Читать книгу The Real Life Downton Abbey - Jacky Hyams - Страница 31

While certainly a continuation of normal servant duties, without any real break in the non-stop, round-the-clock nature of their allotted role, travel gives a lady’s maid, butler or valet the opportunity to broaden their horizons. The toffs are often on the move, travelling to other parts of the country for shooting parties, visiting their other homes (if they own several properties) and, of course, travelling abroad, sometimes within Europe (usually France or Italy), sometimes across the Atlantic to the US but also within the British Empire: a sea voyage to Africa, India or Australia is not unknown. And where the families also own town houses, the ‘uppers’ (meaning the servants with higher status) chance to socialise (on their half day off) is much greater in places like London, with its many entertainments, than it is in a more remote country area.

When the family do go away, it is customary to take just a few servants with them, leaving the rest of the staff in the country house. At such times, some families might give the remaining staff in the house cash as payment, in lieu of providing their meals. Other toffs stop providing any food at all while they’re away – and just pay their servants’ board wages.