South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1920-04-22
COMPLAINTS POUR
IN AGAINST HIGH
COST OF LIVING
Campaign Against Profiteers
Results In Conviction of
lO7 Offenders.


NEW YORK, April c1.-A w
Riley. chief Of the flying squad
ron" Of the department OF justice
whose campaign so far has resulted
in the conviction OF 107 prohteers
with fines ranging from $50 TO 50 500
and imprisonment from one day TO
two years. has uncovered number
of surprising cmmodities for which
dealers are said 20 bee asking ex-
orbitant prices Complaints of all
legged "gouging" in almost every
thing from pickles 10 rouge and
from lemonade 20 whisky are being
reported 20 Mr.. Riley by New York
consumers one man who had paid
S1-15 70 "A restaurateur for tiny
steak and six small pieces OF French
fried potatoes. didn't stop 10 eat
them but glancing at his check, took
a newspaper he had been reading,
wrapped up his meal" and brought
IL 20 the federal prosecutor.
Some OF the letters OF complaint
were amusing. others pathetic. All
however. showed the seriousness of
the present era Of high prices. One
indignant citizen wrote. you
ought TO investigate 's fish
market IN Brooklyn. He's a modern
Jesse James. What do you think OF
80 cents a pound for salmon and
go cents for sea bass ?"
Examples Cited.
The chief Of the flying squadron"
has received complaints of such ex-
amples OF alleged prOfiteeTing as fol-
lows:
Drug store whisky at So pint
and 81 more for doctors prescrip-
ton: canary birds $40 TO $25 and b
To SIS for a cage; lemonade. served
at a hotel dance and said to have
been weak" 81 a glass; rouge 81
TO SO a box for imported" brands:
that fish during Lent rose from 20
cents 10 81 a pound in some New
York markets; prunes. three for / o
cents In 2 popular restaurant; pea
nut oil, sold as olive oil" 81 a
quart; anthracite coal SIS instead
of $3.50 "A ton in Nyaok. y. Y, be-
cause the miners were granted a
wage increase of 90 cents q ton
Consumers complain to Mr.. Riley
that they have to paw so cents a
pound for the same brands OF coffee
that retailed for Il cents pound
before the war and that wholesalers
paid IL cents a pound for some of
these codees three years ago and
are now paying 3 cents Milk they
charge costs 10 cents a glass in res
taurants which buy IL for II cents
quart; that they have TO pay 30
cents for linen collars costing at
wholesale $40 a dozen: pickles
cost six cents each; cabbage 40 cents
q head. Is cents a bunch for as
paragus and IS cents a head for
lettuce.
Kennedy Suggested.
a Young woman protested after
having paid 81 for a bag at a de-
partment store bargain sale which.
she discovered later. cost rs cents TO
manufacture. She said that many
big business houses were not sat
iShed with 100 pc recent profit but
were making. in some cases. $50 to
200 per cent She suggested "a
remedy as follows:
Do not buy anything in the first
store YOU visit. Ask the price and.
II 1t seems at all excessive. say YOU
VIII not pay fl and walk out Then
20 next door and you may buy il for
less AT any rate these prohteers
need to know that the public is
wise TO them. A tremendous volume
Of refusals TO buy would make such
merchants realize they must stop
overcharging. if they would not pre-
Ctpitate a general business boycott
working with the utmost secrecy and
names Of compliments are withheld.
Several big New York corporations.
which have been accused of max
ing unjustifahle profits on foodstuffs
and clothing, are now reported uu-
der investigation. According 10 Mr..
Riley. one convicted profiteer blamed
the public for much Of the high
prices.
It's so easy 10 get what YOU ask
for" the merchant cOndded to the
chief investigator. that few bust
ness men can resist the temptation
to raise prices. If I put two ger
ments In my store window OF exact
" the same cut and materials but
with a $50 tag on one and a S55
tag on the other. most persons would /
buy the higher-priced one It's a
strange freak of human nature I