Omaha daily bee., 1917-06-07
PRICE BOOSTERS
ARE STILL AT WORK
Expert Says There is No Con-
nection Between the Price
Paid and the Supply
/ of Produce.
By D. G. JOHN.


For more than two years the ad-
ministration and congress have been
talking about investigation Of food
manipulation and government regula-
ton of prices, but it ended in talk.
Prices have been mounting for two
years; food spectators have been fat
tening on the :.ecessities of the peo-
pie. Little has been done to restrain
them.
We have been talking conservation,
increased production and economy
all right i'll their place-but of what
use are they, SO long as price boost
ers gather up the increased produc-
ton and keep it out ef reach? What's
the use of increasing the hay ration
OF cattle and putting it so high in the
rick chat the cattle can not reach it.?
Supply and Price.
There is no connection between
price and supply If the price of a
commodity be doubled it will not in
crease the supply one ounce. The in
creased price is purely psychological,
or rather sentimental.
If increase in price could increase
supply there would be some reason
for boosting, but there is no causative
connection between the two 1t is,
therefore, simply human selhshncss
and greed seeking to take advantage
OF the necessities of men.
What is government for, if not to
promote the welfare OF the people?
The price boosters and cereal gam
blers are as dcleterious to the welfare
of America as militarism is to Ger
many, which we are doing our best to
destroy. Our people are willing to
endure TAXATION and die, if necessary,
to abolish the latter. Why not at
the same time destroy commercial
kaiserism at home.
How to Regulate.
When the railroads put on all the
traffic would bear" congress created
a commission to fix freight and pas
senger rates and thus protected the
people from extortion. When dealers
adulterated nearly every article of
food and medicine, congress created
pure food commission to protect the
people from their frauds. But
congress, with daily protests against
high prices, refuses to do the only
thing that will prevent them
The German government would
have gone under long ago but for
its regulation of prices, and even
quantities to be used. England and
France have been obliged to resort
to the same course in some meas
ure. Until few weeks ago we we're
IN profound peace, and yet we have
suffered as much from high prices
during the last two years as the act
ual belligerents.
Government Fails to Act.
Meantime, our government has not
looked after the welfare of the people.
1t has suffered capitalists to corner
food and boost it more than 100 per
cent in FIVE years, with little actual
change in supply and demand.
move that we now talk less about
conservation, production and econ
omy--all of which have been thor
oughly ventilated-and put the loud
pedal on reduction of prices. Well
never get them till the government
forces them. Remove all unnecessary
middle men. Let only the millers
stand between the farmer and the re-
tail grocer. Let only the packers
stand between the stock raisers and
the retail butchers. If the packers
take too much, let the butchers buy
their stock direct from the farmer.
Some Fair Prices.
If we restore the old city markets
the farmers and gardeners can trade
direct with the consumers and cut out
all middle men. If we had all expert
food commission now it would prob
ably establish the following prices:
Wheat, No. I. per bushel. .........St5O
Wheat, No. 2. per bushel. ..........,..1 1. 40
Wheat. No. 3. per bushel. .............l 100
Rye per bushel. Observation-Disclosures 100
corn, per pushel. NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.. rs
Dots pei pusheI' '.'.''''.'.......... 80