New-York tribune., 1920-09-04
The High Cost of Liuing
Wage and Price Increases Have
Brought Vast Iniustices

To the Editor of The Tribune.
Sir: Your editorial entitled "Is the
Cost Of Living Really High ?" is sur
prising. AS you say, the real cost of
living depends on "the quantity and
quality of goods and services we can
command, no matter what the price
level may be-" But just how much
goods can the average person COM
mand? True, statistics show that the
shops are selling more luxuries, thea
.crs doing more business, etc.; but
does this mean that the majority of
the people are responsible? In my
opinion it does not
The shopgirl and small wage-carncr
(by no means small nowadays> in that
class which the luxury selling stores
formerly never catered to- are now
coming into their own because Of the
higher salaries they receive
But what of the middle and upper
middle classes, which arc so in the
majority in the United States? Their
income has not materially increased
People whose only source of income is
invested money, which comes in every
so often in the shape Of fixed dividends,
arc left far behind in this luxury race.
Profc Observation-Disclosures, lawyers, teach
crs, etc.-havc practically the same in
come as they had five years ago. You
say they should not--that as the
poorer class prospcrs so should they
But they don't. A servant who earns
as much as the average doctor expects
to be treated, if not free of charge, at
least at half rates, and in almost every
case is; which means that the servant
is just that much richer :han the doc
.or.
Formerly it was the vast middle
class who bought moderately Of
luxurcs. Now it IS .he former poor
who buy lavishly, because they have
the money and can realize lifelong
ambition to "havc things"
In your editorial you say that the
shopgirl not only has fur to keep
her warm in winter, but she also has
one for vanity's sake in summer. If
she can pay cxorbitant prices it stands
to reason that her income must have
also suffic cicntly advanced to permit
her to do such thing. But think how
many of the other classes have
given up furs even in winter as out
of the question, for their incomes show
no such material increase.
That the stores report having sold
more Injuries of late does not mean
that the majority of the people arc
buying them. Far from it. One fac
tory girl will got two Of an article
which balances the fact that two teach
crs set none.
The average person has to save and
hoard his money in order to live at
all, buying only the simple ncccssarics
Of life. How many families are doing
their own houscwork, where they for
merry had two or three servants, in or
der to live at all? Can you think of
one family, not including the fabulous
" wealthy, which has not RADICAL )
economical in order to meet the pres
cnt high cost of living?
Sugar goes up to 25 cents pound
but their income does not 70 up pro
portionately. A lawyer cannot strike
FOR more money when his bills arc
greater. He has to grin and bear It
cutting out things which before seemed
to him ncccssarics, but now amount to
positive luxurics.
No. certainly the income of the ma.
jo:i:y does not advance with ascend
ing prices, and the number Of luxurics
sold to-day is no fair way of judging
that i. does. The upper, educated
classes are madc to suffer for an arti-
fetal condition, and VIC ought not tc
sit quietly by and allow such a condi
ton to persist. II. L. S.
New York, Aug. 30, 1920.