The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1906-12-29
HOW TO LIVE WELL ON A SMALL
INCOME.
Many Wastefui Expenditures Incurred
That Could Easily Be Done Away
With-Practice Small
Economies.
sY MARGARET e. sANcsTER.

y
meaning of the adjective small as ap- |
piled to an income.
have known a couple who starred
in life with what their friends thought
flying colors. The man had bust
ness berth with salary OF $S.O0o
year. The mans wife went to house
| keeping with him In beautiful mousse
furnished completely from ROOF TO
basement by her liberal father. Her
mother agreed to give her all ner
! clothes just as when she had peen
girl at home. At the end OF year
these two people came to their re-
spective parents, and with tears ana
protestations declared that they
could not live In town on the meager
| pittance of the husbands Salary.
Either they must have twice as much
1 money or else they must emigrate to
some cheap country place. Parents
proving memorable, the establishment
In town was broken up and messieur
and madame betook themselves TO
rural environment. What became OF
them l never learned, or whether they
discovered Utopia in cheap village
II such a village there be under the
blue canopy that stretches over our
heads.
Extravagant people can run through
immense sums without much trouble
II is only necessary to want every
thing one sees, buy everything one
! wants. take no care of anything, 90
| nothing ones self and be wastefui and
improyident generally, to achieve Drill
liant success in this direction.
All over this country there are PEG.
ple who have solved the problem OF
} living comfortably on incomes that
. range from $500 or $500 to $4,000 q
!, year.
r The first thing to be thought OF Is
shelter. A place to protect one from
2 the weather and to provide ones ram
lily with the outside shell OF tna'
sweet Intangible thing we call home
Is the initial requisite. The home be
| ing selected, its furnishing comes
+ next: this may Be simple or elabor
ate. costly or inexpensive. 1t may b
t and often is, fully as artistic and fuii,
t as refined and beautiful when Its cos
!. has been trifiing as when large sums
have been absorbed in the item OF up
i holstery, of chairs, tables. wall pape
, and decorations.
6 If it be practicable to build and owl
ones home, it is In the long run al
e economical procedure, as in a lev
years rent eats up in actual cash
3 sufficient amount to buy and who'll
pay for a comfortable home. 1t Is no
o an unwise thing to have mortgag
{. on the home to begin with, II there
enough forethought and self denia
e to make payments and reduce 1t al
le nually, until the house is altogethe
5, ones own.
A great deal of wasteful expenditur
% Is incurred by those who have the to
10 prevalent American habit Of freQuen
" changing their residences. A
d times this tendency almost indicate
CT a morbid and diseased social restless
se ness. People move apparently only
Ar try another house on another stree
IT when there is not the least advantae
Al gained by the change and considerabl
90 money and strength are lost In tn
needless removal.
~ People who make study OF 1t an
who have very small incomes {
which to draw, have assured me TIL
ia they can live best by purchaser
re household supplies in very sma
N. quantity. In Paris. where frugality
90 reduced to its lowest terms. the hous
Is holder buys q tiny pat OF butter.
"a single chop or single egg at nee
"a, In America q great deal Is throw
NJ away for the reason that too mut
:. was originally bought A hous
=, keeper who tided her family over
particularly difhcult crisis in its ,
fairs, told me that she knew precise
how many potatoes to cook for fal
lily of four. how many spoonsful
coffee should be used in week, Al
- how many Jumps of sugar. 1t mu
have been rather a strain to calcula
l.s so closely as she did, but her husba
and children had enough to eat a
.as made q good appearance when tn
ioo went respectively to business and
~ school, and they got over thu
~ troubles and swept triumphantly Z
ward into financial ease. A family
the neighborhood with three tim
their income, bnt none Of their mi
agement, were always on the rags
m edge of distress and were at last q
out by the sheriff.
- Fuel is always expensive and IL
- one feature that resists the care
ved manager. In winter we cannot free
not and in most parts Of this country
=, have plenty Of cold weather. 1t Is
not provoking nature Of fire to burn f1el
srs II ON q hot day and to smolder