Perth Amboy evening news., 1923-01-30

WASHINGTON, Jan. 1S-There
is one grocery store in the United
States today for every rs families.
There is a shoe store for every lfZ
families; a mems furnishing store
for every 603 families; a hardware
store for every 657 familiea and q
dry goods store for svery 691 fam
lilies.
These figures, showing an override
velopment Of retailing are part of a
remarkable study of the cost Of
marketing and distributing today a
| study made as part of the 1nVestl-
cation recently finished by the con-
gressional Joint Commission OF AS
lricultural Inquiry. Acting dnd sr
the direction OF trained economists
the commission sent out thousands
of missionaries to manufactures
wholesalers, and retailers, request
ling from them the confidential de-
tails of their business. Fifteen
Thousand of these missionaries
were returned with the information
asked, and from these and its own
Independent investigation, the COM
mission compiled the first accurate
summary ever made of the progress
of commodities from the time they
leave the farms and mines until
they reach the consumers.
Some surprising facts were dis
closed The picture is much more
favorable to the dealer-the So
called mathematician had been
generally supposed. And this was
no whitewashing effort, either.
THE plight of the American farmer,
whose business has become prof1ta-
BILE in the face OF high retail prices
forced the investigation. The farm
bloc in congress controlled the
commission, which therefore would
have been glad enough 10 sustain
the popular notion in it's report and
pin on the greed of dealers the se-
sponsibility for the high cost OF liY-
ing and the prostratton OF Amer
lean agriculture.
But this Indictment would not
hold. The commission failed to find
any profteering, taking trades and
businesses as a whole. Profits, on
the contrary, have shown a ten
dency to decrease, at least in per-
centage. The farmer Is getting less
for his produce than in any year
since 1918. The whole record points
to a maintained efficiency in man
u%facturing plants, whose manufac-
turing costs have not risen inordl-
nateiy in spite of the higher wages
paid. Indeed, in some instances
manufacturing costs have actually
decreased since 1918. With profits
held down, with the farmers starv-
ing on the money they receive for
their crops, and with no increased
costs of manufacture to for
the condition, nevertheless prices
are staying within hailing dis
Favna - kha horh Yax~aIo - TN1g
What Is the answer?
High Cost OF Service
The commission finds the answer
in the disproportionate costs VI
pure distribution-all these activi-
ties oil modern commerce whct lie
entirely outside of pure production.
In the high costs of today we are
paying for service and mt for pro-
duct. The costs of distribution are
eating up the producers.
When two grocery stores are OPP
Grating in a community where one
would be enough. the consumers
are paying for 1t. To have two
stores makes 1t o convenient
than one would be. but it is costly.
When the average grocer's 10 GUS
toners demand that he stock his
SHELVES WAIiA 9NA pAA&io ~ OoNSAtS@~
when one should he enough, that ia
service for which the customers
pay. For the grocer 1t means
money tied Up in stock, q slower
stock turnover, insurance costs,
deterioration and loss. He must be
paid for this. The customers pay
for IL in the price of oatmeal.
OF every dollar which the Is
toner pays for rolled oats, the far
mer gets IS cents. 1t costs the
manufacturer Q cents to make the
rolled oats. The actual production
cost, therefore, of this quantity OF
rolled oats is 27 cents. and yet the
consumer has to pay a dollar for
it. About 10 cents OF the dollar
represents profits taken by various
handlers along the line between
farmer and consumer. Fifty-four
cents of the consumers dollar paid
for rolled oats go to pay the act
ual cost OF distribution.
These are startling figures, and
they are repeated in the report for
more than one commodity. Take
bread-a dollars worth of It. How
much of the dollar goes to tho act
ual producers of the bread, /. g., the
wheat grower, the miller. and the
bakeY7 The reporter shows that
these three tossther Get IL cents a