The Catholic times. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1951-current, 1954-05-14
Just Among Ourselves
Passing Comment Considered or Ineou.ia.r.'.

and copyrighted in 1896 which bears the once
familiar title of Mental Arithmetic The book has the
we'll maued appearance of elementary class
manual that has served its young owner for
semester so, that has been carried in crowded
book-bag that has served coaster for dripping
glass, that has offered its flylesves as scratch
paper for signatures for doodlings for quick pencil
work on problems intended for purely mental Solu-
ton and for the verseforverse's-sske which de-
lights childhood.
Inscribed in young and rambling hand, not once
somewhat vague threat
i pity the river
pity the brook,
/ pity the person
Who steals this book.
II is hard to imagine that the youth who pencilled
this warning really felt any of its grim implications.
For a textbook in mental arithmetic is scarcely
thing which youngster would carry in his heart of
hearts, in 1896.
At all events the precious volume got away from
him. not. one hopes, before he had exhausted its
possibilities, reaped It's harvest and slowed away
the crop The little book lies here before us now the
sturdy survivor of the slings and of outrage
fortune which il has borne for fiftyeght years.
II is old fashioned book; its like is seldom
today; the discipline of mental arithmetic is not
currently in favor with most educators.
But. like many oldfashioned things. this book
is enghtening in ways that its author and its
nov surely well on il the sixties-never dreamed
Of II gives for instance some startling glimpses of
comparative economies; that is, il affords
ton of what has happened 10 the American dollar
since 1896
Consider this little problem "What is the July
milk.bil for the Jones family which uses three
quarts day. if milk sells for cents pint?" Be
fore q modern mind can come TO mathematical grips
with this question il must recover from the shock of
the thought OF scent milk To be sure, in 1896 the
milk-traffie was much simpler thing than il is to-
day. 1t was matter of almost direct transaction be
tween COW and consumer with the daryman the
only middle-man. II involved no devious process of
sterilizing. refrgerating h0mogeni2ngi bottlng
delivering by motor truck; it implied no hidden tar
ifs such overhead, maintenance and union dues
But all things considered, milk at cents quart
is still an astonishing thing TO people in 1854
The little book on mental arithmetic is full of
pure mathematics, and is also rich in examples of
those industrious fellows of whom Stephen Leacock
wrote feelingy,-thai is to say, the persons
called A. b. and C. These three characters tire
less operators buying houses on shares selling their
proper percentages of flocks and droves and herds
digging wells and bitches without end using up
grindstones. OF the three unquestionably
most active; amazingly busy and competent cove
was A. In many problems he works alone but us
ually cooperates is what we may call part
time assistant These three gentlemen are employed
in many specific transaction, but most often they
engaged in the mysterious business of doing "a
piece of work" The author OF these od-time books
was not going to get involved with unions, or be
come enangled in jurisdlctional disputes The sharp
est unioncommittee the craftiest walking dele
gate could cause no turmoil over mere piece of
work"
"A, b. and can do piece of work in days;
can do IL alone in days, and in II days; in
what time can alone do it," Poor old C. lie plods
along at the tail OF the procession. But he gets
there He is slow but very sure. The admirable A
slap through the piece of work in days, and 1T
takes c "a days TO do the same work. Somehow we
feel that does better job
Every now and then {, whose income is mani
festly an uncertain thing, steps out on his own but
he never has any real success &C offered his watch
for sale at gain of 25fe, but finding purchaser
al the amount asked (he wouldn't; not O. fell in
price $50, thereby losing 25eo Required the cost of
the watch Required too the explanation OF the poor
deal offered by to Mrs. c.
"A r, and built house for S4l0." Before you
go off in a faint, please remember that this amount
represents, not lumber and nails but labor only.
Now you may faint Think of putting up house.
of S4i0. The thing is inconeeivable What a place
this must have been this America, in 1885,
But, on the other hand, The owner of factory
pays his employees S68 day" That is all OF
them together not just two or three operators THE
owner of factory pays his employees SOS a day
giving the boys $50 the women 81 and the men
Sl50 How many there of each. if there are
twice many women boys. and twice many
women AT that rate of pay il isn't worth
while figuring the thing out
"A build wall in days, and B in days
in what time can they build it working together?'
That is, provided they don't call in c. II old get
into it, they'll never get the wall up.
Apparently costs were low in 1896: SO were rate
Of pay. Maybe there is not much real difference be
between 1895 and 1854 We'd ask A, B, and c, bu
these lads aren't working any more.