Evening star., 1935-08-11
Living Costs
Over 90 Years
BY Frederic ]. Haskin.

American and all other people. There
never has been time when the ultimate
consumer of goods did not find reason
to complain of the prices he was required
to pay for his needs. Conversely, there
seldom has been a time when the buyer
did not bewail his approximate mendi-
cancy, due to the sacrifices he was re-
quired to make to meet competition. 1t
was Sam Walter Foss, the homely New
England poet OF generation ago, who
told how "the things we buy continue
high and the things we sell are low
1t takes considerable research to 60 to
the bottom of these things. Statistics
of the good old days are not readily
available However, the Domestic Com
merce Division of the Department of
Commerce has done some digging and
presented figures on certain necessary
items Of household expense over a period
of 60 years. These indicate that in some
lines there have been comparatively
slight increases and in some actual de-
creases in price.
The prices of % standard items Of
necessary household use, all in the
grocery line, have been selected and re-
ported upon. and 1t has been found that
as to IS of these items the prices in 1885
are lower than they were in 1875. There
are some variations in prices in types
of stores and in different sections OF the
country, but in general, these items are
so standard and so nationally distributed
that the figures given can be regarded
as pretty accurate for the whole country.
Take sugar, which is regarded as
necessity. 1t is shown that in 1875
granulated sugar cost II cents a pound,
while in 1885 the average price is
cents. In. the meantime, notably during
the World War, the price was very much
higher. as high as % cents in some cities,
but that was an emergency period and
is we'll past now. Cut sugar in 1875 cost
II cents a pound and today sells for
cents while pulverized sugar was 13 cents
in 1875 and now is cents.
A whole nation can support itself
pretty well on oatmeal if necessary, and
come near conquering the world on that
diet, as witness the example Of Scot
land. 1t may be recalled that DR.. John
son, in his dictionary. defined oatmeal
as a food for men in Scotland and for
horses in England. On which definition
Dr. Alternately, the celebrated Edinburgh
Savant, commented: And where do you
find such men and such horseS"l Well,
in 1875 oatmeal cost 10 cents a pound
and now it is 8 cents. OF course, the
figures are for the United States. No
Scot would pay such exorbitant prices
at home.
Better and Cheaper Canned Goods.
It is said that the American people
of the twentieth century live on canned
goods. 1t is undeniable that canned
goods constitute a tremendous percentage
of the American diet. In 1875 canned
corn cost SO. so a dozen and in 1885 the
item costs $3.50. Canned tomatoes 35
years ago cost $225 a dozen and today
Sl85. In 1875 the price of canned French
peas was S575 a dozen and now that
figure is down to S4 Canned peaches
have dropped from $3.50 dozen in 1875
to S3.75 this year, while canned mush-
rooms have declined over the period from
so cents to 40 cents.
In connection with canned goods 1t
should be stated that the product sold
to the American people at these lower
prices today is much better product.
People of a generation or two back can
remember how the earlier canned goods
frequently caused illness and even death.
Ptomaine poisoning, botulism and such
difficulties arose from consumption OF
impure canned goods. The pure food
and drugs act and the police work OF
the National Gamers Association COM
bined to raise the standard of today
practically to perfection. So q far
superior product is purveyed at a much
lower price than in the old days.
Tapioca has always been regarded as
a poor mans semi-luxury. In 1875 he
paid 25 cents a pound and today pays
only IA cents pound. Even more strik-
ing is the history of one of the most
notable of poor mems foods-hominy
grits. The package of hominy grits
which in 1875 cost 40 cents now sells
for 10 centS-a rs per cent decline in
the cost of that item Of living.
Almonds. perhaps, belong in the luxury
class. but the nut has always been popu-
lar in America. especially as an ingredi-
ent of many homemade delicacies. 1t
is a grocery store staple of long stand
ing. In 1878 almonds cost As cents a
pound and today they are down to 35
cents.
Some of the great fortunes of America
have been made out of soap. Colgate
University is founded on soap. and the
and of his widow, the Communist sym
pathizer. are notable. There was q
period in American history when an
amazing proportion of American homes
had been largely furnished from dish
pans to stuffed furniture and banquet
lamps with ruddy red globes obtained
with Larkin soap coupons. These for
tunes. these benefactions, all were ac-
cumulated and distributed on q declin-
ing price scale. In 1875 bar of sand
soap cost 10 cents and today the price
is cents Borax soap in 1875 cost IA
cents a cake and today it is cents.
cake and now sells for cents. On the
other hand, starch cost IS cents g.
pound box, while today it is go cents.
Some Commodities F1uctuate.
In the meantime, there have been
lower and higher prices than at the ex-
treme ends of this 60-year sweep. Oat-
meal. for instance, which was 10 cents
in 1875 and cents now, was only
cents a pound in 1893 and only 8 cents
in 1915. Starch which had been rs cents
at the beginning and now is 80 cents
was, only 60 cents 6-pound box in 1893
and again in 1915.
Necessities listed which have enhanced
in price out of the list of % reported
by the Commerce Division-and there
are but six out of the list-inClude hams.
In 19zF hanaS were Is cents pound
and now are "a cents. Sliced bacon was
18 cents in 1875 and this year is SO, and
going up. Java coffee was IS cents