El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1913-12-27
! AsHINGTON b. q. D.. =

w This is a kick against the high
cost of living. 1 do not mean at
home, where one can figure upon the
food in the market and object if the
butcher puts his elbow on the scales
when he weighs out your steak. 1t
relates to the high cost Of living to
the travelling public
/ have been going up and down this
country and others for the past 80
years and within the past 10 or 90
the cost of all things has been stead
lily rising. I can remember when a
commercial salesman who had an al
Iowance Of 50 a day to pay his expenses
was looked upon as a king, and when
If the distances were short, 50 or 81
sufficed- Now a high class drummer
does well if he spends less than $40
per day and if he makes long jumps
between towns the price runs as high
as SIS and upward. During the past
two weeks / have been moving rapidly
from city to city. started at New
York and went as far north as St
Paul. From St Paul / jumped to st.
Louis and thence to New orleans and
from there to Atlanta, Cincinnati and
Washington. I lived at good hotels and
took taXis when needed. The cost OF
the journey was more than SIS a day,
or almost twice what it would have
been 25 years ago.
American Plans Passing.
It used to be that the most Of our
hotels were on the American plan. You
paid a fixed sum for room and board
and there were no extras to speak of.
outside the large cities 81 was the
ordinary day rate and one could get
good accommodations IN the larger
places as low at SO. At that time about
the best hotel in the United States was
the Fifth Avenue in New York. Its
chargest were S. a day and for that
one lived like a lord
Today the American hotels have
about disappeared. Nearly every large
house is on the European plan You
pay a fixed price for your room and
price for each dish that is served to
you In the dining room or the restaU-
rant. The room rates are now equal
to the price you formerly paid for both
room and board, and often much higher.
Take fthe high class hotels Of New
YORK There are but lew where one can
get a room for less than 81 or So, and
this often means a room facing a
court and so small that inside it you
could not swing the typical cat by the
tail. A room with bath costs more, and
If one wants really comfortable GUAR
tiers he must pay 81 or IS and upward.
In Chicago at some of the bigger no
tells one can get an inside room with
bath for $3.50 or So and this IS so in
Minneapolis. St Louis and New Or
leans I stopped at a hotel in Chicago
which has 1900 guest rooms, and whose
lowest room rate is y. Suites range
from $50 to $50 a day. The hotel is
fairly wen taken, and its average oc-
rooms These, at an average rental Of
81 must bring in $1,000 a day, or more
than $1,00OOOO a year for room rent
alone I am told that there are sew
eral hotels in New York which are
clearing more than S1,00O,OOO a year,
and that the big city hotels every
where are piling up money
Some Present Day Prices.
During my two week journey I have
saved some OF the hotel restaurant bills
and a dozen Of them now lie before me.
Tho CHARGES = hOT7r the eTeTVs
where. / viii give you some OF the
Items. Let US start with the oysters
A half dozen raw cost 30 cents Whlch
equals about IS a quart or $40 gal
Ion Little neck clans cost the same
Do you want rehsh2 You can nave
a slice of smoked salmon or a bit OF
herring for 40 cents, or dozen Oh
ives will cost you quarter. Soups
are filling, but not satisfying. A cup
Of consomme costs p cents Scotch
broth with barley costs 80, and green
AS to the fish. that is one of the
cheap things on the menu A piece OF
brofled bass costs so cents, brOiled
bluefish, the same, and a portion Of live
lobster brOiled is Sl25. Entrees are
dear. I can buy guinea hen almost
anywhere in Virginia for haI dollar,
hut a niece of the fowl cut from the
breast costs $1.25, and a half OF
spring chicken just the same. When
you come to order special dishes the
prices 90 up. For spring ducklng
The charge is 50. roast chicken g, and
IL you want a Philadelphia capOn the
Drfce is high. 1t will take 40 minutes
TO cook a "a capon, and you may know
YOU are paying Just 10 cents Ior each
minute you wait. gu can get Whole
spring turkey for the same sum
I have just received an OIIeF OF
seven cents a pound for some hogs on
my farm in Virginia. On these bllls OF
fare Virginia ham costs 90 cents Tor
two slices Two lamb chops, each as
big around as a dollar, are served for
80 --'' Apples 25 Cents Each.
I object also to the prices Of the
vegetables and fruits. I know that ap-
pies are scarce this year and tnat the
prices are high. But nevertheless p
cents is too much for single baked
apple which outside the hotels on the
fruit stand could be bought for a
nickel Set aside five cents for the
cream and the cooking. and the hotel
gets 20 cents for the apple alone AS
apples are bought by the barrel and at
me low estimate Of 300 apples to the
barrel, this makes me pay at the rate
O. of $50 a barrel This IS rlShU hlSh 1of
apples. .-.- 7..-,-
this whole trip I have had TO pay ~
cents and upward for one or two baked /
In the skin. which must be at the rate |
Of something like $50 per busheL Spin /
ach is sold at about the same rate, and /
lima beans and caullfloWer Drlng 80 !
cents for a good double handful As
to new corn in season, the hotels nave {
been selling that at about lV cents an 4
ear. Ine average DdIEtl VI -leAu NoL II I
will hold 500 ears of twice the size OF /
the green stuff that comes to the ia /
bic. At 1000 ears to the barrel, they (
are now getting about 500 a barrel for /
their corn And still it is said there /
is no money in farming
It used to be that the price for ice I
cream was 10 or Is cents dish at 4
almost any hotel. Now you pay 30 1
cents for each portion and the same /
Is true of water ice. Favored with /
lemon, orange or raspberry The fancy I
kinds cost more, and if you are so eX- 1
travagant as to desire a portion Of !
charlotte russo, as big as YOU can buy /
almost anywhere in confectionery 4
store for a nickel. the charge at the /
hotel viii be 40 cents. A slice of ap- I
pie pie costs 20 cents, deep-dish peach /