Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1916-04-20

food. In any case, 1t Is the ola time
process Of robbing Peter to pay Paul,
but don't make Peter the savings ac-
count.
When a family moves to another
city, or even to different neighbor'
hood it often requires a readjustment
of the family budget. One family, IN.
Guiding a man and his wife and three
children, were living in small west
ern city on two hundred dollars a
month. The cost of living was not as
high as in cities of larger size, ana
their budget was divided into 171a per
cent for rent; rs per cent for food;
10 per cent for operating expenses;
II per cent for clothes, and 3Oh per
cent for education. amusement ana
savings.
Later, they moved to New YORK
where they altered their standard Oh
living to rs per cent for rent; 10 per
cent operating expenses, the same 20
per cent for food, which left only 80
per cent for clothes, education, lux
uries and savings. 1t soon appeared
that the majority of the 50 per cent
was going for amusement and clothes,
there being little left for education,
and practically nothing to be saved
So the woman of the household again
went over the family budget and de-
cided to decrease the expenditure for
clothes. The third adjustment provid'
ed rs per cent for rent; ID per cent
operating expenses; 35 per cent FOR
food and clothes, and rs per cent for
education, luxuries and saving.
.Carfare is an item which has caused
a. good deal Of discussion among
household economists. 1t could hard
w be included in the educational col
umn, nor yet under amusement or op-
Grating expenses. 1t has finally been
attached to the rent, since upon the
location of your house depends the
amount of carfare spent. Ten cents
day for six days a week for fifty-two
weeks a year is $312O year to be
added to the rent of your house. Most
families rarely spend less than a DOL
lar week for carfare. Hence, hf you
nav s25 a month or $500 year for
house in the suburbs, with an addition
al expenditure of $50 for carfare, it
would be just So cheaper than house
nearer YOUR place of business at $50
a month, requiring no carfare. Thus
in renting house great attention
should be given to the matter OF loca-
ton.
Out of the s2O,255,555 families in this
country, some five million own their
own homes, Pennsylvania having the
greatest number, Illinois next and the
District of Columbia last OF all. be-
sides these there Is a large number OF
persons engaged in buying their own
homes. which are mortgaged or lncuHl-
bered., In this case, the interest," on
the mortgage, the taxes and the
amount expended on repairs are count
Cd AZ the rent, plus the annual inter-
est on the money used In the building
Of the house if put into some other
investment.
Some household economists main
tain that the latter should not be in
cluded in the rent, since 1t represents
savings and not income; that If you
bought chair for fifteen dollars you
would not add to the cost price or the
chair what the fifteen dollars would
bring you if put out at interest.
So it is now the turn Of the Ameri-
can family to figure out the why's ana
wherefores of petty finance and adopt
the household budget. The thrifty
housewives of Europe have long kept
account of every single penny expend-
ed in the upkeep of their homes, so
that Europe has been crowded with
savings banks and consequently with
capital. A nation is no stronger finan-
cially than it's people. If the French
people had not understood the value of
thrift, France could never have calmly
handed over her billion dollar war in
demnity in cold cash at the end Of the
Franco.P russian war You are help.
ing your country prepare against war
nv nrona ring m save