The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1891-04-01

Cost OF Living In the french Capital.
Necessaries That Como High, and In
structivs Amusements at Small Price.
Cooperative Living.
Fuel and food are exceedingly high in
Paris. Think of paying SOU apiece for
small sticks of wood-no, even more; one
gets about twenty-five small sticks for 1.50
francs, or about 30 of our cents.
I burn wood-that is my one extraya-
gance. have a small open fireplace, and
there consume my few meager sticks
every day. Coal is little cheaper.
Just now the teakettle is singing in the
fireplace. have little wire frame that
place over the Goals so I can set the tea
kettle on, and we often make our tea in
this manner.
WHAT SOME THINGS COST.
It is often said that "Paris is a place
where Injuries are cheap, but the necessa-
ries very dear" For instance -four is
from 6 to 10 cents a pound-thas is, 80 to
80 confines in French money. and it is a
very poor quality for 80 confines. 1t is a
problem I can hardly understand, for
bread. all made, is only 90 and 25 confines
pound, and for 25 confines one gets good
that very few people bake anything in the
way of bread, cake or pastry at home, al
ways going to bakeries and patisserie for
them. Meat is also very dear. The COM
monest kind OF beefsteak here is 80 of our
cents per pound, mutton is % and 30 cents,
veal still higher. Milk is reasonable, be-
ing s cents a quart or litre. Vegetables
are very reasonable during the summer.
Now as to the Injuries of Paris, one can
go to the grand opera house and hear a
magnificent opera for 2 and 8 francs,
40 and 90 cents. Every Sunday after
noon are given the most excellent orches-
trail concerts of finest classical music. And
one can go for LIS francs, or 25 cents of our
money. And these cheap seats are not
filled with rowdies, but with poor music or
art students, professors, ETC., that flock to
Paris every winter for its great educational
advantages.
There is great sense of justice displayed
at these concerts-frSt come first served
and no crowding. There is never any
pushing and crowding in a French crowd;
it is always quiet, good natured and patti
ent, and justice reigns supreme
There are two entrances to the building.
The front entrance for boxes, reserved and
high priced seats Then on the side is the
entrance for three ieme and four ieme am
as they are called. Before
this door the people stand in the order they
come, two or three abreast, until some
times the line extends for block. Then
the gate is opened and just so many are al
lowed inside at one time to purchase tickets
and go on.
Then the Odeon, the oldest theater of
Paris, has its classical nights for students
and Fridays one can get seats for
fifty confines, ten of our cents. Every
thing seems open for people who wish to
learn. There are free lectures on art, his
tory and science all of the time, and all
foreigners are welcome to attend. France
is very generous.
IN BACHELORS HALL
would like to tell you of our little fam
lily here.
There are four of us in the apartment,
and five girls have been coming into their
dinners, thus making table of eight or
nine every night. 1 have little French
cuisine (kitchen), with charcoal fires-I
really have learned to love charcoal fire,
it is SO pure and clean, and so primitive
| have to blow it UP every morning with
photo of the Grange" IL Is very pictur- |
esque Perhaps l can make sketch. |
The top is covered with porcelain tiles, |
blue and white. Then there are four little |
square holes with CRATES in the bottom for |
the fires. We lay several bits Of charcoal /.
IN one OF the holes, put on few "buches," |
light with match, and when the |
'buches" have burned down to a coal, |
blow with the bellows and, VOLTA! the fire !
is made; and it is most beautiful for |
toasting bread or broiling steak; but alas. |
Tor pies and cakes there is no oven.
We roast meat in an iron pot. / have !
to roast potatoes over the Goals, |
and by means of "four de compagne," |
which l hunted out in an old shop, l am |
able to bake beans. Boston baked beansl |
This -four de compagne" consists of |
piece of sheet iron convex on the upper |
side and concave on the under side: it has |
a handle, and around the upper side is a |
rim which keeps from falling off the glow
ng Goals one heaps on top. This arrange |
nent is put over the top of the beans, then |
with slow fire underneath the result is |
quite beyond expectation.
Our table was too small for all, so pro-
cured an old packing box cover. This |
by couple of boxes at one end,
and rested the other on the table, so my /
able is of most original shape, oblong |
and round; but it is a very merry one, and |
The girls all tell their experiences of stu
lilo, etc.
Knowing how some of the girls have to
i've over here in the cheap restaurants, it
was my intention to give home TO sew
eral, and give them good, wholesome din
aers, as near like American cooking as |
possible. think there's great field here
,or such an enterprise. l have had many
applications that | have had to refuse be-
cause had no more room. l really had
40 idea ii would be so much appreciated
Helen N. Haskell in Kaweah Common
wealth.
To Clean a Water Tank.
I have a water tank which it seemed inn