The daily Nome industrial worker., 1917-09-29
PRICE iIN!NG.

The power to regulate the pr $ uI coal and coke food and fuel oi' is vested in the President hy tAe Food Control Bill
 That is a somewhat venturasone experiment. Quite number Of authorities questioned it's feasibility and not d few yentured to preH.ct that it would be a complete foil- ure.
 Economists themselves are doubt ful if price fixing can be carried out without affecting production, and the hope is expressed that the Food Control and other prize reFu- Iators Will sat sGph a price as "ili stimulate production.
 II k haIj. correctly we believe. that the high prices which prodac- ing owners received for their com modities will stimulate production II is not tc be questioned that the producer will seek to make the greatest profit and that the main if not the only incentive in food, fuel or any other production is for the purpose of making money.
 The farmer is not in his busint ss for his health. He does pe1fol m very useful function in the pro duction of edible commodities; but that is no direct concern of his. He does no, raise wheat because it is wheat which will feed the world. He dose not raise cattle, sheep hogs. chickens because the nation wants meat. He does these thinss because from their production hc can make a profit. Naturally the more profit. in raising this that or the other thing, the more ot this that or the other thing he wlll raise. If there is more money III growing barley than in growing wheat, although the world may languish for the need of wheat it is to the farmers interest to pro duce barley and it is barley rather than wheat which he will grow.
 If potatoes are very high, the farmer will sacrifice the production of the things which the world may far more urgently require, to the raising of potatoes.
 Usually of course the price paic for an article has represented fh' demand that did exist tAere.or. But it is not impossible to imagine thai an article because of some peculiar circumstances in connection witl the market may be lower orict> although it's need may be greater than the higher priced artlc . Such an example just now may bt found in periods preceding the ar rival on the markets of certalT grain crops when high prices arc paid for immediate delivery whil' low prices, and especially low prices compared to other grains, on later deliveries.
 When price fixing begins the au thority to fix prices simply by au shorized fiat prevents price bein! any such thing as the mathematical expressicn of the relation of tn supply to the demand, But it doe nl sweeping away the actual value O the commodity the price of wht@l is fixed by obliterating the produc ,ion costs, the most important fac tor in determining eXch"ng value.
 Price fixing then to be Scientih cannot be confined to any one com mcdity. It must embrace all com moditics. And it should be guaSe by one standard only and that tn production costs, the actual laho costs plus the cost of material | the raw. of wear and tear of ma chinery. power waste and othc clements which enter into produc tior costs.
 Higk prices it cannot be 100 ofte insisted will not weigh heavil npon the people provided that a, elements entering into the proces of production are equal. That is { say if in the world of commodit exchange, modern commerce an industry. the cost of the raw ma tcr.ql, the cost Of machinery tl