The evening leader. (Tarpon Springs, Fla.) 191?-19??, 1918-04-09
ADVANCE IN Retail PRICES
ON fOODsTUFfs CHECKED

Advances in retail prices on food
stuffs have been checked. Like the
race between the Allied combative
powers and the submarine menace is
the, race between high prices and
high7price. destroyers But the ad-
vantage is Slightly on the side of the
regulating forces.
No one expects low prices in war
time. At the same time it is now
accepted as the business of govern
ment that prices shall not be permit
ted to rise above the point warrant
ed by eesn omic conditions. Since the
United States began to regulate dis
tribution and to limit profits, there
has been a steady settling of prices
to the normal economic line. We still
have high prices but recession has
begun and we do noa have the eN-
tortionate prices we had at the be-
ginning of the war.
A study of the trend of retail food
prices for the last quarter of 1917,
issued by the United States Food
Administration, shows that in this
period, out of group of 30 articles
listed, prices declined on nine, in
creased on Is, and remained the
same on two. Decreases were shown
in wheat -four, bread, tomatoes, corn,
pork chops, while increases were
shown in bacon, ham, lard, butter,
cheese and eggs.
The most important decrease was
that of 10 cents per 1-S Dbl. bag Of
flour. Another favorable change was
that in the price of the 1917 ounce
loaf of wheat bread, which sold at
11.3 cents on October 6, while on De
cember 20 1t was 1913 cents. This
decrease of about 10 per cent in the
price of pound loaf of bread, follow
ed the cooperation of the bakers with
the Food Administration in standard
izing the processes of baking.
A comparison of the average state
quotations on pound loaf of wheat
bread shows an increase in the num-
Der of states quoting this size loaf at
less than ten cents.
While the increase In price seems to
have been checked prices still cling
around the maximum on large num-
Der of articles. These are foodstuffs
which offer few opportunities for pro-
gressive sterilization, either on ac-
count of greatly decreased supplies or
conditions in the trade, All dairy
products show market value increases
In both the United States and Cana
da, the greatest rise in price during
the period being shown in eggs,
which had risen in price over 9 cents
in the last three months of 1917.
This is a normal seasonal change. A
comparison shows that with regard to
price increases the United States is
a little. better off than her northern
neighbor, Canada. during the period
in which one-third. or 9 out of %
food products in the United States
were decreasing in price. only two
out of % food comm dities were
showing a decrease in Canada The
prices of canned goods steadily in
creased In Canada while the United
States fluctuations with some declines
were shown, especially in corn and
tomatoes.
All the food staples which show in
creases in the United States likewise
show increases in Canada, except
ash, in which the Canadians have "a
little the advantage in matters of
price changes for the period
AS to variations in pr;ces between
different sections of the United
States, the report shows that they
are not, as rule, accidental, but re-
feet normal price differences extend
ing over periods of time. Thus flour
is constantly highest in Florida and
'owest in Idaho Cornmeal is cheap
er in the Southern states than else
where. During the period covered by
the record, Connecticut was almost
consistently highest in average price
for eggs, as was Rhode Island for
round steak. During the same quar-
ter, Idaho reported the lowest aver
age price on potatoes ten times; Cal
ifornia on sugar II times, and Ore
gon on round steak IL times.