Indiana daily times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1914-1922, 1921-09-19
KANSAS CITY
MAKES WORK
FOR CITIZENS
q, 200 Out Of Work in
January = Only
$4,000 Now.
GETS OFF EASIER
Feels Depression Less
Than Eastern
Centers.
Special to Indiana Daily Times
and Philadelphia Public Ledger.
BY RICHARD SPiLLANE.


KANSAS CITY. Mo, Sept. IL
Kansas City is doing today and has
done in the last year and half a
greater amount of construction work
proportionate;y than perhaps any
other city of its size in America.
This work is widespread, covering
municipal, industrial and housing
structures, and it probably explains
the reduction of unemployed from
21,2o0 in January for the whole met
ropolitan district to $4,000 today.
Kansas citizens declare they have not
felt the depression so much as has the
East. This is true only because the con
struction work has been such an Offset.
Analysis shows that in merchandising
the same general conditions prevail here
as in Eastern cities only not to so marked
a degree. Despite the large amount Of
new residential building, the housing
shortage is acute. Furniture storage
warehouses are crowded with household
goods while many families are forced
to live in cramped quarters. Rents are
high, very high, and employers, while
insisting that labor has not been liqui-
dated, declare it cannot bear its share
OF the cut until rents are reduced The
anomaly of much dwelling construction
and much crowding can be explained only
by the belief that the city is growing
faster than the authorities appreciate
" hile warehouses have much household
furniture in them they are bare of gen
eral merchandise. Stocks of goods in
nd ,Tr
houses are scant.
About three hundred men active in
the city's affairs met your correspondent
at the Hotel Baltimore and later fifteen
gentlemen. representatives of the major
lines of business, gave in detail reports
as to the conditions in their fields
Among these were Z. o. Faeth. whole
sale hardware; r. F. Hayes, manager Ar
mour & Co., c. c. Peters, general mana
ger Emery Bird and Thayer department
store, o. J. Schneider, largest sporting
goods dealer west Of the Mississippi; W.
5, Iickye, clay products and newspaper
proprietor: G. T. Jennings, lumber; J.
c. Lester, president Ridenour Baker Gro
Ger Company. Also there were reports
made by representatives OF the railroads.
the interurban and local traction compa-
nies, bankers, real estate men and others
FIGURES APPLY TO
METROPOLIS CITY.
1t must be understood that such fig
ures as are given here apply TO metro
poiitan Kansas City and not to the por-
ton of the municipality in Missouri.
Kansas City fs a young whale It is
yoractous in its business appetite. Its
factory output approKimates 100000 a
day. In this line packing house products
are rre-eminent making up more than
two ffths of the total. but there Is a big
output of dairy products. confectionery.
-four and grain mill articles. crude and
rehnei on, soaps and chemicals. auto
mobile supplies together with iron and
steel products, mill and cabinet work
steel metal goods particularly tanks
and barrels) paper boxes, bags, tents,
awnings, etc
The jobbing business, spreading as it
does over wide territory, is big. Last
year it reached SSs2, 100000 Grain and
livestock play big part in sharing the
city's business. Millions of cattle. calves
sheep and hogs pour through this gate
each year to market while the receipts OF
grain approximate 1O0OOO.OOO bushels
One of the things on which nearly all
the representatives of large business here
agreed was that there had been a notice
able improvement in the last sixty days
and particularly the last thirty days
large majority. There was general agree
ment that the costs Of doing business
were too high and must be reduced. that
workers were more efficient; that the
costs OF transportation were thrOttling
and that bulk commodities could not move
freely until railroad rates were adjusted.
Fuel, labor and transportation had to
bear their share OF liquidation before
conditions could be healthy, but despite
he nf fcTa
there was a steady and increasing i'm
provement all along the lines.
NEEDS LOWER RATES
TO THE SEABOARD.
Kansas City needs lower rates to the
seaboard, it was declared. 1t wants the
rivers made navigable to the fullest de-
gree and it wants canalizatiOn prospects
that are worthy taken out of dusty
pigeonholes and pushed to completion.
1t wants cheaper and better transporta-
tion so the products Of the West can
get to market without excessive cost to
the consumer. 1t wants the Nation to
do a larger business on a smaller cost
Of distribution. It wants America to
realize that marketing expense has been
strociously high in Wholesale and retail
and it must be reduced. II wants the
whole country to see clearly that the
American railroads are on an eight hour
basis and American industry is on an
eight-hour basis while a good part Of
Europe is on a twelve or fourteen hour
basis and America cannot maintain its
predominant position against world com
petition unless it has the highest ef-
hcieney in labor and the lowest costs In
its marketing process
These people of the Middle West don't
dodge confession of their own short
mo fhar-
marketing costs nationally they are
studying ways and means of reducing
costs OF distribution locally There was
a general discussion as to prices whole
Continued on Page Seven.)