The Cairo bulletin., 1907-04-30
]. s. SHOWS GAIN I
IN LIVING COST.
REPORT SAYS NEARLY EVERY
THING BUT SOAP AND PLUG
TOBACCO ARE HIGHER.
PRICES STEADILY CLIMB
In All Lines According to Statistics
BY observation-disclosures OF Sc
Per Cent and 1905; sos
over 1897.

Washington, April 29.--The Bureau
OF Labor has taken another look into
the cost of living and it finds ii is still
increas ng Its latest examination had
10 do with wholesale prices only il
Is nowmaking study of retail prices
The investigation just completed
shows that wholesale prize $. consid-
ering 25S Commodities as a whole
reached a higher level in 1906 than AT
any other time during the seventeen
years period GOV red The average
for the year 1906 was So per cent
higher tina for 1905 365 per cent
higher than for 1897. the year of low
est prices during the seventeen y ar
period, and 224 per cent higher than
the average for the ten years from
| 1890 to 1899
Prices reached their highest point
ldcring The seventeen year period in
| December. 1906 the average for that
month being A. per cent higher than
tn average for the year 1856. and G.5
per cent higher than the average for
December. 1905
Price of Drugs Decreased.
The study Of the bureau was extend
to farm products. foods clothe
and clothing fuel and lighting. metals
and implements. lumber and building
material. drugs and chemicals. house
furnishing goods and miscellaneous
commodities Only two or the nine
groups showed decrease In price as
compar. with 1905 farm products
and drugs and chemicals Seven
groups showed an increase in prices,
this increase reaching 1914 per cent
in the case of metals and implements.
and SO per nj In the case of lumber
and building materials.
The average price for 1906 Of farm
products, taken as whole. differs but
little from hat Of 1905. decrease of
only one half of one per cent being
shown. Food as whole increased 3.5
compared with 1905. The principal
art Giles showing an increase were
cheese fish. fruit, hog products milk
rice and vegetables s. No change took
place In the price OF bread. A slight
decrease in the wholesale cost OF
coffee. eggs. wheat. flour. cornmeal,
beef sugar an dlea is shown.
OF the seventy-five articles inelud-
ed mp der clothes and clothing. sixty.
six showed an increase in price. five
showed no change and only four
showed decrease. In fuel and light.
ing. as a group there was an increase
in price of per cent There was an
advance in the price of anthracite
coal of domestic sizs S. coke and petro-
eum. and decrease in candies. brok.
en- anthracite coal and bituminous
coal. There was greater increase In
price for metals and implem nts than
any Other group. In this group the
increase for 1906 ovey 1905 was 1914
per cent.
Tools and Nails Are Higher.
OF a total of thrty-elght articles
in the group there was an incr ase in
price of twenty-nine articles. includ-
ing tools, barbed wire. copper. lead
and pig iron. nails, silver. tinplates,
etc Twenty-four Of The thirty-seyen
articles included under lumber ami
build ne material increased in price
in 1906. The only three articles that
showed a crease were pine doors
linseed oil and CHARTERED oak. Ia the
gro as a whole there was an in
crease in price OF &c per cent.
The only one of nine groups und ,
consideration that decreased in price
to any considerable extent was that OF
drugs and chemicals In this groul
there was decreas OF - per cent
= House furnishing : DDS as a whole
increased IL per cent in price. Tn,
increase in the general az rage ot
, price in this group was caused by IN,
iEcrease in the price Of wooden fur
niture.
There was no change in ia price
of smoking tobacco and there was q
decrease in the price Of soap. new.
and wrapping paper. rubber and plua
tobacco Taken toge her the group
of misc llaneous articles increased : 4
per cent.