The Waxahachie daily light. [volume] (Waxahachie, Tex.) 1894-current, 1917-04-20
FIRE WlsTE Flg10R N
H|gh COST Of LIVING
The problem Of getting suffic-
lent ruartity of food and raiment.

L
The problem OF getting suffic-
Iient nuartity OF food and raiiaent,
Ioi Living has reached the STAGE
more acute than ut any time since
1.-THE war between the states. In all
the discussions of this subject. and
among the various theories and ar
guments advanced in explanation Of
/ the high prices for all the necessi-
is or life, there is one influence
Thsch has played an important part
lin making high prices. under present
world conditions, which Is seldom
4 mentioned in that relation. We
speak OF the influence of America )
excessive fire waste.
| We take up our morning papef,
have seat at the breakfast table.
and, while waiting for our toast,
breakfast bacon and hot cakes. scan
the headlines for the important news
OF the day. Among other things. we
note that the. grain. elevator. has
burned, consuming several hundred
thousand bushels OF wheat. corn and
oats. We also note a long list of
| fires in which grocery stores have
been consumed. warehouses and
barns have been burned. and thou
sands or bales of cotton destroyed,
all OF which subtracts from the sup
ply Of commodities necessary for the
sustenance of both man and beast
But, notwithstanding our attention
Is daily called to these losses.
Iaggregating millions of dollars an
naally, We have permitted our mem
tai processes to stop short of estab-
fishing any relation between such
waste and the cost OF our toast, ha-
con and cakes. or any other article
which we consume. 1t is a simple
process Of reasoning from cause to
effect to understand that where a
considerable quantity of necessary
article Is destroyed, the price of the
remainder OF such article must be
advanced In proportion to the
quantity destroyed, in order to
maintain the equilibrium of the law
of supply and demand,
Perhaps our failure to associate
the high cost of living and fire waste
is partially. If not wholly due TO that
subtle sentence SO frequently found
IL fire reports. Loss Fully Covered
by Insurance. Here again our reas-
oning faculties have been deferred
from the pursuit of the question to a
logical conclusion Had we permit
ted ourselves to examine the matter
anaiyticaliy. we would have diseov-
cred that insurance never has. and
never can. add to the necessaries OF
life a single grain of wheat, pound
OF meat, or thread of clothing, and,
furthermore, the word loss in the
sentence above quoted would come
to have double meaning because
we would find out that the Loss
Fully Covered by Insurance" is the
rec - i9ss norton OF which
consumer. The word loss" there
fore, does not only mean the des-
truction of property, created wealth
and the necessaries OF life. but it al |
SO means that every consumer Will
be called upon to make good that
loss in financial way. by increasing
flts cost OF the articles consumed.
1t is undoubtedly true that the
American people, through careless
ness and ignorance with respect to
fire. are contributing very material
ly to the high cost of living. These
can be checked and
some relief given b. the practice of
fire prevention; and the
bringing of these facts to the atten-
ton Of our people must devolve
largely up municipal officials We
earnestly appeal 10 every Mayor,
Fire CHIEF and Fire Marshal in this
State to put forth greater efforts
than ever before TO educate the
people TO keep removed fire breeding
agencies. and unsafe conditions, ir
an endeayor to reduce preyentable
fires, and thereby, in some measura
reduce the high cost OF living.