The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1898-12-17

Enquirer" 81 will tell you just how II
was. / tried to housekeep, as many OF
US do, with a bunch Of keys, a purse ana
money in bills.
IF / wasn't in hot water a good part OF
my timei 1t seemed to me there was
somebody either at the front door or the
back all day long, sending up little slips
to collect on one thing and another.
Every call sent me on a hunt for the
keys TO get ait my purse, and after l
found it nobody could change the house
money. ThenI got tired of the l~ocking-up
business and toted my purse about. That
purse was as slippery as an eel. 1t had a
fashion of getting away from me and
hiding under magazines and cushions, and
/ found myself wandering all day long
after it.
From reakfa till luncheon was the
trying time. 1t was, Please, marin, the
paper man wants thirty-three cents or
The ash man is here for his fifteen
cents, or The ice man is waiting for ice
money or some member of the family
had sent home a c.. o.. D..
mo man, woman or child trying to coli
lect a bill could ever make a cents
change. I used to wonder what trades
people thought of a housekeeper's pocket
pOOh, anyway ludl lLcy iuuol PlSlUiC II
stocked with dimes and quarters and PEN
MES.
eMeanwhile, the game of hide and seek
between myself and the purse went on,
not gleefully, l assure you. There was
nothing funny to me in the chase. I used
to lose my disposition early in the day
and not find it again until bed time.
Things are different now. Yes, des-
p~eration drove me into the garnet after a
little leather bag, out of date. but good
as new. hung it at my side. and at my
side I made up my mind 1t should stay SO
long as a bit of housekeeping remained to
be done AS soon as got my house al
lowanee l systematically went to work to
collect, as. grandmother used to call it,,
fiddlefs' change
With bag and change, I wondered if I
would be able 10 enjoy a little peace.
Bless your soul, child, / am another wona-
an The bag and the change has put flesh
Gu my bones. | was beginning to look a
fright, ! was so tormented.
Hundreds of useless steps are saved. 1
am growing as placid as a May morn.
When a call comes all have to do is to
put my hand into the bag at my side and
bring out the sum needed.
We housekeepers are p~estered to death
with small calls. They nag us many a
time into a spell of sickness. Why, one
day such as we women spend about a
house. wei regulated at that, would put
a strong man in a strait-jacket. He would
lose his mind"
Now suppose quoting what this house
keeper thinks will stir up in many minds
thoughts such as these.
no business to have bills.
Poor management.
A woman ought to put on her things and
so out in the morning and settle her mat
tiers for The day.
The cash system would avoid all such
worry.
AnS dozens Of criticisms as wen, though
many women viii gladly recognize in one
h~ousekeeper's woes a repetition of their
own.
No two households can be managed IN
exactly the same way. That would NOT
be possible. There are women who be-
heve in paying cash who cannot do so.
They never have a penny for h-ousekeep-
ing purposes.
Every call must be met at the end Of
the month, when husband, after a gruaa-
bic, hands over the money. Little bills
for laundry, for ice, for the morning
paper, must of necessity be either paid
weekly or monthly.
The weekly fund for housekeeping pur-
poses. with q cash system to back it,
will not Go away with these and many
other trihing bills. Their presentation is
a constant annoyance, ard yet they must
be met.
There are women who never do their
marketing without settling for every ar
ticle. They cannot chase up with all
their care outside obligations, but must
wait for them to be sent in.
Many times it is the greatest convent
ence to have a purchase sent home C.O.D.
1t would be a still greater convenience
if the man who delivers the package
could ever change a dollar bill. He
is always in an impoverished condition.
In looking at any question, a one-sided
view viii not do. There must be a gener-
Gus examination. H~ousekeepers should
undoubtedly sympathize with each other.
for no matter how felicitous the means,
the work of running the smallest home is
a task that might well abash the keenest
wits. the strongest physique and the
bravest heart.
Women who regard 1t as their chief
end in life to attract admiration will
1 SPCAio nuns CIV thC ioOhl15 Slooo Hiio
devote days in dress, not realizing that
one half this time is spent in cultivating
their minds and in acquiring the ability
to talk well would accomplish the same
purpose in a far greater degree" writes
Mrs. Moses P. Handy in the December
"Woman's Home Companion" when dis
cussing 'The Art of Conversation ~
tIn the first place. in order to talk agree
ably 1T is requisite to have something to
talk about. You cannot draw water
from a well where no water is, therefore
you must cultivate your mind through
reading and observation. Accustorn your
self to talk about what you see and read.
1t is a mistake not to talk to the people
of your own family; many a one has
grown tactiturn from considering it not
worth while to entertain the home folk.
Let the habit of story telling be cultivat-
ed; you cannot lack for auditors while
you have children among your acquaint-
ance. You will find that by so doing
your mental and 1ingual faculties will be
strengthened. Keep yourself in touch
with the questions of the day; to do this
give a few moments to the newspaper
every morning. Always find out whether
the person whom you are to entertain
49, nL L&& tsAk-AX -&1 --.-A,-