Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1916-10-06
The BAKERS, SIDE OF IL.

Times Republican: Such statements
as are contained in the letter Of 4. D.
Mccormack, in your issue of Sept. Is,
lille undoubtedly made in good faith,
are liable to disseminate misinforma-
ton unless corrected.
No one, least Of all the baker, OBJ
1ects TO the farmer being interested in
wheat and in the proper price for it
The bakers generally are we'll in
formed Of the inadequate yield of
wheat this year and are not disposed
to quarrel with the price of $3.50 per
pushel, provided that were the limit.
However, since Mr.. McCormack's let
ter was written wheat has passed 5 1.S5
and there is reason to believe that the
end is not yet.
The reason the bakers are agitatiug
because Of the effective reduction this
has made in the market quotations
when such an embargo was merely
threatened by the railroads.
The bakers, however, are almost
literally between two millstoneS the
price of wheat being one and the pub
lie interest in low priced bread being
the sother. 1t IN a physical and bust
ness impossibility to manufacture the
old style loaf and sell it at the former
price and buy dour at market quota,
tons.
Bakers generally are not talking in
favor of 20-cent bread. What bakers
have advocated is 10-cent bread. and
the Decent loaf to be as large or
larger than any two 5-cent loaves on
the market at the present time. The
reason for this is the economy in over
head charges the overhead cost Of the
baking business being approximately
46 per cent OF the whole. Under over
head the baker includes labor. delivery
charges, office expenses depreciation.
interest on investment, advertising,
etc.
Twenty cent bread is, of course. a
logical possibility, just as Is So wheat.
Present Indications, however. do not
make either Of them probability. and
It is unfair to- needlessly excite the
public by agitation over, conditions
which are not likely to arise.
However, Mr.. Mccormack has made
a few calculations which do not reveal
as full knowledge Of the costs enter
ing into the transformation Of wheat
into -four as are desirable. In the first
place, cash spring wheat IL nearer
91.65 than $3.50. II takes ~ bushels
t. make a barrel of -four. This makes
the mill price $7.s5. to which must be
added sacks, 20 cents. and freight to
destination, so that the average baker
of the United States, if he bought IN
the retail market, would be paying
from 1925 to $3.50 for barrel Of -four.
Bakers estimate tina. q barrel Of
-four bakes into 304 loaves at Is
ounces. This represents labor cost
Of SO. Other items which must be
ADDED include delivery charge. de-
Epreciation, return On investment, ad-
Fvertisement and profit, II there is to
be any. Retail grocers the country
over expect Is per cent for handling.
with this data in hand anybody can
figure up what ought to be the cost of
loaf Of bread in any community. II
may surprise Mr.. Mccormack to know
that according to the census Of 1910
the number Of farmers and grain deal
ers exclusively occupied in the In
terests Of wheat, or even principally
occupied in that interest, are only two
per cent Of the population. SO that
while 2 per cent might profit by $3.50
wheat. the other SO per cent are In
jured thereby.
II the country at large is willing to
give the farmer the benefit OF high
priced wheat the bakers will not COM
plain, but in all justice the same pub
tic should be willing to pay more for
its bread. Very truly yours.
T. T. F'rankenberg,
Columbus o,