In our school days in the 1950s and 1960s, paper and stationery use were important especially in large families that worked hard to make both ends meet. In our family, for instance, we were given strict instructions by elders not to leave any blank space in notebooks (‘Open Page’, “Go for the blank space”, June 9). Any blank space was later combined with other such papers and bound afresh into small rough notebooks 4 inches by 5 inches in size. There were occasions when the opening side of a notebook and the pages thereafter were used for one subject, with the reverse end (upside down) used for another subject. I still remember how some of us did combined studies in mathematics. We used chalk pieces to work out the problems on a red oxide floor in order to save paper, and then used a duster cloth to wipe off our work. The ‘use with care’ habit was reflected in postcard writing too.
Seshagiri Row Karry,
Hyderabad
