Putnam patriot., 1919-08-15
HERE'S THE CAUSE
 OF THE H. C. L.
An Episode In a Putnam Store Shows How Hi Coster Living Got His Grip On the Public Pocket Book.
Food Foundation Organized to Bring Down Prices, and Is Backed By
 Influential Men

Here Is the explanation, on a small scale, of the high cost of living. It shows, in it's own way, just how it is possible for middlemen to jump pric- es sky high, and how profiteers can dig deep into the public's pocket book.
 A fine collection of cucumbers was on sale this week at Putnam store, price 15 cents apiece They were nice looking cukes, at that, and the public was paying the price the dealer asked Later in the day d farmer from a nearby town. with a Putnam friend. walked by this store.
 "Oh, what dandy looking eucum- bers, said the city friend.
 The farmer grinned as he glanced at the price sign. "oh, they are good ones, all right l know. for l sold them to that store this morning for two cents apiece, and they refus- ed to pay cent more."
 And 1t must be admitted that 750 per cent is just trifie more than a legitimate profit, even for cueumbers
 It is in an effort to curb such pro- fiteering, both on large and small scale, that industrial leaders of New England have organized in a deter mined stand to force down the cost of living, since no problem looms so large in the minds of every individual at the present time. Every legitimate means to solve this momentous prob lem successfully will be employed. Farmers and industrial leaders have joined hands in the fight against food profteeTs and hoarders.
 The association is known as the New England Farm and Food Found ation, and already a considerable sum of money has been pledged to carry out its aims of rehabiliting agricul- ture in this section, putting the farm CT on his feet and saving the pocket of the ultimate purchaser.
 It is recognized that, unfortunately the farmer in the United States, and in New England in particular, has no efficient marketing organization; he has no proper means of distribution of his product, which makes possible such gouging as in the ease of the cu- cumbers, and this is one of the req sons for high living costs. One ad- vantage of this Foundation is to in ject proper organization methods and proper distribution.
 Under the prevailing condition; there is considerable waste of fooC products. There are frequent glut! of certain of these commodities or some markets, while it may be there are scarcities of the same commodi ties on other nearby markets, thu: demoralizing the industry and dis couraging production. There is con siderable hoarding by profiteers, anC manipulators, with consequent dis couragement to the farmer.
 The Foundation undertakes in ev cry possible way to introduce and sus tain cooperative buying by New Eng lands consuming millions; in fact, ev cry possible 'short cut" will be util ized between farmer and direct con sumer The thousands of employees II mills and factories who are suffering most from H. C. L. will greatly bene | fit.
 It is deplorable fact that agricul ture in New England has been steadily declining during the past half cen tury despite the fact that it is the ba sic industry upon which every othel
 industry primarily depends, while oul farming communities have steadily decreased in population, the younger element having abandoned the farm: for the cities. At the present time the New England cities are largely de pendent on the west and south fol their food supply. The situation, i will thus be seen, is largely responsi ble for the increased cost of living fol the New England people.