The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1916-10-20
Declares Prosperity Is Cause of
High Food Cost.
Admits Wages Haven't Kept
Pace With "Harvest."
MINTS BUSY "a HOURS A DAY
Influx of Gold in Payment for
Heavy Exports.
Foreign Demand Clue for
Scarcity at Home.

Washington, Oct. 20.-"Americas
great prosperity is in itself responsible
for the high cost of living" Director
Won Engelken of the United States
mint. holds.
With more gold in its vaults. more
money circulated, and the greatest ex-
port trade in history. the United
States, he said today. is at once reap
ing q golden harvest, and. to mix the
metaphor paying the piper; the piper
| being the high cost of living. His ex-
PLANTATION was: export trade brings an
unprecedented quantity of gold here
There is such a vast demand for
goods that prices rise responsively.
More workers than heretofore are en-
ployed and they are getting larger
wages than previously. And while
these workers supply the goods, their
wages, drawn from the immense store
of gold, buy more goods than before,
| thus helping swell the abnormal de-
mand and the consequent price in
crease.
| Wages, he admits, have not fully
kept pace with prices-as usual-but
he hopes for an altered condition in
the future.
High Cost Creature of Own Creation.
THE high cost of living" he said,
sis a creature of our own creation.
1.-The United States is normally a
borrowing nation. Capital utilized for
construction in the past has been re-
cruited largely abroad. Our economic
affairs consequently have been adjust
ed to meet the customary outflow of
| money required to pay our interest
bills in foreign countries
1.-The sudden reversal of this condi-
ton. the retention of interest pay
Inents at home, coupled with a re-
versal of the usual trade conditions,
economic problem. For the present
we are reaping a golden harvest and
are spending it in our turn with a
prodigal hand.
"It is to be hoped we will not be-
come go accustomed to- the present
ability to supply our various personal
demands that we will find it difficult
to readjust ourselves to the more nor
NAL state of affairs that will confront
US, we hope, in the very near future"
Mints Working "a Hours Day.
Mints are working twenty-four
demands for coins. In the last two
years 500. 100000 in gold over the
usual importations has poured into the
United States. Figures showing the
following relative demand for coins
for the periods from January l to
October IT last year and this year
were:
Dimes-1s15. ss5s.ooo; 1915. s2.-
100000.
Nickels-1s15. s1.1oo.ooo; 1915
s2.95O,o 900.
Pennies-1s15. s2e6.ooo: 1916. ST.
OOS.O00.
THE gold is sent to this country in
payment for goods purchased" said
Won Engelken- TT follows that an ex-
traordinary market has opened up fol-
the consumption of our goods to the
extent represented by gold importa-
tions. The greater the demand fol
goods abroad, the less goods we have
to supply our own demands-and a.
the price is representative of supply
and demand. an increase in price.
necessarily follows.
) Foreign Demand Abnormal
; 1.-The extraordinary demand on thi.
in many cases the profits are out O
the ordinary. As a direct result
greater number of people are EN-
ployed at rates of pay above normal
with the result that our supply o
available goods already heavily draw
upon by foreign buyers is furthe
called upon to stand the increasin,
1 | purchasing capacity of our own peo
pie, a condition which further contrib
uted to advancing the price of sucl
things as are demanded by the peopI
: at large"