The Jersey City news., 1902-02-20
EGGS ARE HIGH
Their Price Now Prohibits
Their Use in Many Fam
lilies Still Going Up.

Several facts have combined to run up
the price OF eggs to figures beyond the
reach Of the poor, and they thrsaten to
become scarce article of food on Ene
tables of the well-to-eo. Some of Nsv-
ark avenue dealers have actually stopped
handling them for the present, and others
claim they are retailing them at whcse-
sale prices in order to keep other trade
OF their customers The wholesale prices
have jumped from thirty and thirty-t NO
cents dozen since Saturday last Is tnir-
ty-seven and a half cents. and unless many
more eggs soon come upon the market,
the prices viii reach forty cents and go
even higher.
According to Newark avenue dealers the
storm and cod weather are primarily re-
sponsible for hens no. laying eggs. The
weather has moderated. and should It
continue doing so there win be plenty Of
eggs on the market in few more days,
and the price win take tumble quicker
than it rose. But the scientific weather
sharps predict another snowstorm To-
night. It seems that there were not so
many cold storage eggs on the market this
year as during preceding years and when
the hens stopped laying just while the
demand had been rendered infinitely
greater on account of Lent. the supply
soon ran out. Leading dealers say there
are no more cold storage eggs on the
market.
The wholesale price of fresh Western
eggs a year ago was seventeen cents per
dozen. 1t IS now considerably double that
amount. The retailer usually sells then
by the quarters month. Eight eggs for
twenty-five cents was found to be the
prevailing price. That means thirty
seven and one-half cents dozen. That
is what most of the dealers say it costs
them buying at wholesale. or course, he
takes care that he gets the one-half cent,
but that's all the profit ne does get.
Eight for quarter is what we are re-
falling them at" said the manager Of the
Empire Butter Company, to a News re-
porter last night, g and that's about what
we are paying for them There's no
profit, but we have to retain the other
trade of our customers. I don't know
how long this is going to continue-de-
pends upon the weather, l suppose. There
are no cold storage eggs on the market
That was what in former years We de-
pended on while a scarcity of the com
modify prevailed. The poor will not pay
the prevailing price. They can't afford
TO-. They spend their egg money for
fish, etc.
The manager of the Ceylon Tea Com
pany said: @We have sold out our sup-
ply and will 90 no further buying until
the prices come down. We would have
TO retail them at wholesale prices In or
der to keep up with competition
James Butler, grocer, of No. l02 New
ark avenue. corroborated what the other
dealers said as to prices. as did also
Albert Le Roy, of Newark and Railroad
avenues.
Mr.. Butler said he had read in soma
newspaper of an egg trust having been
formed in Chicago, but he said how
could 1t corner eggs? The idea was also
poo-pooed by Albert lie Roy, who said
that with the first spell Of well moder-
ated weather eggs would come flooding
the markets
Eggs are a luxury in New York and are
sold at five cents apiece in retail stores.
California teiegraphs that several car
loads OF eggs are ready for shipment TO
New York to be delivered here at twenty
three cents doxen but few dealers have
accepted the offer as they expect that
eggs will be plentiful enough before the
product of the Pacific slope reaches the
Atlantic coast.
The scarcity Of eggs in New York is
ccasioned by snow. which lies so deep
over most of the Middle and Southern
States that hens are unable TO get lime
from which they fern the shell.
Eggs at wholesale are quoted at thirty
five cents a d'ozsis