and then came the bathroom followed by the kitchen. Next to the lounge was the dining room followed by a large scullery. The back yard was enclosed by corrugated iron fencing with a washing line and a small storage shed. The furniture in the house was all about the same age as the house – heavy wooden tables and chairs with ball-and-claw feet in the dining room, large overstuffed chairs and a settee in the lounge and a wooden double bed in the main bedroom. The bathroom contained an old free-standing enamel tub and two basins with mirrors attached to the wall. In the kitchen, a magnificent iron and brass coal stove with a black chimney running up through the ceiling stood in one corner. A more modern electric stove stood beside it. A large white fridge and a chest freezer stood against one wall. A white marble shelf with varnished wooden cupboards below it ran along the opposite wall. Despite its age the little house had a comfortable homely quaintness about it. “I’m going to love staying here.” Julia said. “We need cutlery, crockery and linen and food. Let’s make up a list of all the things that we need. But where are we going to buy them and with what?” “Mister Moore said that we can open an account at the concession store near the black miner’s quarters.” Bogdan said. “Concession store?” Julia asked. “Yes. It’s a shop on the mine premises that keeps just about everything.” Bogdan said. “Food, bicycles, furniture, radios, cutlery, crockery – you name it, they’ve got it. The owner of the store has to bid for the right to use the building and sell his goods. That’s why it’s called a ‘concession’ store. Anyway, let’s get the list drawn up so that we can buy what we need and start living properly. I’ve got a feeling that we're going to do very well here.” "What about a domestic servant?" Julia asked. "After all, most white households in South Africa have a domestic maid to do the washing and ironing, clean the house and sometimes even do the cooking of meals." "Yes." Bogdan said. "From what I've heard most of the domestic maids up here on the Reef don't have permission to live and work here so they are prepared to work for very low wages. They're also very honest and reliable and don't cause any trouble. They know that their employers can very easily have them sent back to the homelands where there's no work if they cause trouble. Apparently a lot of them do indulge in petty theft though, stealing small amounts of sugar, tea, coffee and that sort of thing but they very seldom steal anything of value like jewellery or money. Not having a "pass" for this area makes them very vulnerable and most homeowners take advantage of this." "How do we find one?" Julia asked. "I don't think we'll have to find one." Bogdan said. "As soon as the word spreads that we are new in the area the women will come to us looking for work." "Can we choose one together?" Julia asked. "I wouldn't know which one to choose." "From what I've heard there are certain things that we need to take into account when choosing a domestic." Bogdan said. "Obviously, they must know how to do the washing and ironing and keep the house clean. Then they should not have permission to live and work here. That's very important. As long as they know that we can have them sent back to the homelands if they give us any trouble they'll work hard. And finally, they must be clean and have a good knowledge of what cleanliness and neatness is. As they'll be spending a lot of time in our house and possibly even doing some cooking for us this is very important. We must also make sure they know how to work the machines like the vacuum cleaner, the washing machine and the stove properly." "If they show up here what should I tell them?" Julia asked. "Tell them to come back at five o'clock in the afternoon." Bogdan said. "I'll come home straight from work and we can interview them together." The following day, while Julia was