Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1914-08-22
CAUSE OF INCREASED PRICES.

n EOPLE are complaining and the government Is
investigating, because following the beginning Of
the war IN Europe the price Of fOodstuffs suddenly
advanced PT1ces OF other things advanced also but
that dd not nat the every day American below the belt
80 to speak No cared much about the added cost
o. Qunine or pecae because they incidentas They
are not attractive al any pfce-or none However when
prices ht the meat and -four the sugar and beans and
the various and sndry farm products and garden sass
mat form 50 pleasing and necessary buffer between
mans backbone and lower vest buttons he feels the
effects at once for il is indeed solar plexus blow
Naturally the man hit wants know who hit him and
why he did It. This what Uncle Samuel undertak
ing TO find out
L is quite likely the old gentleman will discover but
hbe That the sugar bar0ns put their heads together
and gave sugar prices boost quite as probable as it isl
that the meat packers did the same thing That the
bosses Of few of the big industries got in their work il
extremely probable for they constituted that they
can haruy resist the opportunity to cnch the consumer
That their principal object in life and they have made
aphenomena success Of it. That Uncle Samuel pot after
tnem 50 quickly an encouraging feature and one that
gives promise that these great industrial concerns will
sometime be made strictly amenable to the law
In spite Of this we do not believe that prices generally
were boosted by any combination or with deliberate
malice prepense
The sudden advance in prices in most products such
az butter and eggs lemons and fruits was caused by the
same unseen force that produces panics and hard times
me latter are produced generally by talking them and
believing them. When one tells how hard times are
arg now hard s 70 get money his hearer repeats it and
.
invest Or loan it. This feeling spreads until the whole
country Is talking hard times hanging onto its money and
80 causing the very hard times it complains Of
80 i Is IN this sudden advance in prices Some things
naturally become dearer because the supply is cut off
Such Is the case at present with things made in Germany
france on any Of those countries engaged in war Some
tnngS grown here increase in price from an unusual
demand or the likelihood of it, For the great, majority
q foodstufs however there no excuse for increased
prices How then do prices come to be raised? Byl
exactly the same process that pancs are started The
Duller maker on dealer wheat prices Jump and thinks
butter VIII 30 up He says SO and his fellow dealer or
maker takes the same idea under his hat They ask
mgner pflces-and get them. Ii is SO with other
producs The Idea that prices are To advance on
q tne war becomes general among the producers thew
hold for higher prices and thus without forming ay kind
Of combine really in effect do So The consumer also
gets the idea that war win advance prices and expecs
Just what ne gets higher prices and all this without anv
agreement IN restraint of trade or combine lawful al
otherwise That spectators get in their work and boost
prices is true, and stated that the big concerns so
monopozed that they control the markets also take
advantage OF the situation TO throw the paffs into the
consumer, - undoubtedly true
With most Of the products however the increased
pce y the result Of belief higher prices will NECESSARILY
preyai On account Of the war; and the belief becomes
'hs ialher OF the TACT which materializes from IL