Madhusudan_Das

86 Madhusudan Das :
he wished to say anything he would make signs and stare with his
big eyes, which frightened the maids. He would also sit down on the
floor. I had invited some of my friends and some M.Ps. who were
kind to me and in whose houses I had been a guest. The day previous
to the dinner party in the morning, I was going out of London for
the whole day, the housekeeper came and told me that all the servants
had given notice to leave that day and she brought the account book
and the money and one week's salary of the servants as they were
leaving without notice. I told her I would look into the matter next
day and left the house. When I returned in the evening, except the
butler, every one had left. Now to stay in a London house without
a cook, especially when one was expecting important guests to dinner
was a great dilemma for me. I was told by the butler that the servants
left owing to our Mohammedan servant whose ways they did not like.
My father asked me either to cancel the dinner party or to ask them
to a fashionable hotel. I said " No father, I would entertain them in
my own house. London is a place where you can do things in the
twinkling of an eye if one spends money." I got a very good cook
from the servants bureau and two waiters from a hotel. Every thing
was in tiptop condition when the guests arrived, the first dinner party
was a great success. I was congratulated by the ladies in having such
good servants, when they heard the whole story they were surprised
and paid me compliments. Thus the tragedy of a dinner party ended
happily. And the batch of servants I engaged again proved efficient
and the butler wanted the hookah of my father when he left London
to show his efficiency to other big Indians who would engage him.
I liked English servants better than our own servants for their
punctuality and efficiency If you treat them with kindness they proved
a great success. They would go out of their way to please you. But
our Anglo-Indian friends after their retirement from service cannot
get on well with them owing to their overbearing nature. Many of
my Anglo-Indian lady friends have told me of their grievances
regarding servants.
HOW I CAME TO BE IN PATNA
Bihar and Orissa were under the administration of one Governor
and Patna was the Capital. Under the Montague-Chelmsford reform,