Household Economy. 



By Mrs, Meltil Dewey, Albany, N. Y. 



Records of the Pension Bureau at Washington show that there 

 are five widows and seven daughters of soldiers of the American 

 revolution now receiving pensions from the government. So near 

 are we to the days when spinning, weaving, tailoring, dressmak- 

 ing, shoemaking, brewing and many other industries were carried 

 on in each individual family. To-day the great department store of 

 our large cities may furnish almost every requirement of the 

 home outside of cooked foods. Notwithstanding all the improve- 

 ments which machinery and centralization of labor have brought, 

 the conditions of our modern life grow more complex yearly. The 

 waste in household methods, the duplication of work in many 

 homes, the long hours of service, and the incompetence of help 

 still confront us. The domestic problem touches every home, 

 from the woman who does her own work to the fashionable so- 

 ciety leader who entertains in some form almost daily. What 

 practical steps can be taken to meet the present need? One busy 

 woman with a large house where the latch string is always out 

 has found her cares much simplified by dividing the regular work 

 between two good helpers, and employing a laundress for two 

 days each week, a seamstress or mender for one or more days as 

 needed, a man for furnace, care of walks, piazzas, grounds, wash- 

 ing windows, dressing floors, cleaning brass, beating rugs, etc., 

 and house cleaners as needed. The difficulty is of course in find- 

 ing competent help. 



In all our large cities there is a large class of women desiring 

 employment who are unwilling to go out to service under present 

 conditions. Could they have special training, live at home, and 



