Exactly!
I can just about guarantee my wife would clobber me good if I got her a vacuum for Christmas! Me on the other hand, depending on the make and model of said vacuum, I'd probably be quite happy with it! I think the prices was what surprised me the most, I found this in a 1940 Sears and Roebuck Christmas catalog, so nearly $30 back then would be quite an investment in its day! I believe it had the same buying power as approximately $508 today! That will buy a rather decent vacuum!!