Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1919-08-14
FUNDS ASKED TO HELP FIGHT ON COST OF LIVING Three Cabinet Officers Lay Plans to Wage Federal
 Campaign. FIRST CONVICTION
 FOR PROFlTEERING Grocer is Fined $500 .OO for Charging Fifteen Cents for Sugar
 Storage Stocks
 Seized.

Washington, Aug. 13.--Important new developments in the government S fight to reduce the high cost of liv- ing came today.
 One of the most interesting was the announcement by Attorney Gen. eral Palmer that the first federal con- Iviction for profiteering had been ob- tained. District Attorney Lucey tele- graphed from Binghamton, N. Y, that retail grocer had been fined $500 for selling sugar at 15 cents a pound.
 "A few good cases of profiteering in each state will settle that trouble" " MT. Palmer remarked
 ''In order to book persons guilty of raising prices exorbitantly or i boarding food to advance prices, Mir. Palmer submitted to the agriculture committee of congress, the draft of an amendment to the food control act extending it's provisions to clothing and containers of foods and feeds, and providing a penalty of $5,000 fine or two years Imprisonment or both for violation of the law. Chairman Hau- i nounced that the amendment would be considered immediately by a sub committee and that report might be made tomorrow"
 It is Mr. Palmer's idea that this amendment should be considered be- fore taking up other amendments suggested by President Wilson to ex- tend the effective life of the food control act beyond the war period. Three Funds Asked. Three cabinet officers asked special appropriations from congress for the campaign against inflated prices. Secretary Redfield requested $410,000 1 for the work of the bureau of stand- ards in assuring full weight and measure, and of the bureau of fish cries in introducing new fish foods. Secretary Wilson asked for $475, ,000 for the employment of special agents and others, and MT. Palmer requested l $1 100000 for the bureau of inves- 1 tigation and for the expenses of the state food administrators assisting the department of justice.
 The attorney general also wants $300,000 for other work of the de- partment not directly connected with the living problem, such as the en- forcement of wartime prohibition, prosecution of appeals and hiring of special assistants. Asked today if he had any reports indicating sufficient food held in storage to affect prices materially if released, MT. Palmer revealed that a number of governors had appealed to l.: nr1 the market amazing quantities" of foodstuffs now in storage. In some cases, it was said, the food had been held longer than permitted by state laws, but technicalities regarding in- terstate commerce had prevented the governors from undertaking seizure or prosecution. MT. Palmer ordered all district attorneys to assist the governors.
 Hoarding Reported. Reports of excessive stocks of food held in storage have been received from at least six states, the attorney general said.
 Storage conditions also are engag- ing the attention of the state food administrators, several of whom have asked if they were authorized to pub- l fish the facts where it appeared that more food was being held from the public than the reasonable require ment of a dealer demanded. "I told them to go right ahead and to use the names," MT. Palmer an- nounced decisively. T am interested in getting as much information on this subject to the ultimate consumer as I possibly can."
 The effect of the governments campaign was indicated in the re- vision by the war department of prices to be charged for surplus army | food. Reductions were made ito meet competition by retailers" l Authority asked yesterday by Sec retary Glass to use the treasury sec ret service in the fight against high prices was based on the use of the servic in food Investigations during tn war.
 The cost of living continued to col or much of the debate in congress to- day. Federal regulation of cold storage l of foods was urged in the senate to- day by Senator McKellar, democrat 1 of Tennessee, as a certain means of ] reducing the cost of living and as lthe only remedy for Hthe most out rageous piece of,profiteering that can l be imagined. :. Speaking in support of his bill first introduced in 1913 and now asl re- ! |introdace1 hefose the senate inter- 
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