The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1912-01-02
The Cost Of Living Goes Up.

On the 23d congress passed bill in
creasing the duties upon certain neces-
saries of life which. however, are Of
ten termed Injuries The duty on tea
was increased to 20 cents pound. cof-
fee 5 cents pound. sugar 21a. 3. 3
and cents pound. according to quail
ity, and cents a gallon on molasses.
This was the first war tax which laid
great burden on the common people.
To them tea especially and sugar and
molasses are necessities. The govern
ment had long been a big buyer of
these commodities for the army. and
the price of tea. coffee and sugar had
gone up. One of the spokesman of the
people. debating on this bill. said that
it already took four bushels of corn to
pay for one pound OF coffee.
Also the inequalities of the new tar
if were against the poor. For in
stance tea then selling for 40 cents a
pound. would be taxed 20 cents and
must sell for go cents. an increase of
so per cent. But tea selling at 81 a
pound would be increased to $1.20 a
pound-that is to say. 20 per cent in
crease. Coffee was then selling at
about % cents. the importers valua-
ton being about 10 cents a pound
Sugar was selling at 10 to - cents and
molasses 20 to 80 cents per gallon. 1t
was admitted in congress that this in
crease would not be the end of it. 1t
woe hl1f a Sfan foD-ord fho rovici0n Of
the tariff which would put up the rates
on everything. The fact that this bill
passed both houses and was signed by
the president the same day showed
its urgency. The purchasing power of
money soon began to decrease, and it
was not long before coffee and all sugar
and molasses except the very lowest
grades We're beyond the reach of the
people of light purse. Grain substi-
tutes were adopted for coffee chiefly
rye. and thousands of families knew
the taste of nothing better while the
money pressure lasted-some two or
three years.
Meanwhile the Federal government
was furnishing the soldiers at the
front excellent coffee in quantities so
liberal as to lead to enormous waste
Families at home who were troubled
over the hard fare their soldier boys
were getting in camp would have been
glad to take the leavings of coffee
when "a regiment moved camp. The
leavings did not go to waste absolute
ly. for negroes cleaned up the camps
as the soldiers abandoned them. and
some of the surplus coffee was barter
ed at farmhouses for soft bread.
On the oath Captain Matthew F.
Maury. u. s. N. resigned his commits
sion to join the Confederate forces.
This step was an unusual one for that
late period in 1861, and it robbed the
Federal cause of valuable officer.
Maury was man of greater distinc-
ton than his rank would indicate. He
was deep sea expert and the author
of textbook used in the navy. When
1t became known in Europe that he had
resigned from the United States serv-
ice he was invited to Russia and
France TO continue in either of those
countries the work to which his life
had been devoted. These offers, from
sense Of duty. he declined. He en-
tered the Confederate navy and estab-
lished the submarine battery service in
the James river at Richmond. He in
vented method for testing torpedo
mines and was active in fitting out
Confederate cruisers.