The Calumet news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 1907-1938, 1910-04-12
get FACTS ON
LIVING COSTS
New Senate Inquiry Will Collect
Price Statistics All Over
Country.
WILL HAVE UNLIMITED SCOPE
Data As to Prices and Incomes for the
Last Ten Years To Be Secured in
Cities Where Costs Are
Standardized.

Washington, April 12.-DisgusteC
with the futility of the work done thu,
far in the cost of living investigation
the Senate Committee. which has beer
looking into that matter, has voted tC
extend the investigation and to collect
matter in ways that have not hereto
fore been attempted. 1t has determin-
ed to accept a plan prepared for the
organization by f. c. Croxton, a spe-
cial agent who was early retained by
the committee, and to lay before the
a plan OF inquiry involving the collec-
ton OF price statistics i'm the field and
estimated to require the expenditure
of about s65,OOO.
The new investigation is to include
| first of ALL study of producers prices
and will cover the price paid to the
producer on the first of January. Feb
ruary March, April, May and June
OF each year from 1900 to 1901 inclu-
sive. Statements are to be secured
from forty buyers in selected localities
for each of the following articles:
Barley, corn oats, rye. wheat, cattle,
hogs. sheep, cotton, hay. wool, cream.
milk, eggs, poultry, onions and pota-
toes.
A study of wholesale prices will also
be undertaken and there will be col
lection of prices for 1909 and for the
first four months of 1910, continuing
the prices collected by the Bureau OF
Labor for the years from 1890 to
1908. The Bureau of Labor has, how
ever, begun collecting these prices for
1909. ard will continue pushing the
matter as rapidly as possible without
cost to the committee. II is thought TO
be advisable that the committee shall
compile the Bureau material in s,ich
a way that prices for the early months
of 1910 can be brought into comparison
with the prices for corresponding
months OF previous years from 1897
to 1910. In addition to the prices Sc
cured by the Bureau of Labor the
thought, prices at wholesale for each
year from 1897 to 1910 for binders,
harrows, hay rakes mowers. pitch
forks. plows. shovels and wagons.
Prices paid by the consumer are also
to be investigated as paid on the first
of January, February. March, April,
May and June of each year, from 1900
to 1910, fof all articles covered by the
Senate resolution, except rent and
some kinds of clothing. for which
items 1t is considered practically inn
possible to secure reliable figures
Various kinds of cloth are carried in
place of clothing. Every article in
cluded in the retail list is also includ-
ed in the wholesale list. The prices for
all articles except agricultural imple-
ments are expected to be secured from
four Establishments in each of twenty
selected cities. The stores are to be
those largely patronized by wage earn
ers The list of articles to be inquir-
ed into covers beans, bread. butter.
cheese, coffee, eggs, fish, -four fruit,
lard, meal, bacon. beef Qresh and salD,
hams. mutton, pork, milk, molasses,
poultry. rice. salt, sugar, tea, vege-
tables clothes and clothing ready made.
blankets. ginghams, hats, hosiery
shirtings, sheetings, shoes, women's
dress goods brick, cement, doors, lime,
linseed oil, lumber of all kinds, oxide
hi fttrnantina
white lead, window glass, coal, petro-
leum. binders. harrows. hay ral<es
pitchforks plows, shovels wagons, etc.
Data as to wages. salaries. etc, as
well as concerning hours OF labor, are
to be secured from at least 10 estab-
lishments i'm each OF the following
classes: Agricultural implement fac
tories. bakeries. brick yards cigar and
cigarette factories. clothing establish
ments. construction work. railroads,
reservoirs, cotton mills, fertilizer mills,
-four mills. slaughtering and meat
packing establishments tanneries.
woolen mills, coal mines, etc. Apd
from at least three establishments be-
longing TO each OF the following class
es: Cement factories, oil refneries and
sugar refneries. Data is also TO be
had i'm each of 10 cities for depart
ment stores Uwo to each city,, street
railways, telegraph companies and
telephone companies. From at least 10
cities the prevailing union and non-un-
ion wages for selected period I'm each
of the two years 1900 and 1910 are to
be had for the building trades. compos-
itors, dockhands. union moulders and
machinists. Wages of agricultural Ia
borers for f90O-191O are to be obtained
through the agricultural department.
Wages Of railroad employees are to be
drawn off the original schedules filed
with the Interstate Conmerce commits
sion for each OF the two years 1900 and
1910. The union scale for the organiz-
ed railroad trades is also to be had
for 1900 and 1910.
| The time needed for the inquiry Is
n ootir,atod ~ four fnonthe