The Washington herald., 1914-09-28
.GOLLY, HERE'S
EATS FOR zoe.
Half Fried Chicken, Potatoes.
Tomatoes. and All the
FKings.
UNCLE SAM A GOOD HOST
Nearly 5000 Employees in Engraving
and Printing Office Cooperate
in Plant and Buying.

Director Ralph. in solving the high cost
| Of living for the 400 employees OF the
Bureau Of Engraving and Printing, has
arranged 1t SO that these people get
the best things in the market at the
lowest possible cost. Twenty cents q
meal Is the average cost to each eater
| Mr.. Ralph Is Of the belief that the same
| system he has installed at the bureau
can be instituted In the big cities In the
event Of crisis, and there are many ex-
perts who back his views.
Instead OF the employees of the bureau
bringing their lunch, Mr.. Ralph installed
q lunch room, which is comparatively
owned by those who dine there.
EmpIoyes Contributed.
The 400 employees of the bureau were
told Of the new scheme before II was
| installed, So that II was through their
was brought about. The men each put
up 81 to start their lunch room The
women were taxed 80 cents, all who could
AFFORD it. And they merely loaned the
money. In two months time, when the
| system has been six months old, this
money viii be refunded.
With the S2,5OO subscribed in this man.
ner Director Ralph set about installing.
on the top floor OF the fine new Bureau
room. He went to New York and pur-
chased the dishes. Then he selected
good head cook, a first-class steward, a
man who knew how to buy In the open
market. Director Ralph employed sixty
oher men to take care of the hungry.
Any person connected with the bureau
] can have q first-class meal for % cents;
or II the diner feels extravagant, Is cents
may be expended.
nrasanf ha nrfcaa
| is said, than they will be. A cup of
coffee nov costs cents. Eventually
this win be brought down to cents.
But coffee, milk and tea are minor de-
tails. The main meal Is the thing. Here
is a sample menu:
Some Sample Menus.
sliced tomatoes and corn, bread and but
Corn beef and cabbage. mashed pota-
| toes, beets, bread and butter and des-
...................-......D cents
The menu is changed every day. Once
week the diners are sure of getting
| chicken, The main meal never exceeds
70 cents, and in short time this price
will be cut to Is cents.
Every morning the buyer for the
Bureau goes over to market and makes
his purchases for the day. And he buys
enough to feed the AGO. He pays spot
| cash There are no credit accounts run
in the Bureau Lunch. The buyer pays,
and the diner pays the buyer
Thursday last the employees had chick
en-. Each plate had on II half a fried
spring chicken. To do that more than
1000 chickens were purchased. Buying
such lot at once took q fall out OF the
price.
Mr.. Ralph believes that wherever two
or three thousand mouths are to be fed
the same principles can be applied, with
great saving to the individual family,
for example. II the whole outfit could
go over to the municipal lunch room and
dine. This does not mean that the lunch
room would be owned by the city, but
by the people themselves. That is, each
family would put in a certain amount to
get 1t started and then, by buying in
bulk, save those great amounts lost
when the family must do its own Sep
arate buying and cooking.
As soon as the experts get everything
figured out they are going to issue
pamphlets and tell the people Of the
United States just how 1t can be done