The star. (Reynoldsville, Pa.) 1892-1946, 1906-08-29

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might be said to be extreme cases.
AS a rule the amount of nourishment
these families received varied with the
amount of money spent. A fall in food
expenditure was usually accompanied
first, by cutting down of fruits and We
getables mot including %potatoes), and
then, If necessary, by a cut in me gro
Gerry and meat purchases.
The greater part of the earnings of
all of the families studied was ex-
pended for something to eat. Their
bill of fare was not a restricted one.
1t included bakers bread, buns and
rolls, beefsteak, sausage, chicken,
canned lobster, canned salmon, stewed
beef, roast beef, corned beef, fish, pork
chops, steaks %(sirloin and round), veal,
fresh fruit, including apples, bananas,
canteloupes, grapes, lemons, melons,
oranges, peaches, pears, prunes, rails
ms and watermelons. Other items of
table fare were milk, butter, cheese,
coffee, eggs, sugar, tea, vinegar, and
hominy. This is not a very limited
dietary, and 1t Is certainly richer and
more comprehensive than the same
economic class in Europe is able to
afford.
The item of next importance to food
is rent, but with this essential differ
ence: There is a minimum of expense
in buying food below which physical
requirements do not permit one to go,
whereas, when securing shelter, there
seems to be no such limit. The de-
scent in housing conditions continues
long after food conditions have
reached their lowest point. Rent pay
ments are very elastic in comparison
with food expenditures. An examina-
ton of the description of the dwellings
occupied by the 10 families used in
this inquiry gives a fairly correct no.
ton of housing conditions; for almost
every one of those described Is
matched by tens, sometimes by huh
dreds, of houses around it. In none
of the houses was there a bathtub, and
in but one was there running water.
Where water had to be brought a long
distance the quantity supplied was in
adequate for simple cleanliness. Gas
was supplied to but one house. Most
OF the houses were so small as to pre-
clude he idea of privacy, and some
were crowded beyond the point Of de-
cency. The rents paid varied from "a
to s14 a month.
Clothing is the next item of expense
in point of Importance, and the differ.
ence in outlay for wearing apparel
shown in the budgets was found more
pronounced than the variations in
rent. One item in the clothing budgets
that appears with great regularity was
shoes. Here is an expense that cannot
always be postponed. A hat or a skirt
or a coat may be worn for a long
time and repaired almost indefinitely,
but shoes soon wear out and must be
replaced, and cash is required for the
replacement. -Four of the families
studied bought clothing on the install
ment plan. All of these families found
it well-nigh impossible to get more
than two or three dollars ahead for
any purpose, and il a garment costing
iioiS liuu w pS pouSlll d Il uouuii1
secured on the instalment plan. Where
working clothes are worn on Sunday
as well as on week days, it was found
that church going and visiting were
considered out Of the question. In
several instances the children were
not permitted to go to school because
they were not properly clad.
Fuel, furniture and insurance make
up the other fixed items of expense.
The list Of miscellaneous expenses is
chiefly remarkable for what 1t doesn't
contain. Two of the 10 families re-
ceive a penny newspaper with some
ir%regularly, but in most of these fam
lilies such a thing as a newspaper or
magazine is seldom seen. AS for
amusements, not one of the budgets
shows the expenditure of a cent.
What little money is spent on c~arfare
is for riding to and from the place of
work or to and from market. This
meagreness is a true index of poverty.
Medicine and the doctors bill are the
two big items in the miscellaneous
list, but nom of the budgets give a
full account of the experiences of the
families in times of sickness. These
expenses are principally met in a hap
hazard fashion. If there is money for
medicine, well and good; If not, either
the doctor must provide it or it must
be procured from a charitable dispen-
sary. And what is true of medicine
is also true Of medical services.
An inquiry into conditions of Dor
rowing among the poor shows that
they are skinned numerically by the
so-called loan companies" luxurious
rates of interest are charged, running |