The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1920-01-29
State Treasurer Sends Out
Message to People Boost
ing Thrift Week and
Possibly Johnson.
HITS AT ALL INVESTIGATORS
Tries to Draw Some Lines Between
Thrift, Hoarding and Profteering but
Doesn't Even Intimate that He Is
Candidate for Governor.

Half of our people will soon be en-
gagged in inspecting the other half, 81
declares State Treasurer Henry johns
son in rather unusual contribution to
the present day critical literature which
came to the desk of the editor of the
News this morning. It is not stated
anywhere in the letter what the state
official is driving at or his reasons for
going to the people with dissertation
on prices now as compared with the
days of the OK team. but it is just pos
siblee that this is the opening wedge to
the treasurer saying something about
his being a candidate for governor
later in the year. At any rate it is
courtesy to the state treasurer that
the people know what he has to say.
He says:
"This is Thrift Week. However, it
may not be an easy matter to distin-
guish between thrift, hording and
profteering.
Forty Years Ago.
Forty years ago we early settlers in
Oconto county would start with our OK
teams for Shawano, distance of
twenty eight miles, for the purpose Of
laying in our winter supplies. It used
to take us four days to make the trip,
but as there were no hotel bills our
expenses were, light. Upon arriving
at Shawano we would each buy barrel
Of sugar, from three to Ave barrels of
-four, and groceries enough to last all
winter. Tn fact, we would bay all that
we coud pay for and don't forget this
last sentence. We used to call this
thrift Nowadays if man should come
home with load of supplies of that
kind he would be considered horder.
We used to point with pride to a sue
cessful business man. Today he is
classified as a profteer.
On the Price of Potatoes.
Last fall after returning from a trip
in the northern part Of the state / made
the remark to newspaper man that
potatoes would be from $3.50 to $500
per bushel this winter. Although ]
have no news bureau, he seems to have
scattered this information pretty well
all over the state as I have received
letters from many different parties, say
ing, At your suggestion we have laid
in our supply of potatoes for the win
ter. I notice by the Milwaukee Sen
tinel today that potatoes are quoted at
$4.25 per hundred and that our market
| ing commissioner and the commissioner
of the high cost Of living, are going to
investigate the high cost of potatoes
| Does the marketing commission realize
that by establishing four grades of po-
tatoes that thousands of bushels Of
small potatoes were dumped into the
pig pen last fall that might have been
used for food. Also, potatoes must be
sacked now in order to market them
and sacks cost soc for every hundred
pounds Of potatoes, besides the extra
work in putting them up. Then again
at this time Of the year, with the Their
mometer ranging all the way from IL
to 20 degrees below zero, dealers are
not going to ship potatoes, especially
with the slow transportation that we
now have, and run the chances of hav-
ing the potatoes frozen in the car and
becoming a total loss
Sugar Cost Still Investigated.
We were promised some time age
that investigators would bring the cost
of sugar down to eleven cents, but il
went up to twenty-one.
When we talk about thrift-half OF
our people will soon be engaged in in
specting the other half, whereas if
these investigators would go to work
to produce something instead of con
Stunning it would have tendency to
bring down the high cost of living, if
such a thing is necessary. Supply and
demand is the only regulation that ]
know Of There may be another way,
but so far have failed to see it.