Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1919-07-31
RENT COSTS WORST,
COMMITTEE HEARS.
Labor Cost Probe, Coop.
erative Buying and Land
Tax Urged.

The investigation into the alleged
| profiteering in foodstuffs in the District
of Columbia was esumed by the Senate
District subcommittee at Q o'clock this
afternoon. E. A.. Calvin, a producer,
| representing the cotton states official
| advisory marketing board: Col. Charles
| A. Williams, retired; William Bonat. a
meat dealer at the Georgetown market !;
Joseph L. Baker and William A. Gala
| nan appeared to be heard.
Federal Employees Help.
| Representatives Of the National
Federation Of Federal Employees APP
peared before the committee yester-
| day afternoon and offered their hearty
| information sought by the committee
with regard to profiteerfng In the
| District. They insisted they were con-
WINGED that profiteerfng Is being prac-
tfced here at the expense of the PEG.
pie. particularly In the matter OF
rents
A suggestion was made that CO.
operative buying enterprises be en-.
couraged as q means Of making IT
possible. for the people to purchase
pense.
Another suggestion was that in re-
classify ing the employees OF the gov
eminent here and fixing their salaries
q plan be adopted whereby the basic
salaries established shall be increas-
ed or decreased each year according
to the fluctuation in the cost OF living.
If the cost Of living goes up. then the
percentage as the Increase in the cost
Of living. If the cost Of living goes
down, then the salaries shall be re-
duced by similar percentage.
Labor Costs Study Urged.
DR.. Wv. Carson Ryan, jr. the first
spok esman for the federal employees.
told the committee that the situation
! was desperate for many Of the gov
| If the committee desired personal
statements regarding the cost Of liv-
ing, his organization could get them
by the thousand. He urged the COM
mittee to analyze carefully the IN
crease in labor costs of production.
the stock excuse, he said. given by
profiteers when they raise prices. DR..
Ryan said that wages of employees, In
candy manufacturers in New York
had been increased 81 a week. Yet
this increase in wages, he said, meant
only an increase in the cost of pro-
ducing candy Of 1S-100 of cent per
pound.
DR.. Carson said there is no law of
Congress which permits the charter
ing of cooperative purchasing enter
prises, and that when one was es-
tablished at the bureau of standards,
1t was forced to go to Delaware for
z charter and to pay $500 for it.
Senator Capper asked. What form
Of profiteering seems to hit the gov
eminent employees the hardest?'
Rent Proflteering Worst.
DR.. Ryan replied that he thought
the increase in rents just now was oc-
cupying the attention of the employees
more than any other increase IN the
cost Of living. Congress, he said, had
allowed the employees bonus of $40
and this was all being taken away
by the landlords. e. NJ. Dawson, an
employe of the District government
and also q member of the federation.
told the committee that 1t should ,ex-:
anime very carefully, and through ex-
pert accountants the books Of mer-
chants doing business in Washington,
covering q period of several years. to
ascertain whether there IL proflteer-
ing.
Mr.. Dawson said that the American IL
not willing. take him by and large, to
go into cooperative purchasing enter
prises; that he Is too individualistic. A
lesson. he said. might well be learned
who have developed cooperative pur-
! chasing associations with great benefit
to themselves. He said that he had
been reliably informed that 1t was pos
sible to purchase q dinner for 26 cents
at q cooperative restaurant, operated
by the government in England which
would cost 81 here.
He told the committed that CO.
operative association in the Post Office
Department had been operating for sew
eral years with great benefit to the
members, who number about 1000. He
said he had tried to get permission to
organize q similar cooperative organi-
building. but had not been granted per-
mission to use the needed space.
| AZ Prnfif on Pair of Shoes.