant offered to come for three pounds--thought six pounds
too much. She expressed her willingness to sleep in the back kitchen: a
shakedown under the sink was all she wanted. She likewise had yearnings
towards Unitarianism.

The third girl did not require any wages at all--could not understand
what servants wanted with wages--thought wages only encouraged a love of
foolish finery--thought a comfortable home in a Unitarian family ought to
be sufficient wages for any girl.

This girl said there was one stipulation she should like to make, and
that was that she should be allowed to pay for all breakages caused by
her own carelessness or neglect. She objected to holidays and evenings
out; she held that they distracted a girl from her work.

The fourth candidate offered a premium of five pounds for the place; and
then "A. B." began to get frightened, and refused to see any more of the
girls, convinced that they must be lunatics from some neighbouring asylum
out for a walk.

Later in the day, meeting the next-door lady on the doorstep, she related
her morning's experiences.

"Oh, that's nothing extraordinary," said the next-door lady; "none of us
on this side of the street pay wages; and we get the pick of all the best
servants in London. Why, girls will come from the other end of the
kingdom to get into one of these houses. It's the drea