New-York tribune., 1919-08-01
The High Price Circle

Inc locomotive engineers demand OF
the President either a further wage in
crease or a checking of the depreciation
of the dollar. What should be done the
brotherhood does not say, passing the
problem on. But res...tc cre sternly
commanded.
The facts that give birth to the gen.
eral dissatisfaction with the present pur-
chasing power of the dollar are familiar
to every one who struggles to keep outgo
within the limits of income. Avoiding
exaggeration and getting at averages, the
weight of authority is that it now takes
about $1.60 to buy what was buyable
before the war for 81. Many commodi-
ties have gone up 100 per cent or more.
The greatest relative increase has been
in food, the next in clothing, the next in
miscellaneous articles and the least in
rent.
Now, food production, as is we'll
known, is not monopolized, and food dis
tribution is little monopolized. The
farming industry is individualstic and
so is the retailing Of food, although now
there is tendency toward combination.
So this time blame for unsatisfactory
conditions can scarcely be laid at the
door Of "big business" If prices are to
be brought down the action must strike
lower than the corporations. The produ-
Ger now gets more than $40 hundred
for hogs on the hoof, 1921 a bushel for
wheat and So for corn, with butter and
eggs, etc, similarly high. Great is the
prosperity of the country's chief agri-
cultural areas-not, perhaps, in the East,
where farmers largely buy feed, but in
the West. In one state land values have
gone up 500 an acre during the last
twelvemonth. The owner of good land
has great benefit from the depreciated
dollar.
But it not deemed politically ex-
pedlent to cavll at the farmers gains.
For many years life was hard with him
that city life paid better than country
life was attested by the steady movement
OF population to urban centres. With
sympathy is mingled fear The farmer
is numerous and his political power,
when he chooses to exercise it, is great.
SO even the Brotherhood of Locomotive
Engineers is more inclined to attack
wicked "big business" than to face the
situation as it is
If prices to small producers are not
to come down and yet are to come down
to consumers, the two price levels must
be brought nearer by lessening the dis
trlbutlon expenses and profits. But can
this be done if 'bg business" is discour
aged? A complaint against "big business"
is that it makes money on margins that
allow the little fellow no chance.
How close big concerns bring the
two price levels is shown by figures
recently compiled by Chicago packing
company. During 1918 the average price
paid by it for live cattle was S92.75 a
head. The receipts for meat were $S1 AS
head and for byproducts $22.O6 a
mead, total of $103.51 a head. For
manufacturing costs and other expenses
$979 head was spent, leaving for
profit and interest $1.02 a head. The
elimination of all profits would have
lowered prices to consumers only l per
cent. But other managements would
probably not do so we'll, with the result
that prices to consumers would still 90
higher or be lowered to producers
With respect to prices we are still
travelling around vicious circle: one
boost leads to another boost, with no
Just gain to anybody. The consequences
OF this frenzied group competition are
not removable by the government. no
matter who makes the demands and no
matter how voluble are hypocritjca]
promises of the politicians to find and
apply remedy.