way is largely a matter of habit; but it is astonishing how many
fail to form the habit. Court records show that out of every 100
men who die, 82 leave no income-producing estates, or that about
85 per cent who reach the age of 65 are dependent upon relatives
or upon the community. "Out of every 100 widows, only 18 are left
in comfortable circumstances, while 47 are obliged to go to work
and 35 are left in absolute want." [Footnote: S.W. Strauss, "The
Greater Thrift," National Education Association PROCEEDINGS, 1916,
p. 278.]

AMERICAN EXTRAVAGANCE

Wise buying means saving money; and so does the wise use of what
we buy. It is said that an American ship can be distinguished from
the ships of other nations in harbor by the flocks of gulls that
hover around to feast on the food thrown overboard. Whether this
is true or not, Americans have a reputation for wastefulness. It
has been called our chief national sin. It is said that a family
in France can live in comfort on what an American family in the
same circumstances ordinarily throws away. An average load of
garbage in New York City has been shown to contain fifty dollars'
worth of good food materials.

WHAT SMALL SAVINGS WILL DO

Investigations by the Food Administration showed that there is
enough glycerine in a ton of garbage to make explosives for 14
shells, enough fat and acid to make 75 bars of soap, and enough
fertilizer to grow 8 bushels of wheat. It is said that 24 cities
wasted enough garbage to make 4 million pounds of nitroglycerine,