Buying on installments.—Methods of payment are discussed in Chapter XX. The installment plan is important to consider, since it is so common for people of small means. How tempting for a young couple, who have no savings, to furnish the new home in this way? It is a “gambling on futures,” however, as much as are some methods in the Stock Exchange. If the income stops, because the position is lost, or if sickness comes, and the installments cannot be paid, the whole outfit may be lost. There have been real household tragedies of this kind. The better way is to save until a small amount of simple furniture can be purchased outright. The installment method is also used by established firms of sound reputation to tempt one to buy the latest encyclopædia, or the new musical instrument, or some other much-desired possession. This is safe if one is absolutely sure of a fixed future income; but here again it is better to save first and buy outright. You may say that the installment plan gives the use of the encyclopædia at once, and this is true. But if you have the saving habit, there will already be a fund on which to draw.
The ethics of shopping.—There is no greater test of good breeding and kindness than the tour of a crowded shop; and sometimes the silken thread is strained to the snapping point. Remember that tired human beings are at the counter.
Time your shopping that you may not help to crowd business at the closing hour. If the shop closes at five, leave several minutes before the hour. As a matter of fact it is only to the shopper that the shop closes at the stated hour; some of the hardest work of the day comes after hours. Avoid shopping at the luncheon hour, and on Saturday afternoon at the time of the week when the salespeople are most tired. This is also a hard time for delivery men and boys. Consult here the pamphlets of the Consumers’ League.
In times of stress, the shopkeeper asks you to carry small bundles home with you, and this you should cheerfully do. Some women carry the C.O.D. privilege to an extreme, ordering in this way with the intention of sending certain articles back, thus creating much unnecessary labor.
Purchasing of clothing and household textiles.—Experience is a good teacher, but knowledge so gained is often paid for at high price. It seems an easier way, with much saving of time, money, and energy, for girls to learn beforehand what to guard against in purchasing their household textiles for both clothing and furnishings. Our great-grandmothers were sure their household textiles would wear, for they followed every step of their manufacture and knew they were durable and honest. Conditions changed with the factory system of manufacture, and to-day women know very little about textile fabrics or the making of garments. This ignorance of manufacturing processes results in the increased cost of living by the wasteful expenditures made for household textiles. Women rely on the information given by clerks in stores, often to their sad disadvantage. As we have learned, about 15 to 20 per cent of the family income is usually spent on clothing and household furnishings for a family of four. Is it not necessary then that girls should learn to make the dollars earned buy just as much as possible?
There is need of a pure textile law in order that the adulterations of textiles may be defined. Some of us cannot afford to buy pure linen or all wool, but we do wish to know the percentage of adulterant in order that we may judge whether the materials will meet our needs. It is beyond the power of women now to control the making of fabrics, and the government, therefore, must help to maintain standards and proper supervision of textile labeling. Women can, however, study this problem, and with a knowledge of the
manufacture and composition of textiles will come the power to choose wisely, for manufacturers have been able to perpetuate these frauds chiefly because of ignorance. (See the companion volume, “Shelter and Clothing.”)
Some things to remember in purchasing household linens.