Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1916-10-23
Tell Them
Country Is Prospering
and Pay Out Larger
Sums for Food Sup
plies

s.,,h,a housewives are facing
-, a. anomalous as u is perplexing.
a -.- husbands tell them the country Is
'.---.,o,,. and supply them with a larger
-, for the weekly, marketing and upkeep
= me table. The housewives praeuce
.-.,,x In buying. The utmost precau-
- .~.,nst waste is exercised. Efforts
- ~..y, a penny" were never 30 strenu-
-. nor 10 universally applied as now
y. w..t by week. their purses. market
,.. and tables grow leaner. ana they
.--~-h~nd n similar physical attenusuoh
s.s. mart of themselves and their tami-
~. unless grocery prices recede quesy
= poInt where the absolute neeessl,ies
v ~. can he had at figure WITHIN rcech
~ w.reiimIt Of the average mechanic
- clerk
s-..r., women. old housekeepers and
/. .e-,.-,~.sa alike have sought explanation
w~8S. naradoxical situation from the
$-~s,,So I,rponR. desiring to know TIE why
~ more they spend. the less they get
9Arse Inquiries do no, emsnsse ,roT, ,he
r.,on Of the city: they come from ,ne
<-r-siv populated centers and the outlying
"a reviy-deveioped communities alike
VITAL PHASE PRoBED
II rvr.,So LEDGER, in response TO
. - reouests for information. has under,
u1s-r 20 investigate the vital phase OF the
H-~~ rost Of living" and has canvassed
e,scus centers, which may be fairly ciassi-
"a a. representative, for an answer TO the
qs.s's- 49, sroceryman himself the medium be-
- the ultimate consumer and the pro-
s-<~r was sought and from the Informal
49, cleaned much interesting material
S-sr,nr upon the upward trend OF prices
~ she cause therefor. as well as sug;
- ~ al
sr,rh seems to prevail In foodstun mar
80 have been obtained. These are given
II tns words of the grocers themselves
rdward swift. Of Swift a Caldwell. has
- IN business In the nelghborhood OF
S5sventh and Spring Garden streets Tor
0rty-seven years. He Is az loS' spr'ns
osrden street, but he confesses that no
<..sn.t know how much longer he can at
Srrd 10 remain behind the counter II present
oondltions continue.
.-Uhy the loaf of bread we have 70 sell
>,day for Ave cents is a wicked sin" ne
srclaimed, as he informed a little boy seek
lrr that article that the store no longer sold
krrad II simply told the bakery salesman
~ other day: Don't bring me any more.
haven't the conscience to sell It. And II Is
~ same In other articles. II this condl-
\ Dan goes on there win be an agitation that
vill compel Congress to do something to
oumpel lower prices The people cannot
1arrel today. Last year II was $6.2b to
1Sbe for the best grades. Cakes and
erackers are higher all along the line an
average of perhaps two or three cents a
pound. or about twenty per cent.
81 Now there Is lard. an article that even
avery poor family tries to have for cooking
purposes. Pure lard that was sixteen cents
year ago IL now twenty cent? MIX 10 up
X % nine or ten cents a quart, but that. sup
post Is due TO the higher price OF feed and
he additional dairy and sanitary inspec-
ions
EGGS IS CENTS A DOZEN
N Eggs hiring forty-eight cents dozen to-
Gsy. I got twenty-eight to thirty cents a
PEAR ago. Butter also is forty-eight cents.
vhen IL ought not to be over forty cents.
and II looks as II Il would go higher during
tths winter. Like eggs, the cold storage
houses are responsible. The big holders
have cornered the supply at summer prices
and are holding what they have for bigger
profits.
I'VE are not getting the benefit OF the
prices Condensed milk. so necessary for
babies has risen from ten cents can to
eleven cents. / buy II for si.10 dozen
tins In case lots. so you see how close
We have 20 sell h.
'Fven the penny candles for the children
suifer from the uses OF war. These tin
aaucers of ice cream used to be four
for cent; now they are three. The big
bump in tin from the foreign demand makes
even the penny goods higher. The sub
marine scare put up insurance rates or
vessels. and tea prices rose with them
The tremendous insurance rates have
boosted prices on currants enormously
and even those dried fruits that we dom
Eet from abroad are coming In dear. Coffee
on the other hand. Is fairly low. about
twenty cents for good household grade
Cocoa and chocolate are normal around
twenty cents.
The advance in tin hit all canned goods