A Tip Proves Politeness Pays

Taking pride in one’s position means that the goal is to always provide excellent service, not to merely gain tips. The tip is a bonus and should not be expected. Especially tips like the tip in this story… — A tip of $100.00 U.S. dollars in 1895 is equivalent in purchasing power to about $3,964.52 today. Almost $4000.00, reflecting an average annual inflation rate of 2.85%.

POLITENESS PAYS

Henry Cary, one of the very best of the many good servants employed by the Pennsylvania railroad, died about two years ago, lamented and respected by every officer of the road whom he came in contact with. Carey was one of those ideal servants who was never around except when he was wanted, and then he was sure to be in evidence. He had that happy faculty of knowing just what was the right thing to do at the right moment, and if he was not wanted you would think the earth had swallowed him up, and in the moment he was wanted he appeared to descend from the clouds. 

A little incident in his life is worth relating before he got into the employ of the railroad company. At that time he was porter of one of the Pullman cars, and one day just as they were leaving the station in Chicago he was going through the cars, when one of the passengers asked him for some slight information. He said be didn't know, but would find out and bring back the answer, which he did in a few minutes. The passenger then asked him to be good enough to hand him a drink of water. He said “certainly” in a most pelite way and brought him the glass of water. 

The passenger was quite taken with the kindly face of Carey, and said to him that he was not very well and might get worse on the journey and asked him if he wouldn’t be good enough to pay him some little attention on the way. Carey then told him that that was not his car, that his car was in front and that he could give him but very little attention there. He then asked if he might not be removed to the front car. Carey said that he would have to consult the conductor, which he did. The conductor agreed to the transfer and he was moved into Carey’s car. 

For the first eight or ten hours the man was rather under the weather, but Carey gave him every attention in his power, and from that on he rather improved, but Carey still kept on his kind attention, bringing him everything he thought he might like, and doing everything that he wanted. When he arrived in Philadelphia, Carey took his valise out to the platform. When the passenger, watching his opportunity, saw the porter of the other car that he had left come up to Carey, the passenger put his hand in his vest pocket, took out a hundred dollar note and banded it to Carey saying: “I want to thank you for your attention to me on the journey here, and I also want to reward you for your kindness to me. Good day, I hope you may have a prosperous time.” To say that the porter whose car the passenger had left dropped dead, is to modestly depict his feelings.- Philadelphia Times, 1895

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