effected at post exchanges and commissaries where meat, butter, groceries, toilet articles, stationery, tobacco, clothing, gifts, and other articles can be purchased at prices under those charged through commercial sources.
The cost to the Army of clothing and shoes initially issued to an enlisted man, plus the cost of a year's replacements, furnished due to normal wear, averages $212, depending on his type of duty and location of his station.
At all Regular Army posts, and in many of the semi-permanent stations both here and overseas, such facilities as the following are available to soldiers and their dependents: service clubs, noncommissioned officer clubs, swimming pools, bowling alleys, tennis courts, baseball diamonds, motion picture theaters, and libraries. When any charge is made, the cost is only a fraction of what a civilian would pay.
More left over in soldier's pay
There's another important factor in considering a soldier's income. Good pay is not just the money in the pay envelope — it's the money left at the end of the month after bills are paid and expenses met.
Department of Labor figures show the average annual wage during 1945 in American manufacturing industries, including durable and nondurable goods was $2,300. That's about $191 cash a month. But an Army private with his $75 cash base pay actually will have more money left at the end of the month than the civilian.
This comparative table illustrates the monthly expenses for the average unmarried civilian and an Army private:
| |
EXPENSES |
| |
Civilian Worker |
Army Private |
|
Lodging
|
$30.00 |
$.00 |
|
Meals |
50.00 |
.00 |
|
Clothes |
15.00 |
.00 |
|
Medical, dental care |
5.00 |
.00 |
|
Insurance |
10.00 |
6.50 |
|
Income Tax |
22.00 |
.00 |
|
Transportation |
6.00 |
.00 |
|
Laundry, cigarettes, haircuts |
15.00 |
10.00 |
|
Incidentals |
10.00 |
10.00 |
| |
---------- |
---------- |
| |
$163.00 |
$26.50 |
