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Editor's Note: Frankly, we do not like the word "cripple." It seems to carry implications we do not wish to have applied to us. It seems to convey not only the idea of physical disability but the sense of a different mental attitude, setting a "cripple" apart from normal folks. It implies dependence, instead of independence.

If you have a physical handicap and want to be happy, don't let others do things for you which you can do for yourself. Don't slip into the habit of being waited on. Be independent. Analyze the services you require of others and figure out a way to perform them for yourself.

On this page, is an article about home elevators. These mechanical aids are among the many which may make life better for parals. Any contrivance which allows a greater degree of independence, contributes in the same degree to a mental attitude that makes "crippledom" impossible.

FROM a paral's point of view, the home elevator has two main advantages. First, it has the physical advantage of great labor saving, both to himself and to members of his family. Second, it has the other less tangible advantage of allowing him greater freedom. He has the run of the house, and so feels less set apart from other people, less a cripple.

The home elevator is available in a number of different types. It is also applicable in a number of different ways, so that almost any home, new or old, may be equipped. It is, of course, easier with some types to make the installation at the time the house to built. There are, however, several other kinds that can be installed quite easily in houses already built.

The more common type of elevator is the shaft type, such as is used in office buildings, made on a much smaller scale for the private home. The shaft required varies from about 3 1/2 feet square to about 5 1/2 x 5 1/2 feet, depending on the size of cab wanted. This shaft may be constructed in an old house by enclosing it in a corner of a room or in a hallway. The matter of shaft construction can be handled by any building contractor.

Given the shaft then, you have the choice of hand powered and electrically powered designs. The hand powered is much cheaper. It has the disadvantage of requiring more work and of being considerably slower than the electric type. However, the counter-weight may be so nicely balanced to the load that the amount is really very slight, a pull of 2 or 3 pounds on a rope being enough to operate the car.

The electric type has the greater speed and ease of operation. There is the additional complication of floor leveling, which is usually accomplished automatically.

There is another type of shaft elevator which may be used wherever there is an open stairwell. This consists of a small, very light cage for operation on a single post shaft, going up and down the open stairwell.

The other type of elevator commonly used in homes is, the incline type, employing a small car on a platform, which, balanced by a counter weight, operates up and down a rail placed at the side of a straight staircase. This type is applicable only to the straight staircase, as it cannot take turns. However, where it can be used, it is very satisfactory and economical. It is available only in the electrically powered design.

It is difficult to give figures on the total costs of elevators as these will necessarily depend on the price of installation. However it may be said that the cost will vary between about $700 and $1,400 for an electrically powered elevator. The hand powered elevator can be installed at a cost considerably below these figures. A rough estimate of the daily cost of the home elevator of the electric type, allowing interest in the investment, deprecation and upkeep, is about 50c a day.

Before buying any elevator it is wise to investigate thoroughly the braking and other safety devices employed. These must be simple in construction, sure in operation, and so complete as to protect against all possible sources of accident.

The Architectural and Mechanical Hints Group of the National Patients' Committee, Warm Springs, Ga., has on file complete information provided by manufacturers of the different types of home elevators. The Group will be glad to answer any questions and will be glad to refer any inquiry to the manufacturers able to answer them.