Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1879-05-02
How TO support Family Of -Four on
TMentN.nNe Cent? a DAN.


Mary was not very strong woman and she
had four to support GU twenty-five cents a
day aud by se'f-denial and arithmetic she did
it. Her rent was City cents a week, and there
was fuel to buy and oil and food. This is the
way she did it she appropriated seven cents
each day for rent, six for fuel. two for oil.
and ten for food. Now the oil never cost
quite the daily two cents for Sundays. and in
summer she used none 50 out OF the oil
money came the lacking cent for rent. and
whatever else was saved out of il went for
wick, chimney, or something of that kind.
She arranged with a coal merchant to bring
him thirty-,ix cents each Saturday evening:
her coal was safe in her cellar, the men mixed
it with coke for her, and in summer she used
20 little that her money accumulate IN his
hands and he put fuel III her cellar for it
when fuel was cheapest, and so her winter
supply was sufficient as she doled il out As
she had fire and conveniences for washing
and ironing, poor neighbor did her washing
and Mary's together in Mays cellar every
week and ironed for both tub of suds was
left, and at night Mary secured her room and
cleaned her windows and furniture Her
place was always clean, so were her children;
consequently they were healthy Early every
morning she sent out the boy and girl with
bag and basket TO pick up bits of wood, pa
per and pasteboard for kindling. In summer
sometimes the supply was good enough TO
boil the water and so save coal The little
children returned early from their expeditions
the boy washed and combed and hurried to a
grocer's bakers and butchers in the vi
cinity, to see if there were any errands or any
sidewalk cleaning for him. Regularly he
went each morning. and if there was work he
got for it his breakfast or a stale loaf The
food thus given for his work was tho sole
Sabbath supply, for on Sunday Mary was earn
ing nothing. Saturday mornings the boy
cleaned steps or areas for couple OF houses
in an adjacent street, getting for his work
soapfat of which his prudent mother made
her soap, and in quantity sufficient to enable
her to trade some to the grocer's wife for the
lye she used. On Saturdays, also, both the
boy and girl extended their fuel hunt and Of
fered their services at more stores and stalls
for errands, and the pennies or WON clothing
earned in this way supplied the family ward
robe, though it cost the mother many late
evenings work in patching and turning to
make it do
Every day the boy and girl went to the pub
lie, school and encouraged by their mother,
worked hard as those who knew schooling
was boon and meant something TO them.
On Sabbaths, clean, if shabby and thinly clad
they all four took the most obscure scat in
mission church. They never begged nor OBJ
truded their troubles on people, and | doubt
If they were known or ever got any help be-
yond perhaps n trife now and then from the
| school teacher"
Still | cannot comprehend how ten cents a
day fed four, even with an occasional meal to
| the boy and stale loaf"
Nor did l until got Mary's bill of fare
| and terreted out her method of making two
ends meet. She always traded at the same
store, decent shops where she was known
and carrying some basin or pitcher of her
own for her small purchases she saved the
shop keepers paper and string, and so they
| did not begrudge serving her in Titles She
| asked the butcher to save her bones and meat
| trimmings which she could buy by the two or
| three cents WORTH more TO flavor her food
than TO be food. As she regularly bought at
| the same place, she often received little gifts
or accommodations which eked out her
| store"
| Miss Help searched in her desk drew out a
| slip of paper and read this poor woman :
method of feeding four people for ten cents q
| day:
Monday one-hRlf pound barley, three
| cents half a pound corn meal two cents ;
half pound dried beans, three cents scrap
meat, two cents. The corn meal made into
mush was their breakfast; the beans and half
the scrap meat to flavor them made dinner ;
half the barley boiled with little scrap meat
] q
very wholesome, nourishing, digestble dishes,
capable of going long way in supporting e1-
istence. Tuesday salt pork, three cents +;
| molasses three cents salt, two cents. The
barley left from the day before was with mo-
| lasses their breakfast few Of the beans had
also been retained, and boiled with the pork
and some meal was dinner and corn meal
and little molasses made their supper. The
| salt would suffice them for a week and the
moasses was not all used that day. Wednes-
| day three cents for potatoes unless potatoes
were dear, and if so she bought instead the
cheapest vegetables TO be had two cents for
bones or scraps TO boil with the vegetables ;
half pound of split peas and two cents for
| corn meal. Thursday three cents for pork
| three cents for beans, three cents for barley
and one cent for pepper Friday four cents
| for corn meal, three cents for mOAsses,
three cents for peas. Saturday three
cents for beans, four cents for butchers
scraps aud three cents for potatoes, cab
| bage, or some other vegetable. Sunday
had TO take its chance on a loaf earned by the
boy at the bakers or a little food saved out of
the week, or some gift to the boy for running
the grocers errands. If by any chance Mary
saved a cent out of her days food, it, with
every cent earned by the children, went into
little box as a saving for clothes or the inev-
table shoes for winter. Their living seemed
a daily miracle it was the miracle of perse-
verance, sound judgment and careful calcula-
ton. Mary took all the sleep which she
could sparing herself sewing at night, and SO
saved fuel and lights and her own eyes. Her
food was regularly taken. cooked M well as