Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-10-31
BAKERS vIElVP DIN 7
Reasons Assigned for Ad-
vance in Cost Of Bread.
THE PRICE OF FLOOR
HIGHER IN uNITEDsyTATEs THAN
IN FOREIGN MARKETS.
Claim That Bread Produced Here is Of
Superior Quality-Local situa-
ton Discussed.

| several VI the prOprlet0fS OIL the larger
bakeries In this city, naturally interested
| in the recent advance in the price OF bread
and the subsequent discussion, have pre-
| pared a statement from, their viewpoint, in
which the local conditions are gone over
and reasons are given for the action taken
| by the local bread producers.
| The statement is as follows:
| From the statements published in the
daily papers recently it seems to US that
the papers and those who have been in
| terviewed by them are not fully ac-
| quainted with the situation which brought
about the change in the price of bread or
the reason that some bread is now sold at
grocery stores at q cents per loaf while
| other bread is sold for 5 cents per loaf.
| Flour now costs us 81. 10 per barrel more
| than we were paying for it when we had a
| fair profit in selling our bread at cents per
| loaf. Indeed, the profits in baking bread
| would certainly have been larger at that
| time If they would admit of paying 81. 40
more now and still make no change in our
| selling price or in the weight of bread sold.
| Flour from February till August was higher
| than usual, and early in August was 81 90
| per barrel above average price that
| would leave baker a fair margin. August
"a it was 81 IS per barrel above September
| IL 1t was 2.1O above, October it was $1.9
| above and since that time till now it has
| gradually become dearer.
Former Price of Bread.
| I'VE have sold bread at cents per loaf
when -four has been even higher than it is
| now, but the high prices then resulted from
| squeezes or corners in the wheat market
| by spectators and were generally under
| STOOD by buyers Of -four not to be of long
| duration, and when the spectators finished
| shearing the lambs prices have invariably
! dropped back to supply and demand level,
Wnen we could again buy flour at lower
prices.
The United States has heretofore been a
! large wheat and flour exporting country be-
cause we raised much more wheat here than
we required for home consumntion and re-
| CURED for seed to plant another years
| tlop. consequently our surplus was sold
10 foreign countries and in order to sell
TO foreign countries the prices of wheat and
nour IN this country had to be kept low
enough to attract the buyers in Lon
don. Liverpool, Bristol Glasgow and
oener large markets; but now the price
OF wheat and flour in the United States
Is actually higher than it is in those
| markets, to say nothing of expenses of
Ireight ana other expenses necessary to add
| 10 the price here in order to deliver there
You ask what has caused this change in
condition? The answer is that the Tinted
states Agricultural Department reports this
| years crop of wheat to be very short in
! quantity, and OF much poorer quality than
we usually raise, and the shortage of good
quallty wheat became SO apparent to grain
merchants and millers that many of them
| confidently predict that the crop this wear
will not be sufficient to meet the reoi1ire
ments for food for our own country and
| crop. --N'
Demand for Wheat Increased.
This has increased the demands to such
an extent from .mfllers wing fear they will
not be able to secure SUFFICIENT wheat later
on to run their mills that prices are no
| longer on basis to sell to our export trade
and consequently in September only 4.oo5.
| 1i3 bushels of whaat nd
from calculation to wheat bushels. were ex-
| ported out of the United States: while in
the same month last year A. $50 775 bushels
in wheat and flour We're sold abroad making
io'o44 So less shipped this year, owing to
| the nigh prices, than last year. Nearly all
| Of what was shipped this year was flour of
established trade brands that demand ex-
listed for and brought in foreign markets
prices above other countries products on
account of high quality. Buyers had to have
these brands at most any price
Duluth, Mimi, has imported Manitoba
wheat of high quality to help. by mixing
with our own wheat of poor quality to grade
| 1t nigh enough to make flour Twenty-Five
cents per bushel import duty had to be
Pa heat TO our our h on this Manitoba
the Washburn Milling Company in Minne-
apolis are reported to have applied to the
customs authorities to bond a large flour
mill for each company so they can grind
| Canadian wheat for export flour
| 1T is also reported that millers in Louis
VILE KY. have purchased 100000 bushels
or wheat out In oregon, and ordered it
| shipped to Louisville, and it is said the
! freight will cost them Csc. per bushel
| Don't you think these are different con-
| ditions from those existing when the spec
ulatlon alone put the market up for little
| while? And do you think under these con-
ditions the baker could have much hope for
relief in lower prices before we get another
! crop of wheat?
| I'VE will say, however, that as soon as
flour recedes to price where we can posi-
| bly, afford to reduce the price of bread we
| will do so, and we don't think anybody will
be unreasonable enough to ask us to do so
before then. We have tried to give you
proper and honest understanding why
| bread has advanced in price and feel that
you will see that the Washington bread
bakers are not responsible for the situation
which brought it about.
Present Condition Not New.
while this appears to be a new condi-
ton to many, it is not new to grocers and
bakers. There are in Washington and in
every large city a large number of baker,
les usually termed small BAKERS whose
bread generally is recognized by the deal
ers as not being of as good quality as
that delivered by the large bakeries, and
they have always, with rare exceptions,
sold their bread at l cent per loaf less
than larger bakeries prices. You ask
how could they afford to sell for less than
| the large establishments? Usually the
| proprietor of these small bakeries works
in the shop himself making bread, very
often his son or sons and wife assists or,
II neither, his help is usually not as skill
ed and is paid much less than ours. He
oftentime drives his own wagon and saves
the expenses of az salesman driver, and
he economies in every conceivable way
possible and it is very rare that he ever
gets beyond making bare livelihood.
! These so-called small bakers were
| selling bread last week to stores for
| cents per loaf. This week they are SELL
ing at cents per loaf. The large bakers
| were selling to stores Hast week at
| cents per loaf This week they are SELL
| ing it at cents. THE small baker has
raised his price 1 cent per loaf because
he was compelled Hof The large baker
| has only done the same There is now
| the same difference, as always. his bread
| the grocer sells at cents. our bread the
| grocer sells at 6 cents.
| Some people wanted the small bakers
| bread last week and Others wanted our
bread. Everybody knows what they like
| and whether one kind is better than an
! other. Let every one do as he pleases; it
| is his own prerogative
| Consumers Discriminating.
1--WE know that Washington consumers
are the most discriminating because
! there Is q larger proportion of people