Los Angeles herald., 1910-02-05
THE COST OF LIVING
Bv Frederic j. Haskin

! S1.60 a bushel. The best country
sausage brings IL cents a pound on
the farm and from 20 to 25 cents in
the Washington grocery. John A.
Stewart of New. York relates how
asparagus raised in northern New
York sold for cents bunch on the
farm, 6 cents bunch in the neighbor-
ing village and 45 cents a bunch in
New York.
1t is the same with other things the
grocer sells. The January quotation
for matches retailing at two boxes for
cents was SLIGO per 144 boxes. The
highest grades of Java and Mocha
coffee were quoted at 26 and "a cents a
pound respectively. Extra fancy dried
peaches Were priced at 9 cents a pound;
the finest salmon at IS cents per can,
the best baked beans at $1.15 a dozen
cans, 10-cent bottles of horse radish
at 6215 cents dozen, 10-cent bottles of
petroleum jelly at 70 cents a dozen,
25-cent bottles of laudanum at S1.9O a
dozen, EPSON salts at cents a pound,
and so on without end.
It's plain, therefore, that the retail
food dealer gets a large gross profit.
He lays heavy tribute upon the con-
sulner, but what about his net profit?
One sees but little evidence that he
enjoys much of that. Few grocers are
BGllltS IlCL anu ulttIly Oh lUoIn go lllIO
bankruptcy. Aye. there is the rub
Competition, supposed to be the life of
trade, has broken up the food retailing
business into such little bits that each
retailer must make an enormous profit
to get a living out of his business. HS
must live whether he sells $4,000 year
or $4,000. The smaller his sales the
greater per cent he must add to each
dollars worth of business, and the
larger his business the closer margin
he can give.
The situation is the same in other
things which the consumer uses. A
country merchant went to Baltimore
to buy goods. He bought a suit of
clothes at $3.50 which he retailed at
$40; Panama hat for 81 which re-
tailed at SIS. Collars at so cents a
dozen which retailed at s1.50 a dozen.
Dolls bought for 80 cents a dozen were
retailed at 10 cents each. Toys which
would bring 20 cents each at retail
were bought at $1.39 a dozen. Statistics
show that the best sewing. machines
cost only about S14 to make, and BIZ
cycles even less Shoe strings that are
sold for cents a pair cost 60 cents a
gross.
But with all these figures, the aver
age merchant is not growing rich. The
retailer must pay his rent, his help and
his delivery expenses. His rent is high
er because the lot on which the building
stands is worth twice as much as ten
years ago. The landlord had to pay Sc
day for the bricklayer and the plas-
terer, and 81 a day for the carpenter
who erected the building. And so it
goes all down the line. The farmer
must have more for his beef cattle
than he realized twenty years ago, for
the corn he feeds them is worth twice
as much. He must get more for his
wheat than he did twenty years ago,
for the labor he hires costs his as much
again. The laborer must have twice as
much as he had twenty years ago, for
his clothes, his food and his rent have
doubled in price. Relative prices have
increased relatively everywhere, but
what difference does 1t make to the
average individual If he earns a thou
sand dollars q year and has to spend
nine hundred for living, or whether he
earns two thousand and has to spend
nineteen hundred?
This thing of prices works some
strange anomalies. Secretary Wilson
says that beyond a doubt American
food products are being sold cheaper
abroad than at home, and that the
glory of having the cheapest foodstuffs
in the world has passed from us. A. r.
Cahill, a representative of the London
board of trade, who is investigating
prices in America, says that he has dis
covered riddle he cannot solve-the
American pays cents for a 14-ounce
loaf of bread, while the Britisher, with
his bread made of American wheat,
gets a 64-ounce loaf for 10 cents.
1t is difficult to predict the outcome
of the present hue and cry against the
increase in the cost of living. The ma
tional protest of the consumer would
undoubtedly be effective If it were car
ried forward with the same enthusiasm
that marks its start. But as a rule the
dear public, after being driven to des-
peration in some such matter, suddenly
sits up on it's hind legs and howls to
the moon. 1t makes the welkin ring for
a space, then as suddenly forgets it's
and lapses into forbearance and
inactivity. 1t is to be hoped that in
this instance the consumer will prove
to be long winded, that he win continue
to "holler' Justify and at length, but if
this crusade does not prove a flash in
the pan it will be contrary to the his
tory of such movements.
Tomorrow-Technicalities of Law.