Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1892-08-18
SENATE REPORT ON RETAIL
PRICES AND WAGES.

We are under obligations to
Senator Sawyer for copy of the
Report of the Senate committee
on Finance bearing upon Retail
Prices and Wages" The report
is in response to a Senate Resolu-
ton of Mar. 3, 1891, which direct
ed the committee, Subcommittee
or otherwise, to ascertain in every
practicable way, and to report from
time to time to the Senate, the
effect of the tariff laws upon the
imports and exports, the growth,
development, production and
prices of agricultural and manu-
featured articles, at home and
abroad; and upon wages, domestic
and foreign"
The present, which is submitted
as a partial report is closely
printed pamphlet of I35 pages,
bristling with columns Of figures
and an endless array of statistics,
and is most important contri-
button to our knowledge Of the
bearing of the Mckinley tariff as it
effects the progress of the people
of the country and the changes
which have taken place from time
to time in their condition.
The first step in the retail price
investigation was the preparation
of list of articles for which prices
were to be obtained and the
superintendent of this depart
ment was given to Mr.. Carroll
Wright, Commissioner of the
Department of Labor. The ma
chinery of the Department was at
once set in motion and the report
shows data collected from one
million, two hundred and thirty
seven thousand, eight hundred and
eighty-three quotations. All this
vast mass of statistical information
has been tabulated, condensed and
reduced to the proportions of the
pamphlet mentioned. AS the pur-
pose of this inquiry was to ascer-
tain the changes, if any, that had
taken place within the period
covered by the investigation in the
cost of living of the great mass of
the people of the country it was
determined to make such selection
as would fairly represent the entire
expenditure by families in ordinary
circumstances for all the articles
entering directly or indirectly into
the cost of living. The cost was
divided for convenience into the
following groups: food, cloths and
clothing, fuel and lighting; home
furnishing goods; drugs and
chemicals; metals and implements;
lumber and building materials.
In the summer Of 1891 DR..
Falkner, Professor Of statistics in
the University Of Pennsylvania
was selected as the statistician oil
the committee. In the limited space
at our disposal we cannot give
the tables, the processes, the analy-
sis by which conclusions are
reached, or do more than pause to
admire the admirable methods
employed and the calm, judicial,
bipartisan manner displayed in
presenting the facts as they appear
but will suffice to say that this re-
PORTS a most complete and thor
ough refutatiOn of the Democratic
charge that the Mckinley law has
increased the cost of living or low
cred the rate of the wages of labor
Says the report:
COST OF LIVING.
These tables show the relative cost OF
living on the LIST of September, 1891
and on the first of each of each of the
intervening months, compared with the
initial period and the comparative
effect with the course of prices in each
of the articles or groups had upon the
cost of living during the period.
1t appears as the final result, as
shown by all of these tables, that the
cost of living of family in ordinary