A historian and investigator examines household labor and domestic service through empirical study and historical reflection, presenting data gathered from surveys and census returns alongside statistical tables, footnotes, and bibliographies. The work analyzes why demand for capable household employees outstrips supply, tracing recurring explanations—industrial competition, geographic isolation, urban and rural conditions—and considering whether varied local complaints reflect common underlying causes. It defends a methodological approach that invites scholarly and popular contributions, reflects on the researcher’s motives and limitations, and urges more systematic, scientific inquiry into the economics and organization of household work.