Charles City Republican intelligencer. [volume] (Charles City, Iowa) 1861-1864, 1863-02-19
MoraI Calls.
" PAY AS YOU co.
by MRS. n. M'CoSAUGHY.

Wilson," said young man to bis
friend, "you and have about equal
salaries, and spend about equal
amounts in the course of the year
but you are always free and easy,
with plenty of money in your pocket,
and apparently not care on your
mind while / am always behind-hand,
and worried, and fretted, often with
not dollar in my pocket. | am not
extravagant, neither is my wife, yet,
for some reason, we never have the
least good of our money. 1t is all
due long before we get it. and am
mortified with duns when have moth
ing to pay. If you have any secret
by which yon manage to get along so
well on eight hundred dollars, l do
wish you would impart it,"
"Well, Mr.. Lewis, have a secret
which enables me to live comfortably,
and never be troubled by dun from
January to December. 1t is very
simple, unvarying rule | have laid
down Pay as you go.' Ii I!don't |
run in debt nobody can dun me- Live
on the right side of your income, and
you always have plenty and no ahxi-
ETY. but live on the wrong side, aud,
as you say, one is always behind-hand
and always worried. The habit of
paying as you 60 keeps you ont of
many extravagances you would 9TH
erwise fall into and think nothing of
But, then, must confess that should
hardly have kept to the rule as faith
fully, If it had not been for Mary. 1t
was lesson she learned from her faith
er, and urged upon me when we first
began housekeeping. Let US live on
potatoes and SALT she used to say,
before We run up bills We began
humbly enough, and lived pretty plain
for the first quarter, though Mary
could get the best meal out of next
to nothing | ever saw. But when we
once got quarters salary before
hand, we could live as comfortably as
we desired. The experience was good
for us, as it had taught MS to econo-
mize more than we should if we had
begun by running in debt. Every
man Ideal with looks on me as cash
customer, and am sure to be accom-
modated, if it is possible. ! do not
doubt but it makes ten per cent diff
ference in the prices pay for articles,
and eighty dollars year is quite a
consideration to you and me. just
try my rule, Lewis, and see if it does
not work like charm.n
"But how canI get started! II
will take nearly everything can COM
mand to pay off the bills this year,
and shall have nothing to buy with
until obtain my next quarters sala-
ry. We cannot just lie off the next
three months and stop eating. you
know ~
at will take close economy for
a while, that is true, and you must
make every dollar go great ways.
But would try it even if | sold two
or three articles Of parlor furniture to
do it. 1t is a matter of life long i'm
portance to you and your three boys
after you. You can afford to make
even great sacrifices for such per-
manent benefit to you all. just win
over your wife to the project, and
am not bit afraid but that you will
succeed. Women are thrice as good
managers as we are in regard to the
particulars, and it is in the little
things you will need to retrench in or.
der to get started. 1t is these little
drops that waste away the whole
reservoir. Get Fanny to come and
talk the matter over with my Mary,
and if they put their heads together
to plan out campaign. the field will
be won, you may depend"
Aud bidding his friend good-eve-
ming, John Wilson ran up the steps of
his pleasant home, while two bright
faces disappeared from the window,
and the little watchers were at the
door ready to catch papa" the mo-
ment he entered the hall. The good,
wholesome supper was on the table
in FIVE minutes time and gentle, wo
manly Oracle helped her little brothe,
and sister, while mother poured out
the fragrant tea. There were pleas
ant little every day matters to be talk
ed over by mother and children, and
rehearsed to father, all which he lis
tened to, and commented on with as
much interest as If he had not beer