El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1910-02-03
THE COST OF LIVING
BURDENS BORNE BY THE CONSUMERS

/ busheI. The best country sausage brings
| II cents a pound on the farm and from
| 20 to % cents in the Washington gro
! Gerry.
! John \ Stewart. of New York. relates
I how asparagus raised in northern New
York sold for cents a bunch on the
farm cents a bunch in the neighbor-
/ ing village, and As cents a bunch in
New York.
The GrOcer's Prices.
/ 1t is the same with the other things
/ the grocer sells. The January quota
| ton for matches, retailing at two boxes
/ for 5 cents, was $3.50 per IA boxes
! The highest grades of Java and Mocha
I coffee were quoted at IS and "a cents
! a pound, respectively. Extra fancy dried
peaches were priced at cents pound;
the finest salmon at IS cents per can,
F.. the best baked beans at S1.15 dozen
cans, 10 cent bottles Of horse radish
| at 62h cents a dozen. 10 cent bottles
Of petroleum jelly at as cents dozen,
/ 25 cent bottles of Iaudanum at $3.50
| per dozen, EPSON salts at cents
pound. and so on without end
1t is plain, therefore that the retail
I food dealer gets a large gross profit
/ He lays heavy tribute upon the con-
sumner. but what about his net profit?
I one sees DOL uLlle liidS AAS
/ enjoys much Of that. Few grocers are
| getting rich, and many of them go
into bankruptcy. Aye. there is the rub
! Competition, supposed TO be the lie
] of trade, has broken up the food re-
! failing business into such little DIS
/ that each retailer must make an enor-
nous profit to get a living out or his
! business He must live, whether he sells
! $4,000 a year or $4,000. The smaller
his sales the greater percent he must
add to each dollars worth OF business
and the larger his business the closer
margin he can give
All Prices Higher.
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 SlO;
| Panama hat for 81, which retaIed al
! IS: collars at SO cents dozen, which
retailed at $3.50 per dozen. Dolls bought
| for 80 cents a dozen were 10 De re-
/ tailed at 10 cents each Toys which
| would bring % cents each at retail
| were bought at s1.39 dozen Statistics
| show that the best sewing machines
| cost only about S14 to make, and BIZ
I cycles even less. Shoe strings that are
/ sold for cents a pair cost SO cents a
1 gross.
! But with all these figures. the aver
age merchant is not growing rich me
retailer must pay his rent his help and
his delivery expenses His rent is
higher, because the lot on which the
| building stands is worth twice as much
| as 10 years ago The landlord had to
pay Sc a day for the bricHlayer and the
| plasterer, and 81 day for the carpen-
ter who erected the building. And so
it goes all down the line
I The farmer must have more for his
beef cattle than he realized 20 years
ago, for the corn he feeds them is worth
twice as much. He must get more for
his wheat than he did 20 years ago, for
| the labor he hires cost him as mucn
again
Wages Must BE Higher.
The laborer must have twice as much
rs he had 90 years ago, for his clothes,
/ his food and his rent have doubled in
price Relative prices have increased
| relatively everywhere, but what differ
ence does 1t make to the average in
! dividuaI If he earns $1,000 a year and
/ has to spend $500 for living. or whether
he earns $1,000 and has TO spend $1,000?
This thing OF prices works some
! strange anomalies. Secretary Wilson
! saws 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.
| CahiI. a representative Of the London
board of trade, who is investigating
prices IN America, says that he has dis
/ covered a riddle he cannot solve-the
American pays cents for Il ounce
| loaf of bread. while the Britisher, with
/ his bread made OF American wheat, gets
81 ounce loaf for 10 cents.
What VIII Be the Outcome:
1t is difficult to predict the outcome
7 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 II 1t were car
ried forward with the same enthusiasm
] that marks its start But as rule, the
} dear public, after being driven TO des-
peration in some such matter, suddenly
! sits up on its hind legs and howls TO
| the moon
! 1t makes the welkin ring for a space.
( then as suddenly fOrgets its crusade
/ and lapses into forbearance and mac
tivity. 1t is to be hoped that in this
| instance the consumer will prove TO be
| long wfnded, that he will continue to
"holler" Justify. and at length. but If
| this crusade does not prove to be flash
in the pan. it Will be contrary 70 the
history OF such movements
| ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS OF the Law