Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1916-10-20


home, and dividing the departments
of the paper in such a way as to re-
produce the various departments of
well ordered New England household.
At last the dream became reality and
the first number of The Household was
published in January, 1868, with 10
paid-up subscriptions. The first number
was printed in the Office of the Spring
field Republican under the direction of
Clark w. Bryan, afterward the founder
and publisher of Good Housekeeping.
The new venture met with encourage
ment at the start, but both of the pro-
prietors were hampered by limited finan-
cial means, and as expenses continued
to outrun receipts the growth Of the pa
per was retarded. For months its pub
LEGATION was almost race against
destiny with the seeming impossibility
to carry it forward to success. At the
end of the fifth month it was evident
that something must be done speedily
to bring more money to the concern
with which to meet the expenses of pub
LEGATION. In this extremity Mr.. Mill
ken proposed buying Mr.. Crowell' s in
terest, but the latter, not desiring to
sell, met the proposition with the coun-
ter offer to buy. As neither had any
money all offers took the nature of bar
ter, which finally ended in an extremely
original proposition even for 'hard up"
newspaper men. 1t was proposed that
the seller was to have for payment of
his interest i'll the concern the right to
obtain a certain number of yearly sub
scriptions, he taking all the income
from them while the buyer was to sup
ply the paper to the subscriber, this be-
ing the consideration given for his
partner s interest in the property.
Bidding for the property on this
basis, which was first begun by Mr..
Milliken, was brisk, he offering at the
outset to give Mr.. Crowell 10000 sub
scriptions. Mr.. Crowell responded with
still higher number and finally in
creased it to $4,000. Here competitive
bidding ceased, but Mr.. Milliken claimed
as they had given agents a commission
of 25 per cent, he as an agent in the
future should have the same terms. This
was finally acceded to, and Mr.. Crowell
gave 1888 13 yearly subscriptions for
his partner s half interest in The House
hold.
This sudden turn of the affairs of
the partnership interest brought the
financial problem straight home to Mr..
Crowell, who had hitherto borne only
half the weight of the load. The ques-
tion of ways and means became to him
at once pressing, and here was where
the old homestead, the paternal acres,
came in to play an important part. An
old friend had been left behind at Hop
kinton, to whom was made an appeal for
money and to which he responded, TAX
ing as security mortgage upon the
farm. This brought the means of meet
ing the expense of the next issue and
another friend assisted to bring out the
second under Mr.. Crowell s ownership.
began to come in more
rapidly and the work went on, but the
outgo continued to exceed the income,
and the prospect ahead did not look par
ticularly encouraging. Still, there was
hope while there was life. Mr.. Crow
ell had worked for $15 week, while
filling the position of agricultural editor
of the Farmer and Record-slept in the
office, cooked his own meals, or lived on
bread and milk at a total expense OF
$40 a month, and had put $50 month
into the bank, that he might pay off the
mortgage on the old farm.
Wnen UHc VI Hc IlOuoc-
hold came solely upon him, he continued
the same line of economy in living and
held on, though his fingers must have
been sore from the tight grasp, and his
spirits clouded with the ever pressing
necessity for money to pay the bills in
Cured, while striving to increase his
circulation and carry the paper to a
solid footing. 1t was not until he had
entered upon the fifth year of publica-
ton, that he began to experience finan-
cial relief, and then the receipts ap-
preached the amount of the expenses.
The Household was begun with 16
pages and year later four more were
added, the publisher having offered to
make such an enlargement when the
circulation should have reached $4,000,
az the same time promising to make a
still further enlargement when the cir
culation reached 10000. At the end of
three years that number of subscribers
having been obtained the second en-
largement was made and "a pages were
printed. At later date The Household
was enlarged to 80 pages, making it at
that time one of the largest monthlies
issued from an American press. For a
number of years while The Household
was under Mr.. Crowell' s ownership its
circulation was 10000 copies This was
one of the big circulations of among
American publications at that time
From Brattleboro Mr.. Crowell's paper
went into homes in every state in the
Union and almost to the remotest
bounds of civilization in foreign coun
tries. Thousands and thousands OF
housewives found in its well-filled pages
each month much that instructed then
in their daily duties, and much that
cheered and frightened the darker side
of domestic affairs.
The paper was printed in Springfield
Mass, several year, but eventually ;
Mass, several years, but eventually {
in this town. The business and edi
torial rooms of The Household were il
the quarters now occupied by the Yer
mont Loan & Trust company and by E
Crosby & Co.'s private office, the com
posing room and other rooms were i'll TIL
present quarters of s. A. Daniels AM
DR.. Wheeler, and the press room wa
in the basement of Harmony building.
The Household was a pioneer in I
particular field, and for several year
was the only journal published in thi
country devoted entirely to domesti