Bisbee daily review., 1918-02-19
Food Prices

Dodge stores, takes the Review editor
 good naturedly to task for a recent
 editorial in which he set forth the
 price of corn meal in the district at
 20 cents per pound. Now, the news
 paper man did not affirm this as the
 price; he merely announced it as the
 price a subscriber told him she was
 compelled to pay The newspaper man himself, however, stands by his
 statement in regard to the 20 cents
 charged for a small and very light
 package of bran
 MT. Campbell gave the newspaper
 man some Phelps Dodge prices as fol
 lows: Ccn meal, s% cents per pound.
 when bought in eight-pOund packages.
 and 10 cents a pound for a higher
 grade of corn meal in the package.
 This is high enough, goodness knows.
 hut it is only half of the 20 cents per pound the housekeeper said she had to pay. She was overcharged, thai is all
 As for bran. MT. Campbell quoted prices al 1-S cents a pound for enc variety. and 20 cents a package of 20 ounces Cthe package the newspaper man boUghu- Bran for COW feed is 21z cents per pound in Bisbee.
 Navy beans sell a. 20 cents per pound. and pink beans at 121k.
 Fcod prizes in Eisbee are as low as anywhere in the southwest. and lower in many commodities, which is a re markable showing. when the difficult ties Of transportation and the dearth of gardens and fields of grain in this part of the country are considered Practically everything in the way Of food must be shipped or hauled to the district
 All food dealers are under govern ment control in a way The war upon profteering is waged as relentlessly by the Washington authorities as the war against Germany If there is food profileering going on to any ex- tent these pirates will pay dearly for their unholy profits. soon or late. All great mercantile establishments. like Phelps Dodge of this section. must buy and sell upon schedule and a margin dictated by government food Records must be kept 1 of all their invoices of goods, both those upon goods from the producer and th-se to the consumer. Their cost and selling prices must be available for government inspectors at all times
 But in spite of government super vision of food the prices of all com mOdities have mounted to an alarm ing height, and some of them are steadily going higher. The law of supply and demand is memorable in fixing prices or any commodity. Even though supervision and watchfulness and stem punishment should elimi- nate excessive profits. yet the prices of many food necessities will drop but little during the term of the war Take the case of navy beans They are as high as the proverbial cats back right now; 2e cents per pound But. ac-l cording to MT Campbell. the govern ment requisitiOned all navy beans available upon the Pacific coast for its army cantonments in the west and for shipment to Europe. This excessive demand has just naturally hoisted the price of the erstWhile humble navy bean to the patrician class. 
 Again. the German submarines are sinking from six to sixteen ships every week. and their cargoes are lost brewer. If Germany merely captured hese cargOes and used them for her ,wn people. it would not be as bad in 1, he matter of high food prices as is i he case now But food destroyed l