A funeral in the morning, a ball in the evening,"--so runs
the world away."

CHAPTER XIII. SERVANTS.

Servants are a necessary evil. He who shall contrive to
obviate their necessity, or remove their inconveniences, will
render to human comfort a greater benefit than has yet been
conferred by all the useful-knowledge societies of the age.
They are domestic spies, who continually embarrass the
intercourse of the members of a family, or possess themselves
of private information that renders their presence hateful,
and their absence dangerous. It is a rare thing to see
persons who are not controlled by their servants. Theirs,
too, is not the only kitchen cabinet which begins by serving
and ends by ruling.

If we judge from the frequency and inconvenience of an
opposite course, we should say that the most important
precept to be observed is, never to be afraid of your
servants. We have known many ladies who, without any reason
in the world, lived in a state of perfect subjugation to
their servants, who were afraid to give a direction, and who
submitted to disobedience and insult, where no danger could
be apprehended from discharging them.

If a servant offends you by any trifling or occasional
omission of duty, reprove the fault with mild severity; if
the error be repeated often, and be of a gross description,
never hesitate, but discharge the servant instantly, without