24 BULLETIN 1466, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 
$56.90 in the New England States to $68.70 in the Southern States 
and to $93.30 in the North Central States. It should be noted that 
these costs are averages for all families in each section and there- 
fore do not represent the actual cost of use of the car (for household 
purposes) since not all the families reported use of the cars. Of the 
317 families of New England, 167, or 52.7 per cent, reported the 
ownership and use of an automobile. For the 167 families owning 
and using cars the expenditures amounted to $108 per family. Of 
the 1,130 Southern families, 611, or 54.1 per cent, reported the use 
of automobiles, for which families the expenditures for the car 
amounted to $127. Of the 1,439 families of the North Central States, 
1,126, or 78.2 per cent, were using automobiles for household pur- 
poses. For these 1,126 families the costs of the car attributable to 
household use averaged $119. 
Another noteworthy point brought out in Table 4 is the small 
average expenditure for the use of horse and buggy for household 
purposes, $8.70 per family. This average varies widely for the three 
sections. Less than one-sixth of all families reported the use of horse 
and buggy. Of the 458 7 families reporting expenditures for this 
purpose 50 were from New England States, 332 were from Southern 
States, and 76 were from the North Central States. 
Southern families had the highest average expenditures paid for 
household labor employed, $16.80 per family, the average expendi- 
tures for this purpose for all States amounting to $12.40 per family. 
Similarly, southern families had the highest expenditure for laundry 
sent out, $9.50 per family. This is only slightly higher than for 
New England families, but it is more than twice as high as for 
families of the North Central States, $3.70 per family. 
Additional comparisons of these expenditures for the other prin- 
cipal kinds of operation goods may be made from Table 4. 
HEALTH 
Expenditures for the maintenance of health averaged $61.60 per 
family, 3.8 per cent of the value of all goods used. The average 
expenditure for this group of goods is highest with the North Central 
States. More than a tenth of the 2,886 families, 303 in number, 
reported no expenditures for the maintenance of health. Of these 
families, 33 were in the New England States, 142 were in the 
Southern States, and 128 were in the North Central States. 
The average expenditure for the maintenance of health gives no 
indication of the extent of serious or minor illness prevalent in the 
homes of the study. Many families reported no expenditures for 
medicines or doctors', dentists', or nurses' services. On the other 
hand several families reported extremely heavy expenditures for 
major operations or for extended care and attention from a doctor 
or a nurse at home or in a hospital. 
ADVANCEMENT GOODS 
The average value of goods for advancement purposes amounts to 
$104.80 per family and constitutes 6.6 per cent of the value of all 
family living. Advancement goods average slightly more for the 
7 No use of horse and buggy for family living purposes was reported for Iowa localities 
and only one case of use was reported for the Ohio locality. This item may have been 
overlooked in some instances in these two States, which were among the first studies made. 
