Perry 055. The Woman and her Overworked Maidservants

L'Estrange: A Woman and her Maids.
It was the Way of a Good Housewifely Old Woman, to call up her Maids every Morning just at the Cock-Crowing. The Wenches were loth to rise so soon, and so they laid their Heads together, and kill'd the Poor Cock: For, say they, if it were not for his waking our Dame, she would not wake us: But when the Good Woman's Clock was gone, she'd mistake the Hour many times, and call em up at Midnight: So that instead of mending the Matter, they found themselves in a worse Condition now than before.
One Error makes way for another. First, we complain of small things: Then we shift, and instead of mending the Matter, we find it worse, 'till it comes at last to the Tinker's Work of Stopping one Hole, and making Ten.

VERNON JONES

THE MISTRESS AND HER SERVANTS

A Widow, thrifty and industrious, had two servants, whom she kept pretty hard at work. They were not allowed to lie long abed in the mornings, but the old lady had them up and doing as soon as the cock crew. They disliked intensely having to get up at such an hour, especially in winter-time: and they thought that if it were not for the cock waking up their Mistress so horribly early, they could sleep longer. So they caught it and wrung its neck. But they weren't prepared for the consequences. For what happened was that their Mistress, not hearing the cock crow as usual, waked them up earlier than ever, and set them to work in the middle of the night.

Milo Winter (not illustrated)... same as Stickeny!

THE WIDOW AND HER LITTLE MAIDS

A WIDOW who had great reputation as a housekeeper, because she was so fond of cleaning, was waited upon by two little Maids.

She herself was wakened before dawn by the crowing of the cock, and would rise at once and call her Maids.

The Maids, who had no taste for such excessive tidiness, and who were kept weary by such constant labor, held a spite against the poor cock for rousing their mistress so early.

"If it were not for him," they said, "the mistress would sleep till the sun is well up. Let us kill the cock, since there is no other way to stop his loud crowing."

But the mistress, no longer hearing the cock, was unable to tell the time, and so often woke her Maids in the middle of the night and set them to work.