The San Francisco call., 1897-10-10

I at night he gifts his dinner. He don't GO
| out very much evenin's, but reads til
| bout 8 and goes 10 bed. Desc rooms cost
him 50 month"
As 1 looked about the rooms 1 saw a
i couple of suits of good clothes and several
! pairs of shoes. Altogether this young
man was very comfortably fixed, and all
on $45 a month; and most likely he was
saving some OF this. Then l calcul ated to
see if he could get :he same amount OF
| comfort in any other way for the same
money. and found that he couldn't begin
to. Whereat l suppose he must be con-
sidered to be wise young man.
But the next bachelors rooms that l
went into was in the strangest contrast.
| UP under the caves of an old building on
Montgomery and Jackson streets 1 found
him among several others in the same
building. In way the room was COM
! Portable, for the sun shone in and made it
warm and gave an air of life. ii not cheer
J fulness, to the dreary-looking surround
ings. There was not a stick of what
! might be called furniture in this room.
| The bed was a mattress spread on the
floor, large dry-goods box answered. for
a table and a small one for a washstand.
| A couple of utter-tubs answered for
chairs.
| When 1 entered the room in response to
his Enter" he was seated on one of the
butter-tubs broiling piece of meat over a
small fire burning in the CRATE. For a
Droiler he used piece of wire.
'Oh," he said. in tones of surprise, II
thought you were the young fellow next
door. Sit down"
took the proffered tub and while he
continued his broiling asked him why he
was patching it.
Because 1 would starve if tried to
live any other way" was his answer.
''Is this way so cheap?" l asked.
Indeed it is" be answered. Not one
! quarter OF what it would cost me if tried
| - board or live in restaurants. In fact
couldn't afford to live that way as things
are. l tried 10 for long time. First
got into debt; then my credit gave out
and | often went without food and walked
the streets at night for want of place to
sleep"
'Brt why are things so bad with your
[ asked, as noticed that he was BRIGHT
! looking fellow and very cheerful in spite OF
his hard lot.
|
sometimes 1 wonder if they will ever
change. They were not always this way,
though. l am an electrician by trade and
| five years ago was making $130 a month.
The business is Knocked out though now.
First my wages were cut down little by
little until l only drew $50. Then l was
discharged because the company wanted
| to save money.
''At this time / was not dead broke so
managed TO get along for several months
until l got job looking after dynamo.
That paid me $50 month. 1t didn't last
long though. The company concluded
that the engineer could do my work anG !
was discharged.
'Then my troubles began and l scarcely
know how l lived through them until
| struck this place. Now l am compare
| lively comfortable, even if am awfully
poor. How much do you think it costs me
a month to live here?"
About $25, l answered, purposely put.
| ting the estimate low."
twenty-five dollars, nothing" he said
laughing. 81 just wish 1 did have $25 8
month. Why SIT, 1 live here for Sc q
month and one month 1 did live for S.
Perhaps you don't believe me-"
'Of course l believe you, but 1 would
like to know how you do it"
"Well," he answered, lin the first place
this room only costs Inc 50 a month.
Grub costs what L can pay. See this piece
of meat. Well, it and that raw piece over
there cost me i've cents and will last me
three day.. Corn meal, -four and pota-
toes are cheap. So is rice and cotton-seed ed
oil. Vegetables and fruit | do without un-
less l can pick them up on the wharves
That is where l get all my wood and coal
l only have coffee once in while and g
pound of the 15-cent kind will last me a
month. Altogether, l don't think my
grub costs me over 81. The other 50 of my
So spend for clothes, soap and things tc
COOK in"
"How do you get the money you dc
have?" l asked.
'Oh, in different ways. 1 do odd jobs
for the electric company and take any
thing l can get. Some months l make
SIS or $50, but other months l don't make