Every breakfast and every tea in the week is half a loaf, dripping or margarine, and tea.
Monday.—Dinner: Remains of sausages and potatoes.
Tuesday.—Dinner: Flour pancakes, with sugar.
Wednesday.—Dinner: ¼ lb. bacon, half a loaf of bread.
Thursday.—Dinner: halfpennyworth of fish for Lulu, and halfpennyworth of potatoes. Landlord downstairs gave Mrs. X. some meat pie and potatoes.
Friday.—Dinner: Bread, margarine, and tea.
Saturday.—Dinner: Bread and three bloaters.
The following is a week’s budget:
| s. | d. | |
|---|---|---|
| Rent | 4 | 6 |
| Baby minded | 1 | 0 |
| Fares | 2 | 0 |
| Coal | 0 | 6¾ |
| Lamp oil | 0 | 2 |
| Wood | 0 | 2 |
| Matches | 0 | 0¼ |
| Soap, soda, blue | 0 | 2¼ |
| Sickness insurance | 0 | 3 |
| Burial insurance | 0 | 3 |
| 9 | 1¼ | |
| s. | d. | |
| 6 loaves | 1 | 10 |
| 2 lb. sugar | 0 | 4 |
| 1 tin of milk | 0 | 2 |
| 4 lbs. potatoes | 0 | 2 |
| Flour | 0 | 2 |
| Meat and fish | 0 | 4 |
| 4 ozs. tea | 0 | 4 |
| Dripping | 0 | 3 |
| Margarine | 0 | 0¾ |
| Oatmeal | 0 | 3 |
| 3 | 10¾ |
The eldest boy of seven has dinners at school five days in the week in term-time. The girl is three and a half, and is fed at home. The baby is two years old. All the children are extremely delicate. Since this menu was taken Mrs. X. has been lucky enough to get help from some kind people. They have seen her elder boy through an attack of rheumatic fever, and have clothed the three children in warm and decent garments. Without such timely help she would in all probability have lost her boy.