21. The Following Table of the Average Yearly Wages…

1851 | Isabella Beeton | I The Mistress | No Comments

paid to domestics, with the various members of the household placed in the order in which they are usually ranked, will serve as a guide to regulate the expenditure of an establishment:—

	When not found in Livery.	When found in Livery.
The House Steward	From £10 to £80	—
The Valet	” 25 to 50	From £20 to £30
The Butler	” 25 to 50	—
The Cook	” 20 to 40	—
The Gardener	” 20 to 40	—
The Footman	” 20 to 40	” 15 to 25
The Under Butler	” 15 to 30	” 15 to 25
The Coachman	—	” 20 to 35
The Groom	” 15 to 30	” 12 to 20

	When no extra allowance is made for tea, sugar and beer	When extra allowance is made for tea, sugar and beer
The Housekeeper	From £20 to £15
The Lady’s-maid	” 12 to 25
The Head Nurse
The Cook
The Upper Housemaid
The Upper Laundry-maid
The Maid-of-all-work
The Under Housemaid
The Still-room Maid
The Nursemaid
The Under Laundry-maid
The Kitchen-maid
The Scullery-maid

These quotations of wages are those usually given in or near the metropolis; but, of course, there are many circumstances connected with locality, and also having reference to the long service on the one hand, or the inexperience on the other, of domestics, which may render the wages still higher or lower than those named above. All the domestics mentioned in the above table would enter into the establishment of a wealthy nobleman. The number of servants, of course, would become smaller in proportion to the lesser size of the establishment; and we may here enumerate a scale of servants suited to various incomes, commencing with–

About £1,000 a year–A cook, upper housemaid, nursemaid, under housemaid, and a man servant.
About £750 a year–A cook, housemaid, nursemaid, and footboy.
About £500 a year–A cook, housemaid, and nursemaid.
About £300 a year–A maid-of-all-work and nursemaid.
About £200 or £150 a year–A maid-of-all-work (and girl occasionally).