The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1905-03-17
PRICES Of FOOD
ARE GOING DOWN
Eggs and Butter Take a
Sudden Drop.
GREAT JOY FOR HOUSEWIFE
SEEMING of Milder Weather Has Effect
on Market Favorable to the
Consumer.
GREAT JOY FOR HOUSEWIFE

Let joy in the heart of the thrifty
house wife be unconfined! The reason:
lower prices in a number of food stuffsi
Moderate weather combined with the
marked decrease in the inauguration
crowd has been the cause of this change
This is especially the case in the egg
market
There are a great many more eggs
consumed during the Lenten season than
at any other time during the year. but
Notwithstanding this fact eggs are lower
now than they have been for some
weeks or even months Week before
last eggs were retailing at the price of
50 cents dozen, last week they were
p cents and this week they are TO be
had at the very reasonable price of 20
cents dozen, retail. Eggs are coming
IN from every direction and consequent
" they must be closed out as soon as
possible. Many of these eggs have
been affected by the cold and are in no
condition for storing and this is the
reason why merchants are not willing te
get overstocked
1t is thought by the commission mer-
chants that eggs will drop to is cents
in the next week or So
The Price of Butter.
Butter is another product that every
such a decided drop as eggs it has come
down no little bit. Butter that two
weeks ago was selling for 20 cents is
now selling for 30, and that which was
selling for b IS now selling for 80 1t is
not thought by persons in position to
know about such things, that this drop
In prices. will last for. any great length
of time for at any minute they are ex-
pected to take jump. There Is no
increase in production The grass in the
nearly all OF the feed saved up for the
winter has been exhausted and there
fore between now and the time when
the first grass grows there is apt to be
& sudden jump in higher prices.
Vegetables Not Changed.
Vegetable prices are not very much
changed with the possible exception OF
those shipped from Florida. These ship
ments are coming now IN large volume
and are consequently not very high.
Beans out OF these shipments are now
50 a barrel where week or so ago they
were Sl0; peas from the same source are
IS a barrel where a week or so ago they
were sl2 Apples are about the same as
they have been; if they have changed
any they are down. The most marked
change in the vegetable line is cabbages
which have gone up. They have increaS-
cd several dollars to the barrel and have
not much chance to come down until
the spring crop is brought forward. To-
the past few months have been IuXu-
ries for those living economically. They
have moderated very slightly in the last
few weeks. -
Shad Slowly Coming.
The shad receipts are now very light
/: is not expected that any Chesapeake
shad worth mentioning will be shipped
here for some weeks yet. Most of those
on the market now are from Florida
and North Carolina. There is very lit
tie change in the shad market Normal
prices will continue until about April
l. when they viii drop. This on ac-
count of the large number of Chesa-
peake shad that are expected about
then.
There is not much change in the
oyster trade. Prices remain about
what they have been. AS the present
supply has about been exhausted. il is
Thoughts that they will go UP in the
near future. < Most OF the oyster boats
have beer severely damaged by the
hard winter, and are now engaged in
running sand and gravel to Annapolis
and others have taken up any other
kind of business that promises remuner-
alton.
Clans are now very scarce, and vet
are in demand. Seventy cents hun
dred is being paid for them without the
least hesitation.