The Efficient Kitchen Definite Directions for the Planning, Arranging and Equipping of the Modern Labor-Saving Kitchen

Fascinating turn of the 20th century housekeeping bible, richly illustrated.


"In this spirit we started on a determined quest for information and new resources. We took lessons in cooking to see whether the Domestic Science schools had any wonderful wisdom to impart in the direction of "better food for less money." We studied courses in Home Economics. We read books. We visited cooking laboratories and practise houses. Finally we came to the Housekeeping Experiment Station at Darien, Conn.


Here at last we found what we had been seeking: an inexpensive but charming home which had been so transformed by engineering skill that it could be cared for with the minimum expense, and so equipped that it could be operated with the smallest possible amount of effort. Here we learned of two wonderful resources for preparing food, adapted to the income of the average home. Here we heard of Taylor's wonderful book on Scientific Management, which has been revolutionizing the business world. And here we saw two old people living happily an ideal life in which labor and culture each had its rightful place. At last science and high ideals had transformed "villain kitchen vassalage" into the noble profession of home-making.


The resources which Mr. and Mrs. Barnard had developed were suited to the needs of two people living simply in the country, free from the demands of city life, and free from all the subtle complications which constantly arise in larger households, particularly in homes where there are little children. But back of their work was a great idea, and this idea was applicable to any home and to any income. "Do not try to do efficient work in an inefficient house. First transform your conditions." This is one of the first principles of engineering; and, strange as it may seem, the very last principle applied in the average home."-From the Introduction