The Red Cloud chief., 1879-06-05
CHEAP LIVING.


md - hid Our 20 suppcrs % twenty
I've cents . day, and by eif 1enia, aad
she did = Hss rent was
10 censs o week. and tAerv 30 fuel 20
,uy and oil and food. This 10 The way
he did L.: she appropriated : csnS
ssch dsy fur rent, 6 Tor fuel 2 for ol.
md 10 for food. Now the oil eve
,ost quite the 3 cents lor Sondsys nad
summer she used none, % ous Ut The
oil money came the lseking sent for
rent, and whatsoever else wAs ssved out
u II wen, for wick, . chimney, or
Of that kied. she asrsnred
With . coal merchant 10 bring him 81
cents every Saturday evening; her coal
MAS sale in her cellar. the mes mixed
q with coke for her. and In snmmer she
used so little that her msney aocumn-
lated in his hands and be put fuel in
her cellar for IL whsn fuel was cheapest,
and 80 her winter supply was suficicn,
she doled j; out. As she hsd \ hrc
and eonveniences for washing and iron
q poor woman did her wash
ing and Mary's together In Aary's
every wcsk and ironed for
both; . tub OF suds MAS left, and NJ
nigh, Mary secured her room and
her windows and furniture.
Her place Was always clean, 80 were
her children; consequently they were
healthy. Early every morning she sen,
out the boy and girl with . baske, to
pick up bits Of wood, paper and paste
board Tor kindling. In summer somc-
times the supply was good enorgh 10
boil the water and so save coal. The
little children returned early from their
the boy washed and combed
and hurried to a grocer's, bakers aud
Butchers in the vicinity. to see II there
were any errands or any sidewalk clean.
ing for him. Regularly he went each
morning, and II there Vas work he got
for il his breakfast or q penny or . stale
loaf. The food thus given him for his
work was the sole Sabbath supply. for on
Sunday Mary was earning nothing. Sat
urday mornings the boy cleaned steps
or areas for a couple Of houses in an
adjacent street, getting for his work
soap fat, Of which hi prudent mother
made her soap, and in quantity sufh-
cient to enable her 20 trade some 10 the
grocer's wife for the lye she used. ia
Saturday, also, both the boy and girl
extended their fuel hunt and offered
their service at more stores and stalls
for errands, and the pennies or worn
clothing earned in this way supplied the
family wardrobe, though it cost the
mother many a late evenings work in
patching and turning to make it do.
every day the boy aud girl went 10
the public school, and, encouraged by
their mother, worked hard, rs those
who knew schooling was a boon and
meant something TO them. On Sab
baths, clean. il shabby and thinly clad,
they all four took the most obscure seat
in a mission church. They never
begged nor obtruded their troubles on
people, and l doubt II they were known
or ever got any help beyond, perhaps,
q trifie now and then from the school
teacher.
"Still, I can not comprehend how
10 cents q day fed four, even with an
occasional meal TO the boy and Il stale
loaf.
"Nor did I until I got Mary's bill Of
fare and ferreted out her method OF
making two ends meet. She always
traded at the game shops, 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 2 or 3 cents worth, more TO
flavor her food than 70 be food. As
she regularly bought at the same place.
she often received little gifts or accom-
modations which eked out her store"
Miss Help searched in her desk, drew
out q slip Of paper, and read this poor
woman's method of feeding four peo-
pie for 10 cents q day:
MONDAY: One-half pound barley,
8 cents; half q pound corn-meal, 2
cents; half pound dried beans, 3 cents;
scrap meat, 2 cents. The corn-meal
made into mush was their breakfast (;
the beans, and half the scrap meat ~
flavor them, made dinner; half the bar
ley, boiled with little scrap meat, made
q supper. You see here were three very
wholesome, nourishing, digestible dish
es, capable Of going q long way in sup
porting existence. Tuesday: salt pork,
3 cents; molasses, 5 cents; salt 2 cents;
half q pound OF corn.meal, 2 cents. The
barley left from the day before was,
with molasses, their breakfast: a few Of
the beans had also been retained, and
boiled with the pork and some mea'
was q dinner, and corn-meal and q little
molasses made their supper. The salt
would suffice them fer . week, aud the
moiasses was not all used that day.
Wednesday: 5 cents for potatoes, un-
less potatoes were dear, and il 50 chs
bought instead the cheapest vegetables
to be had; 2 cents for bones or scraps
to boil with the vegetables; half a
pound Of split peas, and 2 cents for
corn-meal. Thnrsdsy: 8 cents for pork,
5 cents for beans, 8 cents for barley ard
I { cent for pepper. Friday: 4 cents for
corn-meal, 5 cents for molasses, 5 cents
for peas. Saturday: 8 cents for beans,
8 cents for bufcher's-scraps, and 8 cents
for potatoes, cabbage, or some other
vegetable. Sunday had 70 take its
chance on a loaf earned by The
boy at the bakers, or little
food saved out Of the wtek, or
some gift TO the boy for running the
grocer's brands. II by any chance
Mary saved o cent out Of her days food,
it with every cent earned BY the chill
dren went into . little box IS q saving
for clothes or the inevitable shoes for
winter. Their living seemed . daily
miracle; it was the miracle OF perse-
verance, sound judgment and careful
calculation. 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 regu-
larry taken, cooked IS we'll as possible,
and always Of . kind TO bring the best
return ip health and strength They
worked In this way for FIVE years, the