Evening star., 1946-07-11

FdpdROS Will De QOIlOTeQ MOIll
dinner in the Hotel Statler.
join in the campaign for the buy
er'S strike.
Crowds Good Natured.
Crowds on F street generally re.
acted to the parading pickets with
good tolerance, and there
was evidence that some of them. al
least. took the strike" seriously.
One elderly woman, urged by 8
young picket to Buy nothing
strike today" followed him down tht
street to say, Il haven't bought any
thing today except my lunch, ane
body has to eat"
Shoppers on Seventh street be-
tween D and F. streets NV. paid
little or no heed to pickets wear
ing signs: Buyers Strike Today
Do Not Cross Picket Line"
About IS women and one man
carried signs and gave out leaflets
Most of the persons receiving the
leaflets paused and read them, but
continued on into stores.
Meat Supply Slowed.
Meanwhile, higher wholesale prices
and uncertainty about congressional.
action on future controls is keeping
much meat from reaching Washing
ton consumers despite some increase
in the supply, in the opinion of deal
ers here.
Denying that prices of beef are
headed for the so per cent jumI
forecast in OPA circles as a result
of record breaking livestock quota
tions at Chicago this week, pack.
ing establishment and chain store
Spokesmen estimated that some
wholesale meat costs in this ares
are from IS to 90 per cent higher
than last week.
AS a result retailers are not buy.
ing much more meat at this time
because they fear that a Sudder
price drop would leave them hold
ing the bag" it was said.
Supply Up Slightly.
Moreover, according to this ex.
PLANTATION, the wholesale supply
though more plentiful than a week
ago is still insufficient to meet the
normal consumer demand. Al
evidence of the more plentiful
supply coming into the Washington
market, storage company officia
reported that several cars of meal
for storage are now arriving where.
as no meat was available for stor.
age last week. A hotel and reStau-
rant supply company reported ar.
rivals of Is carloads in recent days
as compared with only three last
week.
Another factor in the compare
lively slow pickup in the retail
meat supply, a spokesman for the
Independent Food Distributors AS
sociation of Washington said, is thai
the major packers such as Swift
Armour and Cudahy are not yet
buying or shipping in large quaint.
ties from the Midwest.
He as well as Joseph Danzansky
counsel for the meat division of the
Merchants and Manufacturers AS.
Sociation, estimated that wholesale
price levels are from about Is to 81
per cent higher. This, they added
is not an inflationary boost but "jus
about covers the former subsidies.
A representative of one of the larg.
est chain store companies concurree
in the opinion that many Washing.
ton retailers having pledged to ad
here to former OPA ceilings as Ions
as possible. are not buying meat a
prices far greater than the forme
ceilings.
More Lamb and Pork.
The meat supply. according to in.
formal surveys by the Independent
Food Distributors Associa ton ane
the local Office of the National AS.
Soclatlon of Retail Grocers. has beer
confined pretty much to lamb anc
pork during the last few days, with
a very little beef" Although com
prehensive retail price information
was not available because of tht
confused national picture" official
of the two organizations declared
that except in scattered instance
the retail meat dealers here have no
advanced prices as high as the esti
mated maximum of 30 per cent tt
! cover removal of subsidies.
Another shoppers move to inves
1 tlgate price trends was started toda,
when committee appointed by tn,
Executive Committee of the Hill
crest Citizens Association began {
survey of neighborhood stores. TIL,
association stated that. 1T was tn,
sentiment of the committee tha
some definite steps should be takeI
to indicate to the merchants tha
unreasonable increases in price
would not be tolerated.
Many Complaints Reported.
The clearing house for com
plants" sponsored by the Washing
ton Chapter of the American Vet
Grams Committee. announced that i
received about so calls yesterday ant
several this morning from person
citing instances of food prices the,
believed unWarranted.
Preliminary study Of these com
plants indicate that meat is easie
to find than at any time in the las
two weeks, the committee head
quarters said. The complaints re
ceived thus far are isolated in
stances, including reported charge
of 78 cents pound for hamburger
as compared with an earlier ceiling