Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1891-05-11
FUTURE HOUSEKEEPING.
COOPERATION THAT IS PRAcTI-
CABLE AND REASONABLE.

Roswell risher's Experiment In Montreal
Eudares saccessfaiiy--Hs Has = Large
Apartment House In which There IL
Only One Kitchen.
Mr.. Roswell Fisher. Of Montreal. whose
article on co operassse housekeeping In The
Nineteenth Century attracted general at
tention, gave an address on that theme nj
the Worklngman's school on Fifty-fourth
street.
Mr.. Fisher told his audience that some
two OF three years ago, after nearly twenty
years study of the question OF cooperative
housekeeping. he found himself In posi-.
ton TO carry out tho conclusions at which
he had arrived ON scale not 80 large A. he
desired, but sufficiently large TO admit the
essential feature OF professional manage
mcnt. lie accordingly built. on the ptin.
cip,i residential street Of Montreal, an
apartment house containing twenty apart
ments, each with eight or ten rooms, and
forming a compl-t. dwelling but for tho
omission Of appliances for cooking.
In th. basement, In addition TO the fur.
naeex for heating the house. water for
baths, etc, aud other conyeuicnccs OF q
good apartment house, Mr.. Fisher fur.
ni-hed complete club kitchen. = small
private suite for the manager, and y club
laundry, with q dining room. The Kitchen
j. In direct connection with every pantry
by electric bells aud speaking tubes. and
thcrr ART two dumb waters ut convenient
points. each serving into ten pantries. two
on each floor.
In addition 10 the usual kitchen plant
tlcru 10 n butler's tray for each tenant,
aud sufficient covered tins and white ware
IN which to send the meals to the indi-
vidual service rooms.
now MEALS ARR sERvED.
In the leases. which are for Mt least year.
there l. n clause requiring each tenant TO
pay quarterly n uniform tar or kitchen
subscription, which assists IN covering Ger.
tain fixed charges Of the kitchen, such ~
the cost Of management, the interest on
and the depreciation Of the plant, fuel and
gas, leaving only the wages VI the kitchen
help. the cost Of the food, and calculated
profit Of about to 10 per cent. for eonlin.
gcuoies.
The service Of meals Is managed ~ fol
lows; kvery day simple hill OF fare for
breakfast, lunch aud dinncr. conforming
10 the usual home requirements Of the
class VI tenants In the house, with one or
two extras. Ia made out by the manager
for the succeeding day. aud IL delivered TO
each tenant at breakfast. Those dishes OF
meals which are not required arr scratched
out and tho bill returned 10 the manage.
ment with wants, complaints. suggestions
or remarks added.
The manager then Il enabled 10 arrange
for the marketing. and also TO make out
breakfast, lunch and dinner tables for the
cook. showing what each tenant requires,
Mt what hours and for how many persons,
Meals cancelled before the hour Tor cooking
arr allowed for. and all extra orders sent
down are carried out, 40 far a. possible.
All the bills Of fare arc filed. and Mt the
close Of the week the totals are presented
and the accounts are settled.
IL wa, stated that the tariff prices for
breakfast, lunch and dinner do not include
butter. crcam and sugar, which are
charged for absolutely a. ordered. Nor do
they Include tea, coffee. fruit and other
desserts, which tho kitchen does not sup.
ply at all. All extra dishes or meals not
shown on the hill ~ fare, but called for, arc
charged at cost price and 10 per cent. ex.
ira. Twenty.four hours' notice Is required
for large lunch or dinner parties.
ADVANTAGES or A cLun.
II will bc seen that by this plan Mr..
Fisher has been enabled to carry out his
purpose; that each tenant of his home
club Possesses - private anil Individual
dwelling In which he IL able to live In such
n manner and on such scale M his habits
aud tastes and means call for. and with
all the elasticity OF ordinary home life, free
from the publicity OF the club. hotel or
boarding house. and Ia at the same time
spared tho osaselcss worry and annoyance,
Of the private kitchen while enjoying u
much better cooking than Il possible "
the employers Of the ordinary cook.
The cost OF this system, including tbs
kitchen TAX. Is, In the case Of families Of
two or three. apprceiably less than ordln.
AIRY living on this same scale, while for
families Of four TO six IL Is about the same.
At the. opening 81 the house Mr.. Fisher
promised his tenants he would hand back
any profits Of the kitchen. II there were
any, and thu, make the kitchen u proat
sharing enterprise. This he did for the
double purpose Of showing the economy Of
the system and OF Inducing the tenants 10
aid this economy 10y facilitating 10 all ways
the cndeayors Of tho management TO cut
down waste.
SO many " the tenants, though Of the
better elias, showed themselves indifferent
TO thu difficulties of the management and
To the waste. both on their own part and
on that OF their servants. that Mr.. Fisher
gave notice that IN the future this profit
about per cent, will not be shared with
them, but will be held 10 meet the extra
trouble and expense Of management.
After ten months trial OF this system,
with all its initial difficulties, none Of the
tenants are leaving, aud ~ both the home
and the Kitchen arc satisfactory invest
ments, MI. Fisher considers that he has In.
trodnced successful though only lncom.
plote method OF meeting the domestic dit.
nculties Of economic Kitchen ser,ice.-Now
York Sun.
Primes Nupoleou'. si.t.r