The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-05-31

Mrs. litter, the visiting lady," was on inquiry bent.
 She wanted to know why food and clothing and fuel is so high, and how long this abominable state of affairs is going to last.
 SO-
 Mrs. Giggle. who was called upon to explain "opened up.
 Yes, ma 'am," said that unctious indi- vidual who knows it all'' about every thing, ''I have a special anti-fat remedy fer reducing the high cost of living. The expensive regime is going to look like the shadow of an impoverished shad when get through with it. I shall reduce ex- penses by rolling them down the stairs and not giving them a chance to climb up again. Talk about calesthenics, diet . ing, athletics, dancing and right think iEg, my dear woman, the high cost of liv- ing is going to suffer them all. It wont have the face to step it's foot under my roof when I get through with it'
 Talk Talk Iide chatter" said Mrs litter skeptically, but go bravely on. sweet one. You cant scare me. I won't run away. Proceedr'
 Good sighed Mrs. Giggle with far away sort of smile. The frightful waste of things in this mixed old world is at the bottom of it all That thought came swiftly to my mind one day when ob-
 
 beans"
 :'Venus?" echoed Mrs litter.
 H"Yes, Venus. reiterated Mrs Giggle. "Venus was the fourth maid counting back from the last. She reigned for three tragic days in the early part of Febru- ary. Venus was a fine cook. believe me. but she was wasteful One day l was saying, when Benus was throwing away some perfectly good baked beans the feeting feet of the feeting thought trirped through my mind that perhaps sometime I might need those baked beans. It came over me suddenly that ought to economze. I had been hearing from Mir. Giggle about hard times and the high cost of living until was sick of it all. and so the thought that perhaps I might right it came unflinchingly to my feeble mind, and I said to myself: I will look the grocery bill straight in the face and demand an explanation. And I did .
 'If your grocery bill is like mine I'd like to see it cringe, even with the stare you can give,' said Mrs litter quickly T know it wouldn't It is too large and fat and juicy. It bursts through the very sides of the envelopes and laughs in my face. I hand it to MT, litter and as he runs down the long column of figures his eyes get bigger and bigger and he looks more like an ogre than ever cringe and shrivel like the little worms you see on the sidewalks in the noon day summer sun. Tell me, did you ever have a grocery bill to affect you that way?"
 ''1t is not that alone" said Mrs Gig gle. The gas bill is equally as inn polite, I've given 1t black eye, as well as the grocery bill. I have also thrust the sword of economy through the milk ticket! I have sashed and fought and"
 'If you don't stop talking that way to me-, interrupted Mrs. Titter "Iil order taxi and drive all over town and tell every woman I meet that you have taken poor Mir Giggles hat off his head and forced him to wear his last years Panama, which has practically saute-d his brain and"-
 Peace, dear Mrs. Titter." Mrs Giggle retorted gently. This is time for levity and fun. The great problem of human welfare is before the house! We are here to solve the high cost of liv- ing. I shudder when I think how much of my dear husbands earnings have been going for the past years into the garbage can"