Ethics for parsimonious customers

[David Boyce]

So, yesterday I took a phone call from Mrs B, daughter of widowed Lady M, 
"landed gentry" and owner of large country estate and manor open to the 
public.

Mrs B wants me to tune their piano as the room has been hired for a wedding 
reception.  Mrs B had been told by the pianist Mr I, that the piano needs 
tuning and Mr I recomends me. Mr. I is a noted Scottish musical figure, and, 
coincidentally, my former chemistry teacher.

Mrs B asks me on phone "how much will it be, because the bride is paying for 
the tuning".  When I come off the phone, I think, upon reflection, how mean! 
Presumably Mrs B and Lady M don't bother getting the piano tuned, and don't 
much care about it. I;ve never been there, and I suppose if they had a 
regular tuner, that's who they'd use.  I recall during the phone 
conversation, that a former work colleague of mine used to live in a house 
of the estate, and said once that Mrs B is notoriously parsimonious. 
Evidently she hasn't the generosity to include in the room hire, a tuned 
piano, but wants the bride to pay.

Now, my feeling is, why should Mrs B benefit?  My feeling is that only the 
bride should benefit from the tuning, since it's she who's paying, so I 
really ought to go along after the reception, and detune the piano!

Curiously, apropos the recent thread on corroded and swollen key leads, Mr. 
I's own piano, a good old German upright, has just that problem.  I showed 
him the effect, and suggested the off-white powdery substance adhering to 
the leads could be lead oxide, and upon retired chemistry-teacher 
consideration, he agreed!

I suppose Mrs B's arrangements with the bride who is hiring the room and the 
piano, are their business and not mine. But the meanness rather irks me!