The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1906-08-11
CLUB LIFE ECONOMIES.

A good many country visitors are
disappointed when they learn the
sober truth that New York has no
clubs composed exclusively of mil
lionaires. 1t is harder still to make
country folks believe that hundreds
of men join the so called clubs in
large part from motives of economy.
There are scarcely three clubs in
the city that do not include consid-
erable number of poor men in their
membership. The average income
of the whole membership of the ten
best known clubs in the city is pro-
badly nearer $40, 900 than $50, 900
year, and almost every one of these
clubs includes some scores of men
with incomes we'll below $4,000
and good many with incomes we'll
below $1,000.
There is real democracy of New
York club life. Youths in their
early twenties and Just beginning
their careers on very moderate Sala-
ries frequent truly palatial club
houses, breakfast i'll rooms such as
few princes ever use and lounge be-
fore freplaces that are to be matched
only in the most splendid buildings
of Europe.
The poor mans credit at the club
is as good as the rich mans, and
both are impartially posted when
they neglect to pay their bills in
good season. There are good
many instances also in which the
monthly bills of the poor man are
higher than those of his rich fellow
member, for the frequenters of clubs
are apt to be the poorer rather than
the richer members.
Many a man of small means re-
CARDS his membership in a first rate
club in the light of profitable in
vestment. Such man, if confirm
ed bachelor, has probably lived for
twenty years within half a block of
the club, paying a few hundred
year for small bedroom and finding
all his luxuries in the apartments Of
the clubhouse.
Without being in the least mean
he makes of the club a money saving
institution for himself. It's comforta-
BILE 1ounging rooms save him annual
ly from $500 to 1000 year in
rent, according to the location in
which he has his modest lodgings.
After that he saves fair percentage
on everything he eats and drinks at
the club.
His simple breakfast costs him
perhaps 10 per cent. less than it
would cost at any restaurant he
would be likely to frequent, and the
same is true of his dinners. If he
takes three-fourths of his meals at
the club he saves annually about
500 in tips.
If he drinks wine at dinner he
saves from 10 to rs per cent. upon
every bottle. If he permits himself
the luxury of a cab he saves hand
s3Fes.s ss3pFess percentage re IS RSy vSSBEadsgiHg It
sibility of row with the cabby over
the amount of the fare. Many a
man writes all his letters of a social
character and some of a business
character at the club, and thus saves
from SIS to $40 a year in station
cry.
He need buy no books, nor need
he subscribe to a library, for there is
the club library free for his use.
He never need buy periodical or
even a newspaper save when he
travels, for all that he reads are free
ly supplied by the club. And the
enjoyment of all these things imposes
upon him no considerable expen-
diture for extravagant luxuries. He
is sure, especially in the college
clubs, to find plenty of men with
like modest incomes and simple tastes
as himself, and he may sit for
hours with cronies over the cake
table without spending money that
he cannot afford and without giving
offense to the servants of the house
committee.
Most club members probably do
not keep a debit and credit account
with the club, but the man of mod
est means and moderate habits would
find the examination of such an ac-
count matter of great satisfaction.
Such man, paying $3.50 as an en-
trance fee and SIS year in dues, is
likely to find himself at the end of
twenty years a long way ahead of
the game. The club in twenty years
has cost him rather less than $4,000
for entrance fees, dues and contribu-
tions to the Christmas box, and his
savings by reason of the club have
been from $40, 900 to SIC, 900.