Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1920-02-07
The Cause OF Hloh Prices

| inc cause OF tIQn Prices
To the Editor Of the Evenino Public Ledger:
Sir.-I am reader Of your paper
and noticed in the, Saturday evenings
PuRLIo LEDGER that Mr.. McClain is out
with his bands and banners to catch the
profteers and jail them. According to
your idea, he will go first after the
up building of fifteen floors high, he
should begin building the same from
the top, and to build downward until
he comes to the basement. Where do
the high prices come from? Let us
see. Begin with cotton goods; IL. last
Friday, when the New York stock mar
ket closed for the day, the last price on
cotton was, say 30 cents pound. The
mills, when they see that the cotton
has gone up to 35 cents pound, they
put price according to the latest quo
tation, say muslin 20 cents yard,
pants goods 35 cents yard, hosiery
$1.00 a dozen, etc., according to the
grades.
| They send out statesmen to the job
bers, the jobbers send out their sales
men and add to the above prices 25
per cent profit: Now it reaches the
retailer who puts on a profit of 80 per
| cent. Then it comes to the consumer.
The shoe and leather markets are the
same way.
| Then a week passes and the gambling
still goes on in Wall Street. The same
raw cotton that closed last Friday at
30 cents a pound closed the next Fri
day. at 45 cents a pound. The weaver
notices that raw cotton went up 10
cents pound, they demand at once 10
per cent more wages, which raises
certain per cent on the yard goods.
Now we will 60 to the manufacturer
who makes up all kinds of garments
from piece goods. The operator and
cutter see that the weaver received a
raise in their wages; they demand the
same; which in the last two years has
always been granted. Then the same
goods is made up in different garments.
And now we will 60 to the jobber.
Now when the cotton went up from
80 to do cents, the mills raised once,
the manufacturer raised once, the job
Der and so did the retailer. This has
been going on since the war started.
Now I will ask you question. You
should decide what had to, and what is
to be done. If the mills had a few
piece of goods left on hand from the
time before the war started, when raw
cotton was as low as 8 cents a pound
shall they sell it at price, as they sold
before the war, when the weaver worked
for two dollars a day, or should they
sell it according to what raw cotton sells
today, when the weaver receives 5000
day or more? And the same thing
with the manufacturer, if he has any
goods left over. Now take the retailer.
Anything that is not staple he is glad
to get rid of it at any price, but any
thing that is staple at what price shall
he sell it? I, being retailer. would
like to know.
For a better example. since four
weeks ago rubbers were raised from 20
to 30 per cent, on every kind that 1 had
from 1919. l had to rebuy this month
and to pay the advance price. How
shall | sell them?
Arrow brand collars went up in price
this month, including old and new
styles. ! rebought this month. How
shall 1 sell them? The same with all
kinds of merchandise and all kinds of
business. Why pick on the poor retail :
er? Don't you think it would be more
fitting and better to 60 from the bottom
or the basement where the price starts ?
The address of that place is The Stock
Market. Wall street.
Another example: When the war
started. if the government had not put
price on the wheat. the gamblers in
Wall street would. You and | would
be paying so cents for one loaf of bread.
You remember when onions reached the
price of Is cents pound. If the gov
ernment had not taken a hand it would
be 80 cents now. That shows that the
H. C. o. L. is only the fault of the
; government.
Take another example: Twenty years
ago l dealt in leather. AT that time
ell-known brands of oak leather re
tailed at 80 cents pound. Some ot
the brands were: Louisville, Baltimore
Star, ETC.. Calf and kids accordingly.
Now the same leather sells at 81 25 d
pound Who is at fault, the retailer
or the big leather company?
Say, mister, you and / know it. In
President Cleveland's time. with the
, Democratic Congress and Senate, the
tariff was taken off of all kinds of goods,
but the leather was not touched.
believe | am right.
When the commission arrives from
Washington. / would advise the mem
bers to visit your Office first and ask
) why the price on your paper was raised
from one to two cents. And no doubt
the advertising space-has almost dou =
bled AND ONWARD WE MARCH.
To read what you had in your paper
on Saturday is enough to excite the
public and to make pogroms on the
small poor retailers, as happens in
Russia.
Say, mister, does the Curb market
help the II. G. o. L.? Before you say
yes, 60 to a farmer who was not in
the market for two or three weeks, and