Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1920-03-15


there Ia an alarming scarcity o
staple merchandise. This In especial
ly true In the textile trade. mahufac-
turers and dealers following the
natural trend of trade, which re-
fleets "a larger profit from extrava-
CANT merchandise than from staple
goods. The public can aid In curine
this condition by buying less ex-
travagantly. This will In turn divert
labor and effort to the making Of
staple goods. This holds true In
shoes and mems boys, wo-
mems and children's wearing APP
parel.
There is a noticeable decrease In
the pubic demand for high price
merchandise, and dealers are reluc-
tant to place future orders for ex-
pensive merchandise. This will tend
TO reduce prices.
1.-The work of the fair price COM
missioner In Iowa Is confined large
~ to the problems found in the dis
tribution OF essential commodities
Wholesalers. jObbers. produce deal
ers. and the larger trade organjza :
tions have been. and win continue to
be. AN object of investigation. The
nature OF this work has not been ex-
plotted In the press. because much
OF It Is interstate, and requires moro
time to ascertain actual facts. 1t has
resulted in large saving represent
Jed in what would have been the spec
ulative feature wherein profits, would
have been charged on>the basis Of re-
placement value, and not upon
actual cost price to the jobber or
WHOLESALER.
The Sugar Situation.
''The determined fight of the de-
partment OF justice In the attempt
to stop the advancing price OF
sugar has saved the people from
paying from 80 to 40 cents per
pound. Sugar. did in some places re-
tail as high as 30 cents per pound
The price in Iowa reached 20 cents
All sales of sugar at % cents that
have been Investigated were exceed
ing q fair margin Of profit. as de-
termined by the department OF JUS
tice. -
The grocery trade, Wholesale and
retail, during the period which tbs
United States food administrator
was functioning. were. compelled to
sell their wares on the basis of COST
to them, and were not permitted tt
take the market advances. These
lines of trade did not profit in the
war period r. common With ofhe,
business. The buying public should
remember this when inclined &c
harshly criticise the retail grocer
Some retail, grocers have charged
excessive profits, but an, investiga-
ton of grocers in more than fifty
cities and towns in Iowa prove con-
clusively that the retail grocer is no,
a profiteer.s
Where grocers have meat mar
ket--and this also holds true of ex-
elusive meat markets--they have II
many places charged prices that arc
not consistent, with prices paid tt
the packer. Some small town mar.
kets that kill and dress their owr
meat products have used city prices
as a criterion on which they priced
meats of an inferior grade. Prices
on meats at retail in Iowa are, ir
most of the towns and villages at q
| much lower level.
The public can assist materially II
lowering meat prices by accepting
the ordinary cuts OF meats and no
insisting on the choicest cuts. Thu
! public generally is not needing tn,
advice of the government In. this re-
| spect.
THE retailers of shoes have beer
| the object of criticism, it being al