232 The Farmstead 



accounts on separate pages, as follows : gro- 

 ceries, meats, fuel, clothing, subscriptions and 

 charities, incidentals, etc. Copy each item from 

 the day-book into its proper account ; at the 

 end of a month or year, by adding up these sep- 

 arate accounts, the housewife can tell exactly 

 what proportion of the income has been spent 

 for each class. Mr. Lawes, the famous English 

 agriculturist, when traveling in America, was 

 able to quote accurately the cost of the various 

 items of expenditure in his own house. 



Economy is a relative, not an absolute thing. 

 Economy of money is often wastefulness of 

 life, yet extravagance, on the other hand, is a 

 serious cause of human degeneration. With the 

 exception of poor management, poor service is 

 probably the most wasteful factor of all in the 

 household, yet there are conditions in which 

 poor service is certainly less wasteful of the 

 family resources, than none at all. The end of 

 housekeeping is the health, comfort, and 

 serenity of the family. The two main factors 

 in producing this result are the family income 

 and the mother's strength and energy. Saving, 

 however desirable, is merely an incidental end. 

 The mother's intelligence, therefore, if she be 

 in command of her fair share of the income, 

 must be used to save not only money but her 

 own resources. The lack of nutritious, palatable 



