The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1920-03-29
HIGHER
 IN ARGENTINE

Argentina is suffering from top heavy scale of prices even more than the United States, according to in formation recently published by the American Chamber of Commerce in Argentina.
 Taking the year 1910 as a, basis and rating the cost of living in Ar gentina during that year at 100 per cent, it is found that by 1918 the percentage of increase in the cost of the necessities of life had advanced to IFS per cent, and it is believed by those well acquainted with the local situation that fully another 10 per cent. was added during the course of 1919
 These figures include the cost of food: meat, bread, oil, rice, sugar, coffee, tea, tobacco, yerbamate (Para- guayan tea) vegetables, wine, fat, flour and milk; fuel (food, coal, oil and gaS); rent, clothing and sun dries
 "Of the three principal items, food, rent and clothing, which go to make up the cost of living, rent shows the slightest increase, and during the year 1916 even fell as low as S3 per cent of the 1910 base. However, in 1918 this item had risen to IF per
 
 cent. Food has continually been oli the up grade since 1910 and by 1918 had reached 145 per cent. In all probability food today retails around 50 per cent increase over the prices of a decade ago, this in spite of Argentina's being a world exporter of the. staple food supplies. As might naturally be surmised, the greatest advance in prices has taken place in clothing, which, in spite of the fact that considerable progress has all | ready been made by the local manu- facture of cotton and woolen goods, is 1 an article largely dependent upon foreign markets for supplies. In 1918 the cost of clothing had advanced to 204 basis of 100 per cent Undoubt- edly a good suit of clothes made by a first class Buenos Ayres tailor costs | today three times the price of ten ! years ago.
 'fFor Americans living in Buenos Ayres, in a fairly comfortable way, an unmarried man should at least l have a salary of S35O U. S. gold per month; man and wife $425, while a married couple with one or two chill 1 dren should have as a, minimum monthly allowance, $500 These 1 figures may be taken as applying to
  l representatives of American firms will probably require something like | twice these sums.
 Hotel rates, run from S4 to $1O, | while good board may be had, in i boarding houses or private homes for from sS5 to $125 per month. Unfur- nished apartments in desirable 1oca- i tons with four or five rooms vary 1 between $75 and $110 as a monthly rent Furnished, these same apart ments bring all the way from $125 to | $175 per month.
 Telephones for general business purposes cost from s6.30 to $S.6O; 1 professional use $5.25, and for pri- vate residents $4. The average cost l of current for lighting is Sc per kil1o- watt-hour. Gas for cooking, heating etc, is paid for at the rate of 7c per cubic meter. Firewood costs approxi- mate1y ST per ton. Charcoal of a superior quality is very largely used in the kitchen of Buenos Ayres and sells at retail for about Pc a pound Coal sells at present for around $34 a ton.
 '@The rents for a single office room in a modern office building ir the financial districts of the city vary from $2O to $50 per month";