He would have still been able to make it, I think, on around £100 a year, but he would definitely be living less comfortably than he was used to. I definitely think the medical practice was an effort to make sure he had enough money to justify getting married (apparently men were expected to wait until they had a decent enough salary to marry... and I KNOW I saw a figure in one of my books but I can't find it! £100 was enough for a clerk to get married, but that would assume rising in the ranks and being pretty young, I'd think.)
I imagine he and Holmes split their fees before Watson's marriage. In whichever story Holmes deduces that Watson's been playing billiards by the chalk on his hand, he says that he keeps Watson's checkbook in his desk and Watson hasn't asked for the key... so I can only assume Holmes controlled their money. Later on, though, post-Hiatus, Watson says he spends half his pension on the races, and if he's not in practice, Holmes must be paying for most of their needs. But then again it seems to indicate that Holmes is pretty rich later on.
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I imagine he and Holmes split their fees before Watson's marriage. In whichever story Holmes deduces that Watson's been playing billiards by the chalk on his hand, he says that he keeps Watson's checkbook in his desk and Watson hasn't asked for the key... so I can only assume Holmes controlled their money. Later on, though, post-Hiatus, Watson says he spends half his pension on the races, and if he's not in practice, Holmes must be paying for most of their needs. But then again it seems to indicate that Holmes is pretty rich later on.
*LOVES this stuff!*