political independence, which surely is the first condition of a living democracy. From the first there has never been a doubt about the main purpose of unionism toward democracy. The document. ary evidence of this is complete; the union wants the referendum, the initiative, and primaries so revised that the people can act at the determining points of their political destiny.

Nothing will now permanently hinder the extension of these democratic agencies. The revolt is now on. It is on in Oregon, Missouri, Wisconsin, Ohio, New Jersey; indeed, in so many centers that it seems to beat with the pulse of the Nation. No class (if that word must be used) has so much at stake in all this as the wage-earners.

It is into this wholly new atmosphere that organized labor may enter upon its heavy task of leading the fight against a party tyranny that has become grotesque in its unfitness for the impartial, constructive service which society now awaits. To get the determination of political policies free from the clutch of privileged interests in every form is what the people have come to see as their

first task. There is no influence that can indefinitely postpone this task of enlarging the political motive so that it shall lie level with the common weal. To use local and National politics to hedge and coddle the speculative schemes of commercial cliques has been the occupation of the moneyed men of this country. They have secured the domain, the franchises, charters, and strategic privileges of every sort, while throughout the entire game party politics has been their lackey. All this could not have been avoided, because we, the people, ignorantly sustain them. What the new time has brought is common knowledge of these facts and a great wave of feeling which makes action possible. In the old days labor could not go into politics for utter lack of this popular insight and propelling sentiment.

These may now give to labor its opportunity. If it shows the valor to avoid the grosser errors of the monopolistic spirit, the strength of its legions will be redoubled by accessions from the multitude of electors whose passion for self-respect and independence makes them ready to take the field against the despoilers.

M

ANY writers from time to time give suggestions as to specific instances of waste. It is the purpose of this article to classify under broad heads the main sources of waste, with an example or two under each. If an intelligent housewife appreciates the force of a general proposition, she will be able more readily to recognize the specific violation when it arises in her household. It will be helpful for a reader to ask herself under what heads the errors of her establishment fall.

This article deals only with waste in household affairs, though many of its principles apply also to other expenditures; as dress, travel, amusements, entertaining.

Waste arises in buying, from lack of thought and good judgment as shown in

various ways. It is always wasteful to buy articles of inferior quality, as sleazy towels and tablecloths that have no wear in them, or loosely woven matting that soon pulls apart, or poor food that cannot be eaten. But it is equally wrong to pay extra prices for fancy stock. If fine large peaches can be bought for $2.50 per bushel, there is no merit in paying $3.50 for extra large ones. If a chair of artistic design, beautiful wood, and fine, plain finish can be bought for a certain price, it is folly to pay ten dollars more for some carving to catch the dust. Waste arises from failure to buy in quantities when it is advantageous to do so: as laundry soap and starch by the box, olive oil and molasses by the gallon, vinegar by the five gallons, matches by the dozen boxes. But, on the other hand,

it is wasteful to buy in quantity if it is not advantageous. Sweet potatoes, very perishable, should be got in small lots. If carrots are six cents a bunch or two bunches for ten cents, there is no merit in buying two bunches if only one is really needed. Many women will buy two and finally throw away the second bunch.

Waste arises from failure to watch the market and buy at a favorable time. Twenty-five and fifty cents a ton may be saved by buying coal in the summer. Sugar usually goes up in canning time; the wise woman buys one hundred pounds in four twenty-five-pound bags before the rise. If one has established with a grocer the reputation of being a prompt payer and a fair-minded customer, arrangements can be made with him to let one know of special opportunities to buy to advantage. This can also be extended to other tradesmen.

It is wasteful to buy things because they are cheap, on a slender chance that they may sometime be used-as furniture polish, metal polish, and cement for broken dishes bought from persistent venders only to cumber the closet shelves; or to buy an article for which demand seems to exist without first seeing if something already on hand will not answer. The next day the hasty buyer says dejectedly, "Dear me! Why did "Dear me! Why did I not remember that I had so and so! It would have done just as well as what I bought."

A source of waste to be strongly condemned is the growing custom of paying high prices for cooked food at bakeries and delicatessen shops in order to save one's self the trouble of home cooking. From five to six o'clock in the afternoon these stores are thronged by women who have been at the matinée, or shopping, or calling, and they hurry in to buy food already prepared which they can quickly set on the table, with small regard for its real food value. So they pay forty cents a pound for boiled ham, or thirty-five cents a pound for veal loaf, twenty-five cents for some potato salad, twelve cents a dozen for rolls, twenty cents for a pie, twenty-five cents for a small plain cakeand lo, a meal! If these things had been intelligently made at home, with

good management as to fuel, a saving of thirty-five to forty per cent. could be effected. The woman who daily loses money because she will not take the trouble to cook has probably another characteristic of a wasteful housewife— a contempt for small savings. One cent saved on a ten-cent purchase is a saving of ten per cent. just as truly as one dollar on ten dollars. A ten per cent. investment would be considered desirable by any business man. Much of the household savings must come from looking after the pennies.

To be condemned strongly is the growing custom of buying articles of food out of season when they are luxuries and the price is highest-strawberries at Christmas, "spring lamb " in January, and asparagus in February. It would be well if we could learn that there are better ways to entertain a guest than to impoverish ourselves in order to set before him some luxury out of season and probably lacking its real flavor. He who would enjoy fruits and vegetables at their best will be satisfied to eat them when they are at their perfection in his own climate.

One of the most serious sources of waste in buying is the practice of "running bills." It is useless to aver, “I never buy anything on credit that I do not really need." If one will steadfastly for six months hold himself rigidly to buying only what he can pay cash for, if he will keep his accounts carefully and at the end of the time honestly study the result, he will admit that he has cut off one serious source of former wastefulness. The merchant well understands the frailties of human nature, and he is eager to get you to open an account," suggesting it in his advertisements, and even seductively soliciting it by letter.

Again, waste arises from misuse and neglect of materials after purchase. There is a loss of food through failure to care for it properly; milk is left standing in a hot kitchen to sour, or butter to melt; bread grows musty in a neglected bread-box; cheese is forgotten on the shelf and molds. The same tendency shows itself in failure to scrape clean the kettles, saucepans, and mixing-bowls,

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so that no food is left adhering to them. If only a tablespoonful of oatmeal is left on the sides of the double boiler each morning, it means quarts wasted in a year. A lack of good management of left-overs " contributes to waste. It is one thing to get them eaten under protest so that they just escape being thrown away; it is another thing to use the "left-overs" so skillfully as to make attractive and palatable dishes, and so save the expense of providing new food. If the family does not like hash, there is no merit in using cold meat in this way and having it eaten "at the point of the bayonet," when, as croquettes, or filling for an omelet, or in shepherd's pie, the dish would be relished and praised. In this connection one is reminded that some woman said that the two most mysterious words in the English language to her were "stock" and "drippings." Until a housewife has come to be on familiar terms with the stock-pot and the drippings-jar, there is sure to be waste in her household.

Neglect as a source of waste is shown in a failure to care for each utensil and article of furniture so as to prolong its period of use. There is a right way to care for every article in household use, and by adhering rigidly to this right way it may be made to last from half as long again to many times longer than if used carelessly and ignorantly. If wooden tubs are left without water standing in them, it is not strange that the hoops fall off. If the boiler is not dried properly, of course it will rust. If brooms are always hung up when not in use, and if they are dipped in hot suds once a fortnight, their life will be doubled. If a couch is turned end for end each sweep ing day, the springs will not sag and give way so soon. By changing the position of furniture in a room, the wear on the carpet is distributed. When money has been expended upon finished floors or hardwood floors, it is sensible to learn the best way to treat them and preserve their beauty. Failure to mend articles at the first sign of impairment is the guarantee of waste, for soon the article is in serious condition, if not entirely beyond repair. At first the cupboard door needed only a screw to

tighten a hinge-any one could have put it in. Finally the door broke away from the hinges and a carpenter charged a dollar to mend it. Every house should have a kit of simple tools, nails and screws, and some member of the family should have interest enough and gumption enough to make little repairs. It is certainly wasteful to have to send for a man every time there is a leaky faucet to pack, or a shelf to put up, or a windowcord to mend.

A considerable part of daily loss comes from waste of fuel. This may arise from the use of an expensive fuel when cheaper is available, as artificial gas when coal is cheaper, or coal when natural gas is cheaper. Whatever the fuel be, most servants and some mistresses use it most recklessly. Often more fire is built than the nature of the work demands. Lena had a red-hot stove if she had only to boil an egg and make coffee. In using gas Katie would always turn on more than was needed, and it would blaze around the kettle in a beautiful but costly aureola. In vain did her mistress explain that the contents of a kettle would not cook one whit sooner because the water was in a state of violent ebullition. Katie only sniffed incredulously, turned down the gas with reluctance, and, when her mistress departed, triumphantly turned it on again full head. A common error lies in a failure to make a fire do as much work as possible. A careless ironer will make up a hot fire afresh when she is nearly done, and it burns on unused after she has finished. Or the gas oven is heated to bake a single dish, when by planning the menu carefully a whole meal might be cooked in the oven at the same time. Or the oven fire could be utilized to do extra cooking for the next day, as a dish of baked apples for breakfast or some custards for lunch; a pan of water also can be heated under the oven for dishwater.

Waste of lights occurs chiefly in not turning down gas when leaving bedrooms or bath-rooms. The men and boys of a household are the chief offenders here. The burning of a light in one's bedroom all night is a piece of wastefulness inexcusable in well persons.

in food, novelties in the way of serving the food. We all know that the sweet grace of hospitality is stifled in this excess and flummery, but it is a rare woman who dares invite her friends to a simple meal suited to her purse and station. "Just think," she sighs, "of that perfectly elegant dinner the Schuylers gave! Why, I didn't know what I was eating half the time! How could I ask them to a simple dinner after that? I just couldn't do it." I knew of a luncheon club of twelve young married women, one of whom each month entertained the others at lunch. As the months passed, the affairs became more and more elaborate, each striving to outdo the others. Soon the town

resources were exhausted, and flowers, out-of-season delicacies, and fancy ices were ordered from the city. Some of the members could not afford this, and the others knew it. All felt that the affairs had gone too far and had become a burden to plan and most wearing to carry out, yet not one was willing to be the woman to assert her good sense and return to moderation. All honor to the woman who in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation dares to be simple and sane! If you are so bleşt as to know such a one, hasten to tell her how much you admire her, lest she too falter, lose her foothold, and be swept off by the waves of waste.