Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1916-12-01
HIGH COST O FLIVING
MUST BE. REDUCED


CCoatinu-d From First Pas.eT
en- a saIary'" a1nf the stretcAina. powers
Of & SALARY hEve their Emftariors He
Was eassr and earnest in his efforts
for the little brood dependant upon
Rt1n but the Power Beyond had sunre-
how made the oversight OF hot hr-
eTeasfng HIS income with the mcreas-
ing cost Of living And SO the anxious
lines We're beginning to show and he
Ess glad of this chance to talk things
over. Carefully and rrinutely he ex-
planned the situation
The same sum has just gos to see
US through for q while at least even
III we count the pin feathers on the
q eagle before spending" was the final
word
Edtct Goes forth
So the eGict has gone forth TO the
army of wives of the great American
middle class All over the country
up the fight and put their shoulders
TO the wheel in earnest In the
parlance of the day, 'it is up to us
to beat the price raisers at their own
game Housewives Leagues boycott
ting specified goods for q specified
length of time are becoming a mat
ter of history hut only in certain
localities and under certain conditions
has much been accomplished Co.
operation is the cry of the day but
sity. 1t is an obvious fact that when
the money will not purchase the
regular amount then less must be
bought There is NOT q food short
age in America to-day in spite OF as
sertions to that effect. 1t is true that
Il great quantity is being shipped
abroad but in the far West the potato
crop was so immense that many We're
thrown into the rivers as the easiest
way of disposing of them.
Retail dealers dread above all
things surplus supply of perishable
goods left on their hands. Accord |
lngly, II the housewife buys in smaller |
quantities the retailer in self-defense |
orders less from the wholesaler who |
in turn will be obliged to make a drop |
in his prices and this hits the specula- |
tor who is cornering the market The |
present solution of the situation seems |
to be most careful and frugal buying |
on the part of the head of the culinary |
department..
The gist Of the matter may be found !
in conversation overheard In one of
our local markethouses the other |
day. Two dealers were discussing the |
price to be put upon certain goods. |
One named the sum.
''Oh, but come now, amt that too |
much to ask ?" the other expostulated. |
why not? The fool women will |
pay it, why not get it?"
How much longer do the Mrs. |
House Keepers OF Harrisburg intend |
to be placed in a position of such |
ridicule by the men who are literally |
cheating them?
Another Mouth to Feed
Once when a certain little lad was
told OF the arrival of q new baby |
brother to his next door neighbor he
looked wise and, for want of other
remark shook his head and said:
Another mouth to feedi"
Yet this was long before the era of
high prices and difficult living of 1916.
1t would be tragically true to-day to (
the average couple of small income.
Let me state clearly at the beginning |
that oil the receipts I shall give |
throughout this series of articles are
suited to the use of a family OF four,
the general average number in the
modern American household. All
measurements by either cup or spoon
are level, not rounded.
Use of Eggs
There are two essential food staples
the use OF which during the winter
to the frugal housewife, namely eggs
and butter Especially Is this true
just now with regard to the former
when the wholesale dealers nave
packed them by thousands IN cold
storage plants. One party in Chicago
is reported to have control Of 72,OO0,-
900 eggs and claims he will hold them
for 70 cents per dozen. The city
health authorities raided his ware
house recently and seized several mil
lion of them which were too far past
the bloom of youth. Unfortunately
Mrs. House Keeper, you and 1 have
not that privilege. It is hardly pos
sible to boycott so important an
article of diet entirely but 1t is both
possible and wise to curtail the use of
them. A table can be set plentifully
and we'll on one dozen eggs a week
including such delicacies as cake and
nayonnaise dressing as I shall prove
later.
Butter is the other item which
amounts almost to a luxury. A num-
Der of women are using substitutes
on their tables with the artificial
coloring and salt worked in. Per-
sonally do not approve of this be-
cause there are food values in good
dairy butter essential to the health
and, development of childhood. In
buying print butter in the paper car
tons 1t is cheaper to use the ne-pound
size than the half-pound. 1t cuts bet
ter and goes farther. If kept cold
there is no waste. Warm butter ad-
wrapped. But for the school recess
bite and the between meal spread a
cheaper and even more wholesome
thing is peanut butter. This can be
bought for from 14c to zoe per pound
in the open market and 10c l5c, and
sometimes strong oil of the nut it is
advisable to use a good grade for the
sake of young digestions.
Pound of Butter a Week
If used sensibly one pound of table
butter should last a small family for a
week unless there should happen TO be
a great deal of hot bread, waffles and
flannel cakes used. In that case
molasses or maple syrup is a great
aid.
With the cost of food stuffs stead
lily climbing, many people are of the
opinion that it is wisdom to buy in
large quantities, crates OF canned
goods. -four by the barrel, etc. Where
there are many to feed, this is true.
Where the family is small 1t certainly
is not. IT is human nature to be
liberal with a thing when we are
aware of large supply in reserve and
one. grows careless accordingly. I
have always found it advisable to keep
only one or two jars or cans of each
thing on my reserve shelf-then the
unexpected guest always finds me pre-
pared-but I order others only when
the first are about to be used. The
same rule applies to spices, sugar,
fiavoriups efc This makes for frugal