wonder if heâd returned from San Francisco, she took a look around. There was a large modern stove, a sink, lengths of countertops, and a slew of cabinets. The kitchen walls were screened to let in the outside air. âSo, what would you like for me to do, Mrs. Stewart?â
âFirst, Iâd like for you to call me Sylvia or Sylvie. Mrs. Stewart is reserved for boarders and the like.â
âYes, maâam.â
âNow, letâs talk duties and wages. Have a seat.â She gestured at the table in the center of the room and Eddy complied. âSo, how well do you cook?â
âRather well, Iâm told. My mother made her living as a cook to wealthy families in Denver and I grew up helping her. Iâm experienced with steaks, quail, trout, and everything in between. Iâve cooked for individuals, families, and large to-Âdos like banquets and weddings. I do well with cakes, tarts, pickling, marmalades, jellies, and pies.â
âBreads?â
Eddy nodded.
âExcellent. Youâll be preparing breakfast and dinner for the boarders daily. I open the dining room to the public three days a week: Tuesday, Thursdays, and Sundays, with Sunday being the busiest day. Can you handle all that?â
âYes. How many boarders, and how many people come on Sundays?â
âI have three boarders, and usually ten to fifteen people on Sunday. Too many?â
âNot at all.â In fact, Eddy couldnât believe how small a cooking job this would be. During her years at the hotel, she and the staff fed at least fifty people daily.
They talked wages next, and when told how much her weekly pay would be, she asked, âWhat other chores will you be wanting me to do?â
âNone. Just cooking.â
The proposed amount was twice what she was paid as a cook before being demoted to scrubbing floors. âNo floors or wash?â
âNo, I have other people to do those.â
Eddy wasnât sure how to respond.
Mrs. Stewart explained, âIf youâre as good a cook as you say you are, I donât want you hired away by someone whoâll promise to pay you more. Thereâs a lot of money here in Virginia City, and the wealthy have the means to pay for the best.â
âI see.â She wondered if Sylvia Stewart was one of those wealthy residents.
âSo, since you havenât seen the city, let me give you a tour. You need to meet some of the farmers and storekeepers youâll be dealing with and learn your way around. Later you can meet the boarders. Gabe Horne works in the mines, Whitman Brown works at one of the banks and is also a Baptist preacher. August Williams is a dishwasher at one of the hotels.â
âThereâs a hotel here?â
âYes, which is why Iâm paying you so well. I donât want you deserting me.â
âDonât worry. While Iâm here, Iâm all yours. I owe you a lot for taking me in and offering me work.â Then she thought of something she needed to make clear. âI left Denver to go to California, and soon as I save up enough money, Iâll be moving on.â
âUnderstood.â
âThank you very much for the job.â
âAnd thank you for arriving right on time. Letâs take that tour.â
While Sylvia drove the small buckboard pulled by an old mare named Dilly, Eddy took in Virginia City. According to Sylvia, the initial silver strike in 1859 turned penniless miners into millionaires who built mansions, imported fancy furniture and smoked even fancier cigars. With all that money they also built churches, business establishments, and the International House hotel that Sylvia told her had one hundred rooms and an elevator. There were gaslights lining the streets and sewer lines beneath the city, thus making it more cosmopolitan than sheâd imagined. Many of the buildings were made of brick and had fancy glass windows. There were a large number
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