In the Nature of Educational Reform
Mr.Sloan did not want to perpetuate the disorders which stemmed from 
the alphabetically arrangement. Nor did he reverse the seating in his
other classes, but he began to badger the school's administration for
a mandate to bring about such changes throughout the building. He called
it the compensatory factors to neutralize the catastrophic effects of
the traditional policy. Soon, Mr. Sloan earned the appellation of 
"Mr. Backwards."

to bring home the bacon--The man's inability to bring home the bacon was 
the actual reason for the couple's incompatibility.
(to earn a living , to succeed.)