Chapter VIII: Preface (7)

Providing herself with a good nut cracker and set of picks, besides a dozen or so glass jars, she began cracking the nuts, aiming to extract the meats in halves or as large pieces as possible, and placing them in the jars which, when full, she covered tightly with tops so as to exclude air and dampness, and found that in this way they brought the highest prices in the market.

She previously had arranged with a number of bakers and confectioners in the city to take all the nut meats she could supply, and could have sold many more had they been available. To help meet the demand, however, she purchased a few barrels of English walnuts with the shells cracked and packed them as she had done with the others and sold them at profit over their original cost.

PLAN No. 169. STARTED A LUNCHEON CLUB

Living near a large motion picture studio, a young married woman originated what she called a luncheon club for the purpose of serving the members of the company with a dainty luncheon every day at a moderate cost, yet one that yielded a fair profit to herself.

Having obtained the names of the various players from the manager of the studio, she wrote a note to each of them, announcing her plans and inviting them to join her club. The members were to pay a stated price as weekly dues payable in advance, and each could bring a friend at so much per luncheon.

Having a good supply of linen, silver, and all the little accessories for personal comfort, she made her purchases with much care, selecting only such materials as were necessary, and writing out a menu each week, which was varied by many combinations that prevented any appearance of sameness from day to day. She soon learned the little whims and preferences of each guest, and made it a point to serve each one with what she liked best.

A large number of the girls from the studio joined her club at the very beginning, and each of these members she greeted personally, as a guest, upon her arrival thereby creating a feeling of home-coming that had an excellent effect.

She did all the cooking herself, setting out the lunches on small tables intended to accommodate only two guests at a time, and everything about the place she kept scrupulously neat, clean and inviting.

Her club became very popular and she soon had all the members she could serve during the luncheon hour.

Though she could have charged more, she maintained the reasonable charges established at the beginning and found that the venture paid her a very satisfactory profit.

PLAN No. 170. TWO SISTERS SOLD SPECTACLES

Two sisters, both stenographers in down-town offices, were having their vacation, and being desirous of making some money at the same time they were resting from their regular work, they were induced, through the advice of a well-informed friend, to take up the selling of spectacles, especially after he had assured them that this was a line in which the receipts were practically all profit.

Their friend informed them where they could buy spectacles for about 18 cents a pair, which they could readily sell for $1.00 per pair, and they bought several gross of these, of different magnifying strength, and various styles of frames, together with a black carrying case and a few testing cards, all of which came with the spectacles. These they set upon a high tripod for making an attractive display of their wares, while one of the girls sat upon a high stool behind the tastefully arranged stock of goods. They had secured a good street location, on the inside of a well shaded sidewalk, and began explaining the merits of their spectacles in a quiet, ladylike way, to all who stopped to inquire about them. Their sales averaged about ten pairs a day, or $8.20 clear profit.

PLAN No. 171. KEEPING BROOD SOWS

“Even $50 to $90 seems a rather big price to pay for a single brood sow,” said an old farmer who had made a success of hog raising, “but let me tell you a little story:

“One spring two of my sows farrowed twelve pigs each, and we raised twenty-three of the twenty-four. When they were eight months old, those shoats brought $494.71, but at war-time prices they would have brought a very large sum.

“Suppose a young sow produces seventy-five pigs during her life-time, and she may do even better than that. If this sow were owned by a small farmer, he could raise the pigs for almost nothing, and after he has saved out twelve of the best ones as the foundation of a superior herd, he can sell the remaining sixty-three, when they are eight or ten months old, for enough to make a good-sized payment on his farm, and to pay the cost of raising 500 more pigs, besides.

“The good breeder must be a good feeder, and he will find that, with ordinary intelligence in the selection and care of his pure-bred stock, he can make more money, and have better meat products, many times over, then he can ever hope for from the ordinary scrub stock.

“If farmers will pay more attention to the raising of pure-bred hogs, they will be better off, and be at much less labor and expense, than from any other branch of farming. Let every farmer encourage his boy to have a few blooded pigs of his own, so that he may have the benefit of all the profit they will bring, and boys will not be so anxious to leave the farm as they are now.

“I’ve tried it, and I know.”

PLAN No. 172. FARM WOMAN’S WAYS OF MAKING MONEY

Unlike most farmers’ wives, this woman had plenty of time to devote to various ways of making money, and put a dozen plans into practice, all of which proved productive of good results.

Her first plan was to pick arbutus, which she sent to the store of a friend in the city, fresh each day, where it sold readily for 5 or 10 cents a bunch, nearly all profit.

PLAN No. 173. HOME-MADE CHRISTMAS CANDY

Early in December she made up a lot of nice candy at home, which sold as fast as she could make it for 25 cents a pound, delivered. She made many kinds, and realized a good profit on all of them.

PLAN No. 174. GROWING TOMATO PLANTS

This she found to be a profitable source of income. She raised the plants from seed, starting to plant about the middle of March, and each 4-cent package of seed produced plants that sold for $4.00.

PLAN No. 175. BAKING FOR BUSY PEOPLE

Most farm women are very busy, and often find it convenient to have some one do their baking, especially when they have company. This lady would either go to different houses, and do the baking for the families, who furnished their own material, for which she charged 35 cents per hour, or would do the baking at home, using her own materials, and sell the bread, cakes and pies she baked, at good prices to those too busy to do their own baking.

PLAN No. 176. TAKING ORDERS FOR DRESS GOODS

She arranged with reliable firms in the city to send her samples of all the new dress goods they received each season, and she showed these to the various women in the neighborhood, taking a great many orders for different patterns, on all of which she was paid a commission that amounted to a considerable sum each year.

PLAN No. 177. TAKING ORDERS FOR EXTRACTS

She makes considerable money each year taking orders for various kinds of extracts, as well as for a popular summer drink, which comes in boxes selling at 25 cents each. The drink is made by dissolving the preparation in water and adding a little sugar. It is a delicious drink, made in a minute.

PLAN No. 178. PICKING CRANBERRIES ON SHARES

As she lives in the country where cranberries grow in great quantities, she earns many dollars each season by picking cranberries on shares, and her share always sells readily at good prices.

PLAN No. 179. GATHERING CHESTNUTS

In the fall of the year she gathers chestnuts, which are plentiful in that vicinity, and these she sells at surprisingly high prices, for everybody wants them.

PLAN No. 180. PLAYS, AND TEACHES PIANO PUPILS

Along with her other accomplishments she is a good pianist. She plays for dances and other gatherings, and gives music lessons to a number of pupils.

PLAN No. 181. PRESERVES FLAGROOT

Flagroot preserves bring high prices in the cities, and she adds many dollars to her income by gathering, preserving and selling this.

PLAN No. 182. MAKING AND SELLING MAY BASKETS

Although May Day “comes but once a year,” she manages to turn this anniversary to good account by making and selling the baskets that are a requisite for its observance.

PLAN No. 183. RAISING AND SELLING POULTRY

But her greatest source of pleasure and profit is poultry raising, her selection and care of birds enabling her to keep only those that produce the most money.

PLAN No. 184. MONEY-MAKING FOR WOMEN

The wife of a farmer living in the middle west has worked out several plans for making money at home, and finds that they all pay her very well.

One plan is to make shades for lamps and electric light globes, of rice and crepe paper, decorating them with water colors, pressed leaves, flowers, holly, etc., and these she sells to her neighbors for 10 cents each as they are very pretty and quite durable, with care.

PLAN No. 185. CROCHET AND OTHER PATTERNS

She designs pretty patterns in crochet edgings, insertions, medallions and initials, and these she sells at six for 50 cents, through ads. in the local and city papers, delivering them by mail in most cases.

PLAN No. 186. HANDKERCHIEFS, COLLARS, CUFFS, ETC.

These she makes with rolled hem and crochet edge, and sells them at 25 cents to $1 each. Pop-corn balls rolled in clear syrup she sells at two for 5 cents, while her potato chips bring 5 cents for a small bag. She makes braided or woven rag rugs, white or in colors, with woven or stenciled borders, and sells them for $1.25 and up, while hand-made place cards, favors, etc., bring $1 per dozen.

PLAN No. 187. ANNUAL SALES IN PARLOR AND HALL

Every year she holds sales in her front room and large hall, and sells pies, cakes, rolls, bread, cookies, doughnuts, plum puddings, fruit cakes, jams, jellies, canned fruits, vegetables, etc., besides her needle-work products, and always clears a handsome sum from these sales. She also takes orders for roast ducks, geese, turkeys, chickens and squabs, and finds a ready sale for all these from all classes of people, at special prices. Many of these are delivered by parcel post, and prove a good source of revenue.

PLAN No. 188. OPENED A BEAUTY PARLOR

A talented young woman, living in a small western city, wanted to open a beauty parlor, but realizing that she was not familiar with the necessary details of the business, went to a city some distance away and took a course of lessons from a dermatologist in the approved methods of removing wrinkles, moles, birthmarks, freckles, tan, superfluous hair, etc. The course cost her $25.

Before leaving the city, however, she also paid $15 for instructions in manicuring, and $10 for the necessary instruments with which to do this class of work in a satisfactory manner.

Arriving at her home town she sent personal letters to all the prominent women of the place, inviting them to visit the neat and attractively-fitted-up parlors she had opened in her home, and stating her qualifications for doing the work required.

Responses to these letters were numerous, and as the lady did exceptionally good work, her reputation spread rapidly throughout the community, and inside of the first year the net profits she realized from her small-town parlors were greater than those of many similar institutions in the large city. She was both capable and careful in the treatment of her patrons, who became permanent customers and made her plan an unqualified success.

PLAN No. 189. MADE A HAND LAUNDRY PAY

A man who had some experience in a steam laundry in a city moved to a small town of 2,500 inhabitants and established a hand laundry that in a short time became a paying concern.

He had but a few hundred dollars in cash, but found he did not need a great deal. Before leaving the city, he had bought a light collar-and-cuff ironing machine that cost him $50, while $25 more paid for a few little accessories he knew he would need.

He rented a store room some distance from the business center, hired a couple of experienced women, and advertised that he would do better work than the steam laundries of the city could do, and at lower prices, calling particular attention to the fact that the machinery in the big laundries tear the clothes to pieces. He also offered to do mending of men’s articles free, and by turning out high-class work from the very first he soon had all the business he could handle.

PLAN No. 190. MAKING INKS AND MUCILAGE

Everybody uses ink, and most people need mucilage at one time or another, so that the making and selling of these necessary articles afforded a man in a small western town a very good money-making opportunity, which he improved with considerable profit.

Books of formulas for making these things can be procured from a number of sources, but the formula for preparing indelible marking ink proved to be one of the most profitable of them all. This ink is made by taking equal parts of green vitriol and cinnabar, powdered as finely as possible, and mixing them with unboiled linseed oil. When strained through a cloth this makes a fine indelible ink, and he found a good demand for it from laundries, department stores and various other places.

He employed salesmen to canvass near-by towns, and in a few months had established a permanent and profitable business of his own. The ingredients for these articles cost but little, the labels and bottles being the principal items of expense, and the margin was sufficiently large to justify him in paying a liberal commission to agents.

PLAN No. 191. NEWSPAPER CORRESPONDENT

In every town, large or small, there are always news items of more or less interest, mainly local, but often of national importance, and the man or woman who can collect these items, put them in readable shape, and send them to the newspapers in the neighborhood cities, or larger towns, can always derive something of an income from this source. The editor of one of the largest and most influential of western dailies thus relates how he began his newspaper career in this manner:

“I lived in a town of about 1,000 inhabitants, which did not boast of a weekly newspaper, and yet there were many local happenings that would have been of great interest if published in the city paper, which had a rather extensive circulation in the town.

“I wrote to the editor of this paper and offered my services as correspondent from my town. He was glad to secure my services, and offered me a very fair rate of compensation, based upon a certain amount per column.

“I made it a point to write only actual and dependable items of news, to clothe them in proper and dignified language, with an occasional dash of humor in those cases where it was not only permissible but added to the force and interest of the article, and my letters were all published just as they were written.

“I added other daily newspapers to my list from time to time, and, as these were all sent to me free, I began to absorb the world’s news and soon became well informed on current events. Besides, my income grew until I was doing very well indeed, but when I was offered a position as reporter on this paper I accepted the offer, and have risen steadily until I am now managing editor, a position assured to me as long as I care to hold it.”

PLAN No. 192. AN EXCHANGE MART

How a man with original ideas established an “exchange mart”--something he had never heard of before--and built up a good business along a novel line, is told by himself as follows:

“Knowing the tendency of people to sell what they have and buy or trade for something they haven’t, it occurred to me that I could supply the wants of both classes, and make some money for myself at the same time.

“I rented a store room and bought two blank books, one of which I marked “buyers” and the other one “sellers,” and then inserted an ad. in the local paper, asking those who had anything they wanted to sell to come and see me. I ran another ad., to the effect that it would pay those who wanted to buy anything, no matter what, to call upon me.

“Before long I had on hand a large assortment of articles of every kind that were for sale--books, furniture, tools, musical instruments--almost everything--and each of these I carefully listed in my sellers’ book, with the name and address of the owner, and the very lowest price at which it could be sold. A number of people also called to ask for certain articles, and if I did not have them I made a note of what was wanted, in my buyers’ book, with the name, address and phone number of the person wishing it, together with the highest price he would pay. Then I advertised for those things to be brought in, and when they came I bought them as cheaply as possible. Next I notified the prospective buyer, who would generally respond promptly and pay the price he had named, or a little more if the article particularly pleased him, and the difference between the seller’s lowest price and the buyer’s highest price was my profit. And this profit amounted to over $2,000 at the end of the first year.”

PLAN No. 193. AUTO AND CARRIAGE POLISH

Of the many thousands of automobiles in use a great many of them have the varnish worn off or scratched, through carelessness and hard usage, and this fact gave an enterprising young Portland man an idea.

He made up a considerable quantity of a fine polish from the following formula: Orange shellac, 30 ounces; Venice turpentine, one ounce; castor oil, one ounce; gum sandarac, one ounce; nigrosine, one ounce; wood alcohol, 9 pints and 6 ounces. These he mixed, and shook them until thoroughly dissolved.

This mixture he put up in pint tin cans, with tight-fitting tops, the same as paint cans, pasted an attractive label on each can, gave it a fancy name, and was ready for business.

The directions for using were: Remove all dust and dirt with a clean cloth, and apply the dressing to the body of the auto or carriage with a soft camel hair brush, letting it dry thoroughly.

At first he took orders for applying the polish to autos himself, but he later decided he could make more money by employing agents to sell it for him. Each can cost but a trifle, and sold readily for $1, so that, after paying the agents liberal commission, he still had a net profit of over 50 cents per can. Later he began to advertise it throughout the country, and in a few months he had built up a mail order business, that netted him a good living.

PLAN No. 194. SINGING SONGS THROUGH A MEGAPHONE

With a strong, melodious voice, a megaphone, a hand organ in a covered wagon, and a few hundred copies of a popular song, a young man in New York City earned a good living.

This young man, standing up in the front part of the wagon, would stop the horse at a crowded corner, place the megaphone to his mouth and, giving a sign to the man manipulating the hand organ in the covered wagon, would commence to sing one of the latest songs of the day.

When the crowd became interested, as it always did, he would stop singing, offer the copies of the song, words and music, for 10 cents each.

The song sold rapidly, and when the ten minute limit for stopping in one place expired he would start up the horse, move on to another location, probably in the same block, and repeat the performance.

PLAN No. 195. A SUBSCRIPTION AGENCY

Most magazines, as well as daily and weekly newspapers, are always glad to pay a liberal commission for subscriptions, and some of them offer bonuses besides for good lists of subscribers.

A young man in an inland city of the Pacific Northwest, who had a few hundred dollars, fitted up a neat little down-town office--after securing a subscription agency for a number of leading periodicals, made a list of the same in alphabetical order, with columns for the regular price and the price at which he could supply them. If his commission was $1 on a year’s subscriptions, he advertised to send a $4 magazine for $3.60. Where his commission was 80 cents, he deducted 25 cents to his subscribers; if his discount was 40 cents, he would deduct 15 cents from the rate and so on.

He issued an attractive circular showing the various discounts he would allow on each subscription to any of the magazines or other publications listed, and sent these circulars to those answering his ads. in a number of papers covering his territory, and was surprised at the number of subscriptions he received through this system of discounts. While each subscription thus saved 10 per cent or more from regular subscription prices, it still left him a neat profit on each, and as the lists he was thus able to send in were quite large, he received enough in bonuses besides the discounts to himself as agent, to make a very comfortable income.

PLAN No. 196. PUBLISHING PROGRAMS

There is always more or less money to be made in a good advertising plan, and here is one way an elderly newspaper man turned his knowledge of printers ink to good account.

Whenever a church or social organization in his town proposed to give an affair or other form of entertainment he would offer to get out a good program for it free of cost to the parties planning the affair, and this offer was always gladly accepted. Sometimes he even offered a percentage of the proceeds for the privilege, and this too, was acceptable.

He would get the best figures possible from a number of printers, and let the contract to the one who could do good work for the lowest price.

Then he divided the program into small spaces for advertising, which he could easily fill at fair rates, and usually came out with at least 50 per cent profit on the undertaking.

There were so many of these programs to be obtained in his town, that he continued this as a regular business, and made an excellent living out of it.

PLAN No. 197. CHURCH POST CARDS

Any plan that will help to raise money for a church is always gladly welcomed, but a plan that will do this, and at the same time make a fair profit for the originator, must be a “good one.”

A young printer in an eastern city inserted the following ad. in a number of religious papers all over the country:

“To raise money for your church, send us a photograph of your church or your pastor, and we will send you 500 high-grade post cards, with photo on each card. Sell these at 10 cents each, send us $20, and keep the balance. This is easy, and can be done in a week or less.”

The answers came in, the cuts were made from the photos, and the printed cards sent out. The post cards, printed, cost $7, the electro of the photo $3, and the other $10 for each set was net profit.

As from two to ten of these were received each day, one may judge as to the profits of the plan, while hundreds of churches were better off to the extent of $25 to $30 for each 500 cards sold.

PLAN No. 198. MAKING SACHET POWDERS PAYS WOMAN’S COLLEGE EXPENSES

A young lady, who wanted to make some money to help pay for a college course, proceeded to make the money by making sachet powder, her first “batch” amounting to fifty pounds. As a basis for the formula, she used, at various times, powdered starch, fine sawdust, oatmeal, and corn meal, and colored the completed preparation with a small quantity of analine. The powder itself she made as follows:

Wheat starch, 6 parts; orris root, 2 parts. Reduce starch to a very fine powder, and mix well with the orris root, then perfume with attar of lemon, attar of bergamot and attar of cloves, using twice as much of the lemon as of the others. This is really a violet sachet powder, but she gave it a fancy, high-sounding name, which added greatly to its selling qualities.

By advertising it in a small way, she created a demand for it that required help in making up the powder and filling the orders, and by placing it in a number of drug stores, she succeeded in providing herself with an income far in excess of the cost of a thorough course in the college of her choice.

After her graduation, she continued to make these sachet powders, which were mostly profit, and as they were of unquestioned quality, she received a revenue from their sales that paid all her expenses and gave her a nice bank account besides.

PLAN No. 199. MAKING CARPET CLEANER

A married man, who had endured the horrors of house-cleaning time so often that he knew how that ordeal was dreaded by housewives and husbands alike, felt that he could bring a feeling of peace to thousands of homes, and also bring himself a good income as well, by removing the most formidable of the house-cleaning nightmare, the taking up and cleaning of carpets.

Therefore, having a very fair idea of what would be a good thing to use for the purpose, he proceeded to make a carpet cleaning compound, as follows: Powdered Fullers earth, 4 pounds; common salt, 3 pounds; turpentine, ¹⁄₂ pint. These he mixed well, passed through a sieve, and packed in half-pound packages. The entire cost was but a few cents, and the paper boxes and labels added but little to the expense of making it.

He used this preparation by sprinkling over a square yard of the carpet at a time, rubbing it with a stiff, dry scrubbing brush, and going over it a second time with a softer brush, after the dirt was removed. The same powder can be used for several squares, until it is too dirty to use.

He placed an ad. in the local papers, offering to send a free sample of the cleaner to anyone desiring it, and received many requests asking for samples. The assurance that carpets would not have to be taken up to be cleaned, clinched the argument, and as there was enough of the sample to show what it could do, he received calls for more.

Then he employed agents, on a good commission basis, to sell it from house to house, and soon had a demand for it that extended over several states.

PLAN No. 200. THEY PICKED BERRIES

Owing to the failing health of the husband, a man and his wife went camping in the mountains, just about the time berries were ripe and plentiful, and seeing an opportunity for healthful exercise as well as considerable financial profit, they began an extensive berry-picking campaign.

They had taken their bedding, some canvas cots, a stove, and a small tent to use in case of bad weather. They camped near several cool springs, and a mountain stream, from which they caught a great many trout.

Impressed with the immense quantities of berries all around them, they went to the nearest town and bought a supply of jars, cans, and glasses, 200 pounds of sugar and had 1,000 labels printed. Then they began their berry picking, canning, preserving and making jams and jellies of the berries at the same time, and sending them to the city hotels. Their products were carefully packed in apple boxes, and went through in fine shape.

When they figured up their receipts they amounted to $132, while their total expenses were $40, leaving them a net profit of $92, besides an enjoyable vacation. This proved the possibilities to this work, and this couple continued to put up more berries and received in return for their work a good living.

PLAN No. 201. WROTE A CHURCH HISTORY

A former newspaper man, living in a western town of 10,000 people, became impressed with the importance of a well written church history, and suggested the idea to the pastors of several of the local churches. They approved the plan and promised him their support and co-operation.

Selecting one of the leading churches he interviewed the members, and from them obtained information concerning the history of the organization, past and present, with a complete list of the membership, as well as the names of those who had died since the church’s organization. Many interesting personal sketches of the older members were obtained and a review of the early struggles through which the society had passed in its infancy.

Usually a photograph of the church itself, as well as those of the pastor and a number of the more prominent members, were included in the book, while all the auxiliary organizations of the church were given considerable prominence. The book was well printed, and sold readily to the members and friends of the church, at a price which netted the author a good profit.

Having succeeded so well with this church, he proceeded to write histories of other churches in the town, and later extended his work to other communities. It paid him so well that he has made it his business.

PLAN No. 202. A LIQUID GLYCERINE SOAP

He was a $10-a-week drug clerk, in a small Nebraska town, but he had ideas and formulas of much merit, and one of the latter was that for making a superior liquid glycerine soap, as follows:

Best soft soap, 7¹⁄₂ ounces; tincture of soap bark, 3¹⁄₂ ounces; glycerine, 1 ounce. Put into a vessel and warm gently until dissolved, then add a dash of some selected perfume. Then strain and make up to 12 fluid ounces by adding the necessary amount of warm distilled water. The soap used in compounding this should be the best transparent kind.

A trip to the nearest city revealed the fact that the agents of office buildings, large factories, department stores, etc., were greatly in need of this product, to be used in their sanitary toilet equipment, and would pay good prices for it.

In the course of a week, he took orders for several hundred dollars worth and then placed it on sale in the drug stores, at the same time notifying his patrons and the public in general to that effect.

That was ten years ago, and today that former cheap drug clerk is the owner of one of the best pharmacies in the city.

PLAN No. 203. MAKING AIR PENCILS

Air-pencils used in writing show cards and for other purposes can be made at home very cheaply, and sold at considerably less than the kind one buys at paint stores, and elsewhere, at the same time yielding a good profit, and a young man, who did card-writing for a Minneapolis department store, figured out a way to make them.

At a drug store he bought a white rubber syringe bulb, No. 3 size, open at one end only, and cut off the neck down to the bulb part. Then he got a small oil can, of the size used for sewing machines, etc., and cut off the screw or thread part of this. He inserted this in the bulb of the syringe, and secured it with a fine wire twisted about the neck of the bulb. He then screwed the nozzle of the oil can into the neck, and the air-pencil was complete.

To fill the air-pencil, he unscrewed the nozzle from the neck of the bulb, pressed the bulb partly together, placed the neck or mouth of the bulb in the lettering mixture, and released his hold on the bulb, thus filling it by suction. Then he inserted the nozzle in the bulb, and was ready to begin lettering.

Whenever he was through using the air-pencil, he rinsed the bulb out thoroughly, with water, as the lettering mixture, if left in, would soon harden and render the pencil useless.

This home-made pencil worked so perfectly that he decided to make a number of them for sale, and did so, getting good price concessions on both bulbs and cans when buying a good many at a time. Having made up about 200 of the air-pencils, he advertised them in a journal devoted to department stores, and sold the entire lot from the first ad. Receiving calls for more, he made them up in larger quantities, and, offering them at about three-fourths the regular prices, sold several thousand of them at a very good profit.

PLAN No. 204. PROFIT FROM AN AIR-PENCIL

A young card writer in Los Angeles, who had bought an air-pencil for doing his work, after becoming thoroughly familiar with its use, concluded to take orders for various kinds of work from the city merchants, and follow this as a special line.

Aside from lettering show cards and the like, he also did considerable work in objects, done in relief with leaves, flowers, scrolls and other designs. He also did considerable work in home decorations, such as vases, flower pots, panels, picture frames, and other made designs, such as “Merry Christmas,” “Home, Sweet Home,” “Happy New Year,” and other placards, for which he found a ready sale.

The materials used were alabastine, bronze, flitters, diamond dust and analine coloring powders; white and colored cardboard of all sizes; white wood, glass, and metal ware, used to some extent for expensive pieces of work. He utilized many new and original ideas in his work, and showed remarkable taste and talent in execution.

An idea of his profits may be gained from the statement that plain lettered card signs that cost him from 1 to 8 cents to produce, he sold for 15 to 20 cents, while those more elaborately made with diamond dust, flitters, gold and silver lettering, costing 2 to 6 cents each, brought him from 20 to 50 cents each. Mottoes, finely executed, sold for 75 cents to $1 each. In many cases he gave instructions in lettering and sold outfits for doing the work at $2 to $3 each, and made considerable from that source.

For making his lettering waterproof, he used two parts alabastine, 1 part flour, 1 part linseed oil, stirring them well, then quickly adding cold water. For the work thus treated he made an additional charge that paid its cost many times over.

PLAN No. 205. A HOME-MADE WATER FILTER

An old gentleman living in a western town of 5,000 people, unable to do hard work, but obliged to earn his own living, hit upon a plan that brought him a small income upon which he could live with comfort. His plan was to make a simple water filter; and, as the local water supply was not of the best, he sold all he could make.

Taking a small wooden pail, not painted on the inside, he bored a hole in the bottom and covered the bottom of the pail with flannel. Then he put in a layer of coarsely powdered charcoal to a depth of 2 inches, then a 8-inch layer of coarse sand, and on top of this a 8-inch layer of coarse powdered limestone. Setting the pail over a jar, he allowed the water from the faucet to drip slowly into the pail, where it was thoroughly filtered before going into the jar, and was therefore perfectly safe for drinking.

This first filter he sold for 75 cents, and with the profits on this sale he bought several more of the pails and a quantity of the charcoal, with a few yards of flannel, and made these up as before. The people of his town were glad to get so good a filter for that price and he supplied several hundred families, and his net profits were sufficient to maintain him. He is now making filters for other towns.

PLAN No. 206. CONDENSED MILK

A poor widow, living in a small southern city, was practically dependent upon a splendid cow, which gave more milk than she and her few customers could use.

She therefore conceived the idea of converting this surplus into condensed milk that would keep for an indefinite period, and bring good prices when shipped to city customers by parcel post.

Taking 10,000 parts of fresh milk, 50 parts of white sugar, and 2 parts of carbonate of soda, she placed all in a porcelain vessel, and with constant stirring evaporated by heat of vapor bath at 140 to 160 degrees to the consistence of a thick paste.

Placing this paste in small glass jars, she sold it readily at fair prices, and realized a good profit from its sale. One pint of this paste is equal to ten pints of fresh milk, and being a distinctively country product of assured purity and cleanliness brought a good living to this woman.

PLAN No. 207. A NEWSPAPER MAN’S PLAN

He published a weekly newspaper in a field that was covered by one of the papers of a large city about thirty miles away, and he was very desirous of showing a special service to the people in his community. He made it a point to find out the people who came into the city, and to ascertain this early. So each morning he went to the Water Department of his city and obtained the names and addresses of parties who had water turned on, and from this information, made a statement in his paper concerning each person’s arrival. When the paper was published, he sent a boy around to get the newcomer’s subscription. When there was a refusal, the boy was instructed to say: “Well, the editor desired you to have a copy anyway, so I will leave this copy.” The new arrival, upon reading over the paper, found his name mentioned, and on his next call the boy easily secured a subscriber.

This is an excellent way for a person running a small paper close to a large city to build up his subscription list. This man succeeded to the extent of seven or eight hundred dollars a year.

PLAN No. 208. PERFUMED BAGS FOR THE BATH

The delights of the bath are increased 100 per cent by the use of a perfumed bath bag, which a druggist friend made up as follows:

Fine oatmeal, 4 pounds; bran, 1 pound; powdered castile soap, 1 pound; powdered orris, ¹⁄₂ pound. Mix well together and tie up in muslin bags, of any desired tint, and fasten with ribbon or silk. Each bag contained about one pound of the mixture, and sold readily at 25 cents each. Anyone can make considerable money by making and selling these.

PLAN No. 209. VINEGAR MADE PROM STRAWBERRIES

Thoroughly mash a quantity of ripe strawberries into a paste, and let stand for 24 hours. Then press out the juice and let it stand for a few days, to ferment and to allow the slimy contents to separate. Then filter the juice and put into clean, well-closed bottles, and put in a cool place, where it will keep a long time. Added to good cider vinegar, when ready to use, it makes an excellent flavoring.

It was cheap and easy to make, and profitable to sell.

PLAN No. 210. CANNED FRUIT AND VEGETABLES

While Mr. Farmer devoted his time and attention to the larger operations of general farming, his wife made a profitable side issue of such subsidiary lines as the orchard, the garden and the poultry yard, in all of which the products were of the highest order.

Buying Mason jars in large quantities, at a practically wholesale price, she utilized these in the canning of fruits, berries and vegetables, as they keep longer and look better when put up in this way, and bring much higher prices.

While her specialty was tomatoes, she also canned peas, beans, carrots, beets, turnips, parsnips, sweet potatoes, squash, pumpkins, sweet corn, shredded cabbage, brussels sprouts, and many other products of that kind, and they retained their original flavor and appearance throughout the entire year, if kept beyond the winter season. Of fruits, she canned peaches, pears, apples, cherries, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries and strawberries, put up in their syrup for making pies and puddings as well as for general table uses.

Hundreds of city people gladly purchased these canned fruits and vegetables, and though she sold them at prices lower those asked for inferior grades in the market, she still netted a good profit from all her products.

PLAN No. 211. PICKLES AND RELISHES PRESERVED

She made immense quantities of the most delicious pickles and relishes. She made these from the very best recipes she could procure anywhere, and the product was so excellent that she was proud to have it known that it was due to her own skill in making everything just right.

The pickles and relishes she made of green tomatoes, and the profit on them even at her reasonable prices were great. Pickled cucumbers, cabbage, celery, onions, cauliflower, beets, beans, and a score of other garden growths, took up a large portion of her time and brought large returns, while chow-chow, pickalillie, and other appetizing relishes were in demand.

Like the famous “Pin-Money Pickles” of a southern woman who started on nothing, Snider’s Catsup, which was launched in a small way by a wife, and Heinz’s fifty-seven varieties, this farm lady’s articles were popular because she turned out only good products.

PLAN No. 212. HER POULTRY PLAN

An Ohio farm woman had learned, through experience, that there is no profit in scrubby poultry; that these birds eat as much as the high grade, and bring only the lowest prices in the market. She therefore weeded out the mongrels and substituted pure-breds. Instead of selling common eggs at the corner grocery for 20 cents a dozen, she was soon selling settings at $2.50 to $6, and had a fine lot of high-grade cockerels which not only matured early but showed greater size and bulk, and brought more per pound than the common ones. She also dealt in the best strains of ducks, geese, turkeys, etc., and these were very productive of cash returns, also.

A few ads. in farm and poultry journals brought many orders for pure-bred poultry and eggs.

PLAN No. 213. SELLS FLOWERS AND GARDEN SEEDS

This enterprising woman would never plant a seed of any kind except the very choicest variety, and the result was seen in the superior products of her orchard and garden. Not content with even this showing, she was continually experimenting in the cross-breeding of the most select specimens of plants, flowers, vegetables and fruits. For instance, through these methods she developed a climbing tomato vine. This vine was a thing of beauty and a wonderful producer, and she received big prices for a few seeds, as everyone who saw it was anxious to have some of the same kind in their own garden. Her sales from garden seeds alone often brought her as high as $500 in a single year.

PLAN No. 214. BEE-KEEPING

One would think this farmer’s wife would be busy enough without adding to her long list of home industries, but she realized that real honey is a luxury, for which people will pay good prices, so she installed a few colonies of bees and, with her usual thoroughness in all matters pertaining to the productiveness of the farm, she gave them that degree of care which is necessary in order to secure the best results. That orchard and garden proved a veritable paradise for the bees, and they well repaid their favorable surroundings with a yield of choice honey that not only supplied all the family needs but furnished several hundred pounds for sale at high prices every fall. As the colonies increased, so did the revenue they brought, and as but little labor or expense was involved in their keep, they returned very large profits.

PLAN No. 215. PICKLED PLUMS

Having a number of plum trees in the orchard that were loaded with fruit, she sold 800 or 1,000 pounds of them at good prices, and still having more of them than she could use, she pickled them, as follows: To every 7 pounds of plums, add 4 pounds of sugar and 2 ounces each of cinnamon stick and cloves, 1 quart vinegar and a little mace. Scald the vinegar and sugar together and pour over the plums. When the jar is full, scald all together, and they are then ready for use. One taste of these always made people want more.

PLAN No. 216. HOME-MADE FIRELESS COOKERS

Only those who have used fireless cookers can have any adequate conception of their practical value, or realize the manifold advantages their use affords. But fireless cookers, as they are made and sold today, are prohibitive in price to many people, costing, as they do, from $12 to $30 each, according to the number of “burners,” and thousands who would be glad to have them are obliged to go without.

It was an intimate knowledge of this condition that prompted an enterprising citizen in California to supply these people with fireless cookers which he could make in his own woodshed, and supply them at less than one-third the prices asked for the “boughten” ones. Anyway, he decided to make a few and see what could be done in the matter of sales.

He purchased a quantity of lumber one inch thick, and this he cut up into sufficient lengths to make wooden boxes 18 inches wide, 16 inches deep, and 18, 30 and 40 inches in length, with a hinged cover of the same materials as the sides, ends and bottoms of the boxes. The 18-inch boxes were for one burner, the 30-inch for two burners, and the 40-inch for 3-burner cookers.

He placed a thick layer of excelsior all around the inside of the box, holding this in place with burlap, long, slender nails being driven through the burlap and excelsior into the wood of the sides and ends, while a thick cushion of burlap and excelsior was made to fit over the tops of the kettles, and cushions of the same kind, made in circular form, to fit closely around each kettle as it set in the box. The bottom of the box was also fitted with a thick cushion of the same material. On this bottom cushion was laid a thick piece of soapstone, upon which the kettles rested, and this, when heated on top of the stove or range upon which the food in the kettles had been partially cooked, completed the cooking and retained the heat for an indefinite period. The air spaces left in the corners next to the circular cushions, he filled with excelsior.

He made arrangements with a wholesale hardware house for a special price on granite kettles of the proper size, in lots of 100 or more, so as to avoid the misfits that would result when housewives attempted to fit their own kettles into the circular spaces made to hold them, and he was thus able to make them uniform in size.

In order to first test the merits of his product, he made one of the 3-burner cookers and gave it a thorough trial in his own home. The demonstration was most convincing, and proved that the fireless cooker which he could turn out at a cost of not to exceed $3, was just as practical and effective as those made by the large manufacturers.

The 1-burner cookers, which cost him $2 to make, he decided to sell for $5; the 2-burner kind, costing him $2.50, at $7, and the 3-burner ones, that cost him $3, including the kettles, at $8.

He began by thoroughly canvassing his own town, and was surprised at the large number of orders received. The income from this work afforded him a very good living.

PLAN No. 217. CIVIL SERVICE AS A CAREER

SCOPE OF THE CIVIL SERVICE LAW

For the following valuable information we are indebted to the Federal
Board for Vocational Education.

This article was prepared by Herbert E. Morgan, of the United States
Civil Service Commission, at the request of Charles H. Winslow, Chief
of the Research Division of the Federal Board for Vocational
Education. Acknowledgment is due to Dr. John Cummings, of the Research
Division, for editorial assistance.

The adoption of a career is always a matter of great importance. To the discharged soldier, sailor, or marine who, through force of circumstances, must “begin again,” the particular place he will fill in the great army of the world’s workers is probably his chief concern. The purpose of this little pamphlet is to inform, in a general way, the men who made sacrifices in order that the world might remain a decent place to live in, as to what the United States Government has to offer in the civil branch in the way of employment for those who seek it, and the conditions under which it may be obtained.

THE GOVERNMENT A LARGE EMPLOYER

Our government is the largest employer in the world. The limits of its activities are those of the field of human endeavor. Before the United States entered the war nearly 500,000 persons were employed in the Federal civil service, about 300,000 of whom occupied positions classified under the civil-service law and rules. Of course the service was greatly expanded to meet the demands of war conditions. In a normal year about 40,000 appointments are made in the classified civil service. About one-tenth of the positions in the Federal civil service are in Washington, D. C., the balance being distributed throughout the country.

On January 16, 1883, Congress passed what is known as the civil service law. This act created the United States Civil Service Commission. The fundamental purpose of the law is to establish in the parts of the service covered by its provisions a merit system whereby selection for appointment shall be made upon the basis of demonstrated relative fitness without regard to political, religious, or other such considerations. To carry out this purpose a plan of competitive examinations is prescribed.

The term “classified service” indicates the parts of the service within the provisions of the civil service law and rules requiring appointments therein to be made upon examination and certification by the Civil Service Commission unless especially excepted from competition; the term “unclassified service” indicates the parts of the service which are not within those provisions and therefore in which appointments may be made without examination and certification by the commission. Under the law, positions of mere unskilled laborer and positions to which appointment is made by the President, subject to confirmation by the Senate, are in the unclassified service. Unskilled laborers in all branches of the service in some localities and in certain branches of the service in all localities are filled through competitive examination under regulations promulgated by the President.

Included in the classified service are positions in or under the departments and offices at Washington, D. C., the Custodian Service, the Customs Service, the Engineer Department at large, the Freedman’s Hospital, the Forest Service, the Government Printing Office, the Immigration Service, the Indian Irrigation and Allotment Service, the Indian Service, the Internal Revenue Service, the Land Office Service, the Lighthouse Service, the Mint and Assay Service, the National Military Park Service, the Navy Yard Service, the Ordnance Department at large, the Panama Canal Service, the Post Office Service, the Public Health Service, the Quartermaster Corps, the Reclamation Service, the Rural Delivery Service, the Railway Mail Service, St. Elizabeths Hospital, the Steamboat Inspection Service, the Subtreasury Service, the United States Penitentiary Service; and the position of fourth-class postmaster, except in Alaska, Canal Zone, Guam, Hawaii, Philippine Islands, Porto Rico and Samoa.

CHARACTER OF EXAMINATIONS