Omaha daily bee., 1920-03-01
Federal Report Shows Ten Per
Cent Higher Prices Charged
in Omaha Than Year Ago.
More Purchases Made.
20 ARTICLES MOUNT;
. II SHOW DECREASE
Average Family Expenditure in
u. S. Two Per Cent Higher
Than Month Ago-Whole-
sale Prices On Up Trend.

New York, Feb. 29.-(By Chicago
Tribune-Omaha Bee Leased Wire
The cost of living is still on the
increase. according to reports re-
ceived by the bureau of labor sta
tistics of the United States Depart
ment of Labor from retail dealers
in so cities. The average family ex-
penditure for food was 2 per cent
higher on January IS, 1920, than on
December IS, 1919, and the cost in
December was 2.6 per cent higher
than il had been i'll any previous
month. -.......
These figures show an increase of
9 per cent since January, 1919, and
an increase of l04 per cent since
January, 1913. The comparisons are
based on the average retail prices of
the following articles, weighted ac-
cording to the consumption of the
average family: Sirloin steak,
round steak, rib roast, chuck roast,
plate beef, pork chops, bacon, ham,
lard, hens, -four, cornmeal, eggs,
butter, milk, bread, potatoes, sugar,
SICCSCy 1lIC, AOllCC dHu tSds
Increases Past Month.
During the month from December
IS, 1919, to January Is, 1920, 20 of
the a. articles of food for which
prices were secured in 1919 in
creased as follows: Cabbage, 80
per cent; potatoes, 26 per cent;
granulated sugar, % per cent;
onions, II per cent; lamb and rolled
oats, 8 per cent each; hens, per
cent; plate beef, E per cent; -four, 5
per cent; sirloin steak. rib roast,
chuck roast, bread and cream of
wheat, 4 per cent each; round steak
and raisins, per cent each; canned
salmon and rye, 2 per cent each;
ham, evaporated milk, macaroni.
baked beans, tea, coffee and
bananas, | per cent each. Bacon.
nut margarine, cheese and crisco
each increased less than hve-tenths
of one per cent.
Eleven articles decreased in price
as follows:
,eaStrietly fessi i-eggs, 8 percent;
butter, 5 per cent; lard and canned
tomatoes, 3 per cent each; pork
chops, storage eggs and oranges, 2
per cent each; fresh milk, canned
corn, canned peas and prunes, per
cent each. There was no change in
prices of oleomargarine, cornmeal,
corn fakes and navy beans.
The statistics show that the av-
erage expenditures for % articles of
food increased from December IS,
1919, to January IS, 1920, in Al cities
and decreased in cities. In Mobile
the decrease was 2 per cent, in At
lanta, Birmingham, Cleveland, Den
yer, Kansas City, Omaha and Port
land, Me-. the decrease was | per
cent.
Big Increase Here.
For the year period, January, 1919,
to January, 1920, the greatest in
crease, or IL per cent, was in Chi
cago, Detroit and Springfield. The
other cities showed increases rang
ing from | per cent in Baltimore to
10 per cent in Cincinnati, Fall River,
Omaha, Peoria, St. Louis and St.
Paul.
Wholesale prices in general show
ed an increase of q per cent in Jam
uary of this year over January last
year. The greatest increase in this
period is sfown for lumber and
building materials, which advanced
66 1-2 per cent in price in the IL
months. Cloths and clothing. articles
and house furnishing goods followed
next, with increases of 49 IL and
4S 1-2 per cent, respectively. Food
and lighting prices advanced about
8 per cent and metal prices about
8 per cent in the same time. In
orly one group, that OF chemicals
and drugs. were prices lower in
January than in the corresponding
month If last wear