Dear Faldage: with your clue, I searched for "Jane Austen Still-room Maid" and found this in a review of the book:
"But even more shocking is the revelation gleaned from the surgeon’s examination: the deceased is in fact a woman – a maidservant clad in the garb of her master, Mr. Charles Danforth of Penfolds Hall. Tess Arnold had been in charge of the stillroom at Penfolds for many years and was known as an adept preserver of produce and compounder of home remedies – until , it seems she was dismissed for a scandalous indiscretion." I wonder what the etymology of "still" is in this case.