INCOME AND CAPITAL

the case of foods that keep, such as flour, preserved foodsand canned goods. These we may buy in one year but notuse until a later year, and in such cases the money givenfor the food might almost be said to be invested ratherthan spent, like the money given for a house. A man whobuys a basket of fruit and eats it within an hour is cer-tainly spending his money for the enjoyment of eatingthe fruit. But, if he buys a barrel of apples in the fall tobe eaten during the winter, is he spending his money oris he investing it for a deferred enjoyment? Theoretically,the barrel of apples is an investment comparable to ahouse or any other durable good. Practically it is classedas expenditure, although it is a border-line case.

Spending and investing differ only in degree, dependingon the length of time elapsing between the expenditureand the enjoyment. To spend is to pay money for enjoy-ments which come very soon. To invest is to pay moneyfor enjoyments which are deferred to a later time. Wespend money for our daily bread and butter or for a seatat the theater, but we invest money in the purchase ofbonds, farms, dwellings, or automobiles, or even of suitsof clothes.

§5. Measuring at the Domestic Threshold

In practice, we can estimate with fair accuracy in allordinary cases how much of what we pay is for this year’suse. That is to say, we can find out pretty nearly our costof living for the year. We need only reckon what is spenton personal articles and services—on everything whichenters our dwellings (or enters us), food, drink, clothes,furniture, household rent, fuel and light, amusements,and so on, our “bread and butter”—exclusive of what isleft over for future years, such as what we pay for

[ 9 ]