Over a Hot Stove by Flo Wadlow

Author:Flo Wadlow
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
ISBN: 9780749015763
Publisher: Allison & Busby
Published: 2013-10-17T21:00:00+00:00

In the general run of things, the kitchen staff would tend not to mix with the other staff, but Flo was probably an exception to the rule:

It happened to me. I mixed with them because, if there was a dance or anything in the village, several of the servants would go, and the younger girl who worked in the stillroom, she would go and some of the younger housemaids. We would all go to the dances. I was very friendly with the second footman and he used to take me. We used to play golf as well because there was a lovely golf course at Hatfield. Where he got the clubs from I didn’t enquire into – you don’t go into that.

One day, when I went to the housekeeper with the list of what we needed that day, she asked me if I would like to go to the Servants’ Ball. ‘Oh yes, I’d love it!’ ‘Who would I like to go with me?’ Well the second housemaid, Rose, she was a very nice girl and we had Stanley my favourite footman, and the under chauffeur to take us. But oh, the head kitchen maid was furious because she wasn’t asked to go – but she never went to dances normally. I thought it was only fair. I was thrilled to bits. The ball was at a neighbouring house and this neighbour was some relative I think to Lord Salisbury. They were inviting four servants from Hatfield House.

Before then though I cycled from Hatfield to London – the traffic on the A1 wasn’t quite like it is today – to Selfridges. I put my bike by the railings in Portman Square, at the back of Selfridges, and went in. I bought myself some material to make a long dress because they were all the rage then. I got some pale lilac material and made a dress with a V-neck. It had two little frills to make the short sleeves and then a long skirt from the waist, and two frills at the bottom and a bunch of violets there. I made that to go to the Servants’ Ball, which was fantastic. We had a wonderful time.

You had to have a special pass to go out, because they had night watchmen round the grounds, and there were Alsatian dogs, so you had to let them know the date you’d got a pass for. We’d be late home going to the dance.

I remember too we had a big Fireman’s Ball. They had their own brigade, and their own fire engine at Hatfield. People on the estate all manned it. I remember we all went to this Fireman’s Ball and it was from about eight in the evening until about five in the morning. I know the footmen came home, had a bath and changed into their uniforms straight away and went on duty. I think we did have a few minutes’ rest before we started to get up at half past six.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.