The Year 1908

"The Year 1908"*

*The year was 1908.
One hundred years ago.
(ok, 99 for those obsessed with minuscule details}
What a difference a century makes!

Here are some statistics for the Year 1908 :

The average life expectancy was 47 years.

Only 14 percent of the homes had a bathtub.

Only 8 percent of the homes had a telephone.

There were only 8,000 cars and only 144 miles of paved roads.

The maximum speed limit in most cities was 10 mph.

The tallest structure in the world was the Eiffel Tower!*

*The average wage in 1908 was 22 cents per hour.

The average worker made between $200 and $400 per year .

A competent accountant could expect to earn $2000 per year,
A dentist $2,500 per year, a veterinarian between $1,500
and $4,000 per year, and a mechanical engineer about $5,000 per year.

More than 95 percent of all births took place at /HOME/ .*

*Ninety percent of all doctors had /NO COLLEGE EDUCATION!/*/_

_/*Instead, they attended so-called medical schools,
many of which were condemned in the press AND
the government as 'substandard. '

Sugar cost four cents a pound.

Eggs were fourteen cents a dozen.

Coffee was fifteen cents a pound.

Most women only washed their hair once a month,
and used Borax or egg yolks for shampoo.

Canada * *passed a law that prohibited poor people from
entering into their country for any reason.

Five leading causes of death were:_
_1. Pneumonia and influenza
2. Tuberculosis
3. Diarrhea
4. Heart disease
5. Stroke

The American flag had 45 stars.

The population of Las Vegas , Nevada*, *was only 30!!!

Crossword puzzles, canned beer, and ice tea hadn't been invented yet.

There was no Mother's Day or Father's Day.

Two out of every 10 adults couldn't read or write.

Only 6 percent of all Americans had graduated from high school.

Marijuana, heroin, and morphine were all available
over the counter at the local corner drugstores. Back
then pharmacists said, /'Heroin clears the complexion,
gives buoyancy to the mind, regulates the stomach
and bowels, and is, in fact, a perfect guardian of health.'
/( Shocking? DUH! )*

*Eighteen percent of households had at least one full-time servant or
domestic help.

There were about 230 reported murders in the ENTIRE U.S.A. !
*
*Try to imagine what it may be like in another 100 years.

... can see it already
Received on Tue Jan 6 09:10:42 2009