Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1894-10-25
fcient in weight, bread shall be added to

| tile party SUNG tnereO1.
| Sec. 7. The four preceding sections shall
not apply to rolls or to fancy bread weigh
| Ing less than one-quarter of pound.
| IL Is safe to say that most of the above
| provisions would be news to the majority Of
| Boston bakers, and certainly sections and
are absolute dead letters. There are no
| cards, as above described, in the bakers
| windows, and If a dealer were to weigh
| bread In the presence of customers before
| selling 1t, he would break down the pre-
| sumption Of honesty and make them sus-
| picious at once. There may have been in
| stances since the law was enacted where
| the forfeit of $40 for each violation has been
| exacted, but few people, even in the trade,
| recall them. AS a matter Of fact, bakers
| have run the thing about as they pleased,
| Tor the simple reason that the public, indif-
| ferent and uniformed, have not insisted
| upon the requirements provided by law.
| The loaf of bread, as commonly under
| stood, is more often the half or one-pound
| loaf than the legal two-pound loaf. The
two-pound loaf is usually sold in two one
| pound sections The regular retail price of
| the one-pound or half loaf is cents, and
any variations from that figure are merely
| concessions to special customers or classes
| of customers,
| There cannot fairly be said to have been
| any reduction in the retail price of bread
| during the past three years. Such varia-
| lions as now occur from the standard price
| have always occurred, and always will oc-
| cur, so long as the seller is free to make
| concessions to the buyer
| 1t Is claimed, however by some bakers
| that there has been an increase of weight
| within the past three years. Some especial
| ly honest dealers claim that they are now
| making bread up to the full legal weight
| a thing that, from their manner of speak
| ing, questioner must inevitably infer, is
reform of recent date. But even in these
| cases quite a large percentage of bakers
| interpret the law to mean the weight of
the dough rather than the baked loaf
Il always give good weight" said a baker
TO me this morning. Il make every half
loaf weigh full pound before Ii is baked
and each loaf will bake out about one
ounce while In the oven"
The prevailing rates of wages for Journey
men bakers is 81 week, for foremen SIS,
though some journeymen get high as
Sl4, and others as little as SI1. The wages
of foremen range from SIG to $40 q week. The
wages of journeymen have not changed
in the last five years, but the increasing
demand for bakers bread has given them
steady employment, and this has served to
steady, If not to increase, the price of their
labor.
In the last two years, a baker told The
Star correspondent today, not only has the
price of flour and sugar been reduced, but
the cost of eggs, pork, lard and butter have
decreased nearly one-half. Boston bakers,
then, within the past ten years, or at least
since the law regulating the price and
weight of bread was enacted, have profited
by reduction in material amounting to
fully one-half it's cost, and all that they
claim 10 nave done IN return is TO nave
brought the loaf up to its legal weight. 1t
is hardly to be expected that they would
voluntarily increase the weight of a loaf
above the legal standard, for human nature
isn't built that way, even in Boston. Com
petition might have reduced the price, but
1t doesn't seem to have done so.
Cincinnati a Fiyc-Cent Town.
Correspondence of The Evening Star.
CINCINNATI, October "a, 1894
cit hSa Ia LAT ba ciz
weight or quality of the bread furnished
by bakers. Neither is the subject very
well regulated by custom, as II is con-
trolled almost wholly by competition. The
average weight, however, is about sixteen
ounces. Some bakers overrun that an
ounce, while some others drop an ounce or
two. The retail price is cents a loaf.
A few years ago 1t was 10 cents, then
dropped to s, but for number of years IL
has remained steadily at 3. Within the
past few years, that is, since the price of
flour has been greatly reduced, the weight
of the loaf given for 5 cents has been
materially increased, being now almost
double what it was three or four years
ago. The rate of wages paid to journey
men bakers is uniform, being governed by
the union. Bench men receive $12 per
week and oven men $40.
A Bread Crusade in st. Louis.
Correspondence of The Evening Star.
ST. LOUIS, October 81, 1894
Taking the cue from Washington, local
papers here have begun a crusade against
bakers who persist in charging 1891 prices
for 1894 bread.
Investigation has developed some inter-
esting facts. Although the price of flour in
st. Louis is little more than half what 1t
was in 1912, the size of the loaf of bread
remains the same, in most cases the price
not having been reduced to either the con-
sumer or the middle man. There are ex-
ceptions to this rule, however In some
few instances the retailer is enabled to
sell three loaves for 10 cents of a bread
little under the standard weight-the
bread. in other words, that has been
known as siX-for-a-quarter stock. This is
not great reduction, as such bread has
long sold at the rate of % loaves for a
dollar.
Three sizes besides the loaf just referred
to are sold here at the following prices:
Two for a nickel, one for a nickel (stan-
dard) and 10 cents. The nickel loaf is Just
twice the size Of the smallest loaf baked,
and slightly larger than the loaf some
dealers are now selling at three for 10
cents. The 10-cent loaf is double the size
of the scent loaf.
There is no law governing their weight.
but by common consent their weights are
as follows: First size. u ounces second
size (standard), twenty-four ounces; third
size forty-eight ounces. The sizes of the
All bakers do not manufacture them
The wages of bakers here, where the
union is not strong, varies. The average
is about IS a week, with board. Their
hours are long, but not uniform. Those
who are boarded by their employers usually
find their own lodgings. In some of the
very large bakeries the men both board and
ledge themselves, and their wages range
from SD to SIS, their hours from nine to
twelve. Wages have not been increased
lately.
LOavcs and Prices in Philadelphia.
Correspondence of The Evening Star.
PHILADELPHIA, October "a. 1894.
There are no specific regulations as to
the weight OF loaf of bread in Pennsyl-
vanla. Years ago an act of Legislature was
passed requiring that loaf of bread should
weigh one pound. All that Is required now
is that bread shall be sold by weight. The
weight of the loaves varies in Philadelphia
from one to three pounds each. The gen.
eral weight of bread is one pound and bak-
ers of Philadelphia make 1t this as near as
possible.
The retail price of bread per loaf varies
according to its quality. For a pound loaf
the bakers get 2 IL cents, or rather sell
two loaves for cents. This is known as
homemade bread. The average price per
pound for very good quality bread is
cents. Some large loaves sell for cents