A manual of home-making

One cabinet of wood that will harmonize witli the study desk or table will be found very convenient. Such a cabinet of one drawer, will accommodate several hundred cards. A desk, with a drawer adapted to the purpose may be bought, or a drawer of suitable depth may be sulKlivided so that the cards will fit it. In l)uying a desk it is wtII to choose one in which the drawers may be so subdivided as to conform to the standard sizes of cards and pajjers. These sizes are 3 by 5 inches, 4 !>y 6 inches, 5 by 8 inches, and 8J^ by 11 inches. The last size permits the filing of papers such as clippings, receipted bills, and correspond- ence in the manila folders generally used in offices. These I I I I HOUSEHOLD RECORDS 177 manila folders may be classified in the same way as are the cards, the topics treated being noted on the upper left-hand edge of €*ach« The ikames of the cla^ssifications, if there are several, may be written or printed on lai^e guides placed in front of each section of folders. HOUSEHOLD ACCOUNTS The advantages of keeping household accounts include: (1) an accurate knowledge of the use of the family income; (2) a check on wasteful expenditures; (3) an encouragement to form a proper relationship between the various claj^^ses of expendi- tures; (4) an encouragement to save; (5) a protection against paying a bill twice; (6) a settlement of disputes. Equlp7ti€7it. Equipment for keeping accounts may be of the most simple kind. In the kitchen there should be a hanging hook file on which to place delivery slips and bills to await entr>^ in the ac- counts, A small pad for memoranda^ to which is attached a pencil, is found to be a timesaver. Either a desk or a small table with a drawer shouki be provided in the stuily or in the liviog- room for keeping the necessary records, whicli include an ac- count book and a check book. A filing case, with compart- ments indexed alphabetically, serves to keep bills in order. If it is possible to liave the best equipment, a desk with a drawer sufficiently large for the fihng of papei's, including* not only bills but correspondence, is desirable. At least some eciuipnient is necessary in order that there may be a place for everything, a factor which contributes greatly to the satisfaction J as well as to the pmfit derived. Forma of keeping accourUs. Accounts may be kept in book form, either bound or loose leaf, or on cards. The simplest method of keeping accounts is one that records merely receipts and exi>enditures, each in its owm column, no entiy being made for chargcfl items until pay- ment is made, For this purpose pages like form 1 (page 183) are good, receipts being kept on the left-hand page and ex- I I 178 A MANUAL OF HOME-MAKING penditurew on the lii^hl-hand page. A book in which the re- ceipts are kept on the left half of tlie page and the expenditures on the right half of the same page may be iised^ fjut such a book generally does nob allow sufficient space for all details of itemi- zation* Some persons like to use a book with two columns at the right-hand side of the page, one column for receipts and one for expenditures, lj»ut with this fomi more c:are must be taken to enter the figures in the proper coluom.