in different sections of
the country confirm the author in the estimate of cost given in this
work; in certain localities some of the articles quoted are more
expensive, while others are cheaper; but the average is about equal.

PREFACE.

TO ECONOMICAL HOUSEWIVES:

The wide publicity which the press in different sections of the country
has given to my offer to show workingpeople earning a dollar and a half,
or less, per day, how to get a good dinner for fifteen cents, has
brought me a great many letters from those who earn more, and can
consequently afford a more extended diet.

In response to their requirements I have written this book, which I hope
will be found servicable in that middle department of cookery it is
designed to occupy, where we begin to look for more than the absolute
necessaries of life; it is a practical guide to the economical,
healthful, and palatable preparation of food, and will serve to show
that it is possible to live well upon a very moderate income.

It is necessary to repeat in this book some of the directions given in
the work on "FIFTEEN CENT DINNERS;" but I hope their reappearance will
be pardoned on the ground of their usefulness, and also because the
first book will fail to reach many for whom this one is intended.

The cheapest kinds of food are sometimes the most wholesome and
strengthening; but in order to obtain all their best qualities we must
know how to choose them for their freshness, goodness, and suitability
to our needs. That done, we must know how to cook them, so as to make
savory and nutritious meals instead of tasteless or sodden messes, the
eating whereof sends the man to the liquor shop for consolation.

Good food, properly cooked, gives us good blood, sound bones, healthy
brains, strong nerves, and firm flesh, to say nothing of good tempers
and kind hearts. These are surely worth a little trouble to secure.

The first food of nearly all living creatures is milk, the only entire
natural food; that is, the only food upon which health and strength can
be sustained for any length of time, without using any other
nourishment. For this reason it is the best food you can give the
children if you must restrict their diet at all; and it is also a
valuable addition to the food of grown persons. While this fact about
milk is settled, it is generally acknowledged by people who study the
subject that we thrive best on a variety. We get warmth and strength
from fat