Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1894-10-12
KEEPING UP THE PRICE
The Wholesale Bakers Not Inclined to Give
Cheaper Bread
Evidence of n Combination Between
Employing and JOurneyman bakers
People Making Their Own Bread.

"holcSdic u tHlS city 10 reduce Ine
price Of the standard quality Of bread. In
| fact. those bakers who were INTERCEPTED
| by Star reporter this morning, upon this
point replied with decision that they had
not only declined to come down In the price
| of their main product, but they had no in
| tention Of making any concession whatever
| to the popular demand. They seemed to
| take pride and pleasure in the position that
they have maintained and appear to glory
| in the fact that there is such an iron
clad combination among employers and en-
ployes as to prevent a possibility Of action
which will lessen the profits Of the combi-
nation. They admit that there may be in
dfvfdual and isolated cases where some
small baker may reduce the price, but they
claim that 1t will have no effect upon any
one outside of his own handful Of custom
ers who call at the shop for their bread.
Making Their own Bread.
One result of The Stars agitation of the
bread question is said to be a marked in
crease in the retail sales of flour by the
grocers of this city. Many families who
had never before made an estimate We're
surprised to find that in buying their bread
from the baker they are paying at the rate
of $3.50 per barrel for their flour, whereas
first-class quality of flour can be bought
anywhere in this city at retail for $3.50 I
barrel This is flour made by the local mills
from wheat grown in Maryland and Viz
ginia, and which is selling at 40 and A
cents bushel. Any housekeeper can rap
idly figure the amount that can be saved On
a barrel of f1ou- at this rate. For $3.50
enough flour can be bought to make 2Jo
loaves of bread. An outside estimate of
the cost of the ingredients of a loaf Of
bread is one cent, divided as follows. Lard,
one-quarter of cent; yeast, one-quarter OF
cent; milk. one-quarter of a cent; sugar,
one-sixteenth of a cent, and three six
tppntS of for the making. This add
ed to the cost IF the flour makes the 30
loaves of bread cost SG.4o whereas by buy
ing from the baker they cost $3.50. More
over, 1t is claimed that pound loaf OF
homemade bread contains more solid sub
stance. and will so further than pound
loaf of bakers bread.
Many people have taken the pains to in
form The Star that the claim of the bakers
that she quality OF the bread in Washing
ton is better than in other cities is not
founded on fact. They say that this is
entirely erroneous, and that, furthermore,
better bread is sold in some cities for less
money. In st. Louis, for instance, one can
buy three loaves of bread for 10 cents, said
to be equal in every respect to the standard
leaf of Washington. With such a coSmo-
poiitan population that Washington pos
sesses, comprising people from every sec
tioD of the country, It is not an easy matter
for the bakers to endeavor to persuade the
people that this city gets quality of the
great staple of life superior to that furnish
ed anywhere else.
Employers and Employees Combine.
One notable feature of the agitation which
is now Oh is the marked change which has
occurred in the tone Of the journeymen
bakers. Before the first publication of the
series Of articles in The Star upon the sub
ject a Star reporter talked with both the
employers and the journeymen bakers. In
conversation with the reporter, when the
less was not around, journeymeE worke
who are supposed to have practical idea
OF the ccst of making bread, admitted free
ly their opinion that under present condi-
tons bread can be furnished at u lower
price. Now, however, the journeymen en-
plOyed by the large bakers unite in de-
claring that 1t will be impossible to lower
the price of bread
This change is said to have been the result
of what probably amounts to coercion on
the part of the employers Word was
passed around among the men that if the
price of bread should be reduced there
would be an immediate cut in wages The
effect OF the threat is already apparent
The employers and the men have Joined
hands to resist the demand for cheaper
bread.
Bakers Figures.
Messrs. Berens & Son, who supply bread
in wholesale quantities, maintain that no
reduction can be made in the price of
bread. and that the only way the demand
for cheaper bread could be met would be
for the bakers to agree to increase the
weight
Il will give you statement of the cost
of bread" said Mr.. Berens to a Star re-
porter today. "One baker is supposed to
make up two barrels of -four in a day.
which Will produce 100 loaves, for which
we receive go. The expenses of the baking
are follows: $50 for the flour; 81 80 for
the milk, lard, etc; $50 to the baker for
his labor. and s. TO the driver for selling
the bread. That's Sl4.5o, making our APP
ms. I'M
that Is not all; out of that must be paid
the rent Muscular eous wages, coal and
wood, horse feed, wear and tear on the ma
chinery, light and the numberless miscel-
Ian eOuS expenses of Sucn an establishment
When all Of these are taken into considera-
ton 1t is simply Impossible to make bread
and sell it at l cent loaf less than we
are getting now.
1T costs more to deliver the bread now
than 1t did two years ago." continued Mr.
Berens. I'm former years one man did the
work OF three men, the baker made the
bread, and then took il out and sold it.
Now we have to have a baker TO bake the
bread, a driver to sell ii and another driver
to make a second trip during the day to
supply the people with hot bread. This sec
ond driver is an extra expense, because he
does not sell any more bread inasmuch as
the people buy a portion of their daily sup
ply IN the morning and the rest of il in the
afternoon, SO as to get ii hot.
Why Not Two Ioavss for Seven Cent. .
To the Editor of The Evening Star:
In relation to the bread question, in be-
half of the suffering people numbering
thousands of men out of employment, |
wish to suggest that instead of advocating
cents for o loaf of bread it should be two
loaves for cents. For the last two years I
have been paying cents for two Ioayes
buying from three different bakers and in
my opinion the bread is equally as good 8
the standard 5-cent loaf. Let all of the big
bakers furnish bread at that price. j. r.
More Bread for the Money.
To the Editor Of The Evening Star:
The Star has not yet succeeded in reduc-
ing the price Of bread. but It has done good
in some cases, as / bought a loaf of bread
today of one of the prominent bakers of
| this city and found ii to weigh nearly nine
teen ounces. Your suggestion to the citi-
Zens to look for weight if they cannot OBJ
tain reduction in price is a good one
SUBSCRIBER
What Mr.. RudlOG Said,
To the Editor Of The Evening Star:
You credited me of making a statement in
the Federation of Labor as fatty contradict
iLg the claims of the employing bakers.
This is not quite so. have only contradict
ed the statements made of enc certain boss
baker, who claims to pay SI7 average