Willmar tribune., 1899-02-15
HOUSEHOLD ACCOUNTS

II Properly Kept, They Are a Source
of Ever-Increasinx satisfac-
tion to the Housekeeper.
1t minute account of the annual in-
come, the times of payment and each
item of expense were kept in writing,
housekeeper would acquire so ac-
curate knowledge of what the es-
tablishment requires as to enable her to
keep happy medium between extrava-
gance and meanness. Perhaps few
branches of feminine education are
more useful than a readiness at fig
ures, yet many women who attained
proficiency in this line let it go to waste
and live in haphazard sort of fashion,
with little idea of the actual cost of
living. They know that the money
goes, and do not trouble to discover
where, and if the expenditure was wise.
Accounts in every household should
be regularly kept, not an omission of
the smallest article being permitted.
They should be balanced at least every
month; at the end of every week is bet
ter. Some methodical women fix out
stated sums to be appropriated for diff
ferent purposes-household, clothes,
education of children and pin money,
for this last sum is necessary to cover
the many little incidentals, like car
fare, the purchase of a magazine, chari-
ty contributions or club dues What
ever the appropriation, it is never ex-
ceeded. Want of arrangement means
loss of time, which can never be re-
gained. Order and punctuality are
great economists of time, and cannot
be too highly estimated. cannot give
unvarying rules, as circumstances deal
largely with every woman's life, and
the size of ones income is an i'm
portant factor. But can give general
rules which will be of advantage to all,
says writer in the Philadelphia Times
1t is very necessary for the mistress
of household to be informed of the
prices and goodness of all articles in
common use, and of the best places and
times to purchase. She should know
the comparative prices of provisions
that she may be able to substitute those
that are most reasonable when they
will answer as well as more costly ones.
This applies to cases of small families
which are often encum bered with un-
necessary pieces of meat under the i'm
preston that it is cheaper to buy that
way. Now, there is no cheapness when
the family wearies of that kind of meat
long before it is consumed, is there? A
smaller portion at higher price would
be better, because when it ceased to be
appreciated it became waste.
do not intend this little talk to be
taken by housekeepers alone, but by
women wherever they may be. The un.
married woman who earns every dollar
which keeps her body and soul in
proper condition has just as much tc
do with the keeping of accounts as he1
married sister. I would not believe
that until three years ago, when 1 was
persuaded to try it for six months. It
was distasteful at first, this jotting down
every little four cents I spent fol-
thread, but did it because promised
to make faithful trial of the plan. In
much less time than the allotted six
months I became devoted to my account
book, and I must confess that it has
been instrumental in keeping my ex
penditures down to proper limits. II
has been of other value to me, for it
enabled me to gauge the price of ar.
ticles by what I had paid in the past.
know almost to a dollar what it costs
to support me for year at my present
rate of living, and just where I could
cut down my expenses if found such
a course necessary.
Another bit of advice I have to offer.
Take a receipt or written paper OF
some kind to show that money has been
spent every time you make purchase.
The splendid system of our big stores
provides such a paper with each pur-
chase, but there are many other places
where careless women get nothing fol
the money they pay. They settle house
rent bills and pay room rent without
taking a receipt, and by great good luck
have no trouble. Occasionally a case
comes up where receipt would save
them lots of trouble and money, and
then they become more careful. AND
again, keep those receipts until the
law says that the bills could not be col.
lected by dishonest or careless persons
They can be put away in big envelopes
marked with the proper year, and will
really take up but little room. If an oc.
casion comes up when one of those
bits of paper was needed to prove ones
honesty, all the trouble of keeping the
lot would be more than made up to you.
Such occasions are more common than
you may think.-St. Louis Globe-Demo-
crat.
Old-Fash1oned Bed Furnishing.
The top of the bed was usually COW
cred with material like the valance. II
the posts were high and. there was an
ordinary strip from post to post the
material was fastened to the sides anG
drawn to general rosette in the cen
ter. Then there were short curtains
festooned to the posts; some were quite
short. and others drawn down and