Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1920-10-20
FOOD COSTL0WE
BY SMALL MARGIN,
REPORT STATES
Less Than Half of | Per Cent
Decline in Twenty-Five
Articles.

Less tina: one-half of l per cent
decrease in the average District fam =
lily expenditure for twenty-five ar
ticles OF food from August Il to Sep
TENDER 10 is shown in figures made
statistics.
The greatest decrease. or per
cent. was shown at Butte and the
only increase found in fifty-one cities
was at San Francisco. where an in
crease of l per cent was noted. Bos-
ton. Los Angeles Minneapolis. Omaha
and Pittsburgh shared with this city
the less than "five-tenths of l per
cent" decrease figure.
During the year period. September.
1919. to September. 1920, the increase
in the retail price of food in the
District was per cent, Los Angeles
showing the great increase of II per
cent.
Increase Over 1919.
Tho District showed an increase OF
80 per cent. as compared with the
"veras>a expenditure in the year 1919.
The cost of the - articles making
mp the retail food index. carried by
the bureau of labor statistics de-
. creased per cent in September as
compared with August Prices of
,reau of labor statistics every month
by retail dealers in 81 important
cities. From these prices the bureau
computes ''weighted' index number
weighing the price of each article
by the quantity consumed in the av-
erage workingman's family The
"weighted'' retail food index is nee
essariiy limited to the articles for
which have been asertained the guam
titles consumed. hence only % articles
IF ri hnx
ever. make up about two-thirds of
the entire cost of the food budget.
Since January. 1919. monthly re-
tail prices of food have been secured
for 4s food articles. During the
month from August Is to September
IS, 1920. the price of % of the 43 food
articles for which prices were OBJ
tanned decreased. as follows Po-
tatoes, % per cent; sugar, 20 per cent;
cabbage. IA per cent: coffee, per
cent; onions, per cent: crisco and
rice, per cent each: sirloin steak,
round steak, rib roast. chuck roast
plate beef. bacon. lamb, flour, corn
meal, corn fakes, navy beans, canned
corn and canned tomatoes, l per cent
each. The prices of oleomargarine,
decreased less than five-tenths of
per cent.
The Is articles which increased in
price were: Eggs, II per cent; pork
chops, 9 per cent; oranges, s per cent;
raisins. 7 per cent; bananas. Per
and macaroni, 2 per cent each; ham,
hens, canned salmon, fresh milk and
evaporated milk, / per cent each. The
price of cheese and prunes increased
less than five-tenths of 1 per cent.
Prices remained unchanged for lard,
bread, baked beans, canned peas and
tea.
Year-Period Figures.
During the period. September. 1919,
to September. 1920. the percentage
increase in twenty-five food articles
nine Of the forty-three articles for
which prices were secured on both
dates increased, as follows: Sugar. sc
per cent; raisins. 50 per cent; oranges
80 per cent; rolled oats. 26 per cent
bananas. Is Per cent; cream OF wheat
ned salmon. 1S per cent; sirloin steak
Is per cent; round steak. -four anf
macaroni. II per cent each; lamb anC
eggs, Ii per cent each; rib roast, II
per cent; hens and fresh milk, 10 pei
cent each: pork chops and ham, pei
cent each: chuck roast, per cent
RIGA, per cent; tea, 5 per cent; but
ter and cornfakes, per cent each
plate beef, cornmeal, canned peas AND
prunes, / per cent each. Nut mar
Eariue Increased less than nVe-tentnS
Of per cent.
Articles which decreased in price
during the year were: Lard, 81 pei
cent; cabbage, % per cent; onions, II
per cent! crisco, 16 per cent: potatoes
9 per cent, coffee, per cent; cheese
navy beans and canned tomatoes,
per cent each; evaporated milk, PEI
cent; canned corn, 3 per cent; bacon
oleomargarine and baked beans, PEI
cent each.
For the seven-year period, Septem
her, 1913, to September, 1920, the per
centage increase in twenty-five foot
articles, combined. was 9S per cent. Tel
of the twenty-three articles for which
prices were secured in September
1918, increased over 100 per cent, a.
follows: Rice, 102 per cent; potatoes
Jos per cent; lamb. 10 per cent; hens
112.per cent; bread, 113 per cent; ham
rs per cent; pork chops and corr
meal. 11s per cent each; flour, 152 pc
cent; sugar, 221 per cent.
THE large percentage increase
shown in -four and sugar mean tina
in September, 1920. flour cost owe
TWO and one-half times as much as il
September, 1913, while sugar cost, ap
proximately, three and one-quarte
times as much" says the report.
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