The times., 1898-11-03
THE CHEAPER BREAD war
Price Must Be Reduced, Is the
Peoples Cry.
BAKERS PROFITS TOO LARGE
The Consumers Earnest I'm Their De-
mand-The Manufacturers May He
men VIII Lose Nothing If the
Staple Is Reduced In Price.

The demand for cheaper bread voiced
by the people of Washington grows in
| force each day, and judging from the
present outlook the bakers will be COM
PEELED to accede to the demands of the
consumers and reduce the price of a
loaf at least l cent.
The publication in The Times of yes
terday relative to the demand for a re-
| duction In the price of bread has aroused
much enthusiasm among the great mass
of people to whom bread is life and the
| expose of the enormous profits made by
bakers caused no little comment.
The figures given have served to
strengthen the people in this struggle for
justice, and in view of the fact that the
| average baker can reap royal profit
even after cutting the price of bread l
cent per loaf. they are more than ever
determined that a reduction shall be
made in the near future.
The bakers of the city have not yet Of
fered any good argument to show why
the price of bread should not be reduced,
nor are they willing to explain why they
could not sell three-cent loaf at profit
| when flour is but $3.50 per barrel, when
last year they made q great deal of
money on four-cent loaf when flour was
then selling for more than 50 per barrel.
Several bakers were visited and request
ed to give some reasons why bread should
not be reduced when -four. costs so little,
but all were reticent and refused to s.
cuss the matter on any terms. One baker
held that no good baker would discuss
his business in public any more than he
t,,ta n &c alra
house. No baker will give figures of the
actual expense of converting barrel of
flour into loaves of bread, but when it
is realized that the baker buys barrel
of -four for $3.50 and often for less, and
sells 1t for anywhere from $40 to Sl2, and
frequently for more. ii can be easily seen
that the profits are enormous.
The retailers are naturally with the
people in this struggle. Even though the
loaf is reduced one cent, they Will still
retain the one cent profit by selling the
loaf to the consumers for four cents,
which now sells for five cents. They are
inclined to believe that the reduction
would benefit them, as they would sell
more bread at the four-cent rate.
Nearly all the bread used by consumers
is purchased from grocery stores. Many
of the grocerymen are OF the opinion that
, owing to the very low price of flour
number of the bakers in the city will
! grant the reduction without much grumb-
/ ling, but there are several large firms
which will have to be forced to grant the
one cent cut.
1.-THE trouble is" said storekeeper
Yesterday, that one baker will not grant
| the cut unless he is assured that every
! baker in the city will agree to 1t and that
| the price will be uniform everywhere.
! Now, there are one or two of the larger
| bakers who are certain to stand OF until
| they are pushed into the agreement and
| these people may cause trouble IN having
| the price reduced"
II is well known that the bakers get
anywhere from 225 to $50 loaves of bread
from each barrel of -four. Some of them
manage to run much higher than ihis,
but granting fair weight this is a reason
able average. Giving the baker $40 for
his bread when the -four and expense
amounts TO but about $3.50 is rather more
than the people care to stand. 1t is
argued, by those who claim to know,
that did the people get bread for four
cents the baker would still make hand
| some profit
Flour has dropped TO less than one
| third its value twelve months ago, yet
| bread remains at the same high figure 1t
| did then. This is the main reason given
| nv the people for a reduction of one cent
| per loaf.
The bakers do not deny that they can
afford to sell bread for the present price
even though -four increased three-fold in
value, therefore 1t is meet that they
give up a fraction of their high profits
that the people be fed and have copper
| left for butter or syrup.
Much questioning was done in the gro
Gerry stores of the city yesterday by the
people anxious for the 1-cent reduction.
They are determined to avail themselves
| of what they consider their just rights
and 1t is claimed they will not use the
bread OF a baker who refused their just
demand for an equitable reduction.
The first baker to accede to the popu-
lar reduction will be forced to enlarge
mis- stores. The last baker to hold out
against the people will be forced to close
his doors. This is the way those who
| consume bread thought and talked yes
terday and they expressed themselves in
such a way as to leave no doubt as to
their meaning and determination.