The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1911-01-16
Cold Storage Accumulation OF Five
Years VIII be Thrown Upon
the Market at Sacrifice
Prices.
REASONABLE FIGURES
The Poor Man is Promised Taste Of
Chicken and Eges Without
Mortgaglng His
Home.

CHICAGO, H., Jan 16.-Millions
of pounds of cold storage butter, eggs.
cheese and poultry. some of it as
much as five years old. according to
estimates of dealers, are about to be
thrown on the market and sacrificed
at whatever price they will bring, as
the result of the collapse within the
last few days Of the food trust,
which by steady aggressions has piled
prices of provisions up to their pres
ent figures.
Chicago, as the center of the cod
storage industry of the country is to
be the vortex of the wholesale I'M
loading. Chicago wholesalers admit
| the bottom has fallen out Of prices
for dairy products and poultry and
that a big slump is due as soon as the
contents of the cold storage ware
houses can be put on the market.
i They claim an attempt is being made
by retailers to keep prices up to an
abnormal level by buying small stocks
at low figures and selling them to the
public on the old high levels.
Although the collapse of the cor
ner'' is likely to be felt most keenly
/ by the cold storage men of Chicago,
the pinch will be felt in many of the
4 important shipping centers of the
east and middle west. Chicago, New
4 York. Philadelphia, Omaha, Kansas
City, ST. Louis and Minneapolis were
Y spoken of today as the points where
a most of the unloading probably would
be done.
Prices for dairy products, 1t is said
ems, turkeys. geese and domestic
fowls of all sorts are expected to be
come cheap enough for the poor mans
table. The collapse has been due to
natural causes.
The present troubles of the cold
storage people have been brought
about by their own manipulations al
the expenses of the public Five years
ago a large number Of them got to
gether in more or less informal agree
ments and proceeded to put artificia
I prices on butter, eggs, cheese, fowls
and everything else that could be KEEP
in cold storage. They were able tt
do this by the simple method OF put
, ting goods in storage instead of de
livering them Immediately to the
, market. Their combined storage
!, facilities gave them position of su
, premacy which not only enabled then
!. to limit the supply to the public ant
thus keep prices up, but control near
) ly absolutely the prices paid to pro
ducers. Thus, while producers wer
getting little enough for their butter
. eggs and poultry, the public was pay
: ing extortionate prices.
/ In putting up prices to the higl
figures attained during the last tw,
years. the cold storage men cut th
4 ground from under their own feet
: People who could not afford to pay 3
/. and 40 cents q dozen for eggs stoppe
eating them. Families that found but
= ter too expensive, ate oleomargarine
The result was that after this ha
!. gone on for a year or two the whole
4 salers found themselves with ful
! warehouses and no demand. Genera
uneasiness was followed by dowr
q ward trend in prices. Then came
more pronounced drop. Now TIL
. wholesalers find themselves under tn
!. imperative necessity Of unloading c
: getting out of the business