GOING UP: PRICES AND PROFITS

NZ Truth, Issue 772, 21 August 1920, Page 1

GOING UP: PRICES AND PROFITS

A mysterious juggling: with prices has been indulged iri by a. big Wellington drapery shop m regard -to the price o£ a certain line' of linen. The ordinary price of this 'material as charged by this firm has been 3s per yard. During a recent sale the price was reduced to is lid per yard, while two days last week, as "a special draw," the price was further reduced" to Is 4d. Needless to say there was a big run on the stuff for th© two special days. It is, however, very mystifying to the uninitiated, particularly bo as the price has reverted to 8s per yard again this week, a jump of over a 100 per. cent. Unless the firm was losing on the Is 4d price there must bo a. terriflo profit on the present (8s) price. ■ It XI v II While the cry Is to live away from the cities the coat of living burdens of the suburbanite are xnuoh heavier than those of the town dweller. Tram fares have greatly increased, train fares are to increase, food -is dearer (m spite of the humbug of the suburban storekeeper that he sells "at town prices"). & nd now «yen the telephone charges are to be much heavier. The telephone is looked upon as a luxury, but to the suburbanite the 'phone is m many cases .almost a necessity. With the new scale of telephone charges many residents will have to dispense with 'phones. They remember Mr. Massey's promises too well to hang on m the-; hope that >' a more equitable system .of 'phone charges will Be inaugurated. »« il " Recently "Truth" made reference to the fact that m addition to the extra profits being reaped m by the increased cost of two -pound and fourpound loaves, the one-pound loaf was being retailed In man& cases at. three-pence-halfpenny. The little hint was effective, for the one- pound loaf is now being retailed generally at threepence—the legitimate price. ; t !! «! The howling of the wolves around the poor distressed house-keeper grows louder. Grocery firms are now petitioning Parliament that the margin between the wholesale and retail price of butter be inoreased—as if. the i consumer is not paying enough for the I article at present. No doubt the re'tailera feel that they should have something out of the recent increase |m price. The pressure cannot be so heavy on the retailers that they have to ask for a greater margin' of profit, j for there are one or two of their number who are able to sell butter at a penny per pound cheaper than their fellows — whether this is by a different arrangement of supply "Truth" cannot saz^At any rate those Wellington 'Seople who are economically inclineiu can get their butter at a saving of two-pence the pound by purchasing it at a certain store on the Quay. The "Noo Zee Times" quotes an American definition of a profiteer as "an ordinary mortal actuated by the universal desire to get all he can; his proflt is guaged by the public's willingness to be trimmed." This may be alright m 'Murka, but m Noo Zee the latter portion of the definition might be amended as follows; — "ma profit is guaged by the Government's willingness to let him trim the public" The

trouble is the New Zealand public la an unwilling but helpless victim. : : : : 1 1 The cost of food my yet be considerably reduced, that is if the alleged discoverer of the elixir of youth m tabloid form Intends to put his^ pills on the market at, say, a bob .a dozen. London chemists had this tabloid elixir on sale at a recent exhibition and explained that you just take them like' pills, only oftener, and that the sugar-coated tabloids will do all that the thyroid gland science is supposed to do. Undeveloped children will thrive like withering plants put out into the rain, and old gents will sprout rejuvenescence m a manner positively startling, The tabloids were said to be made from the glands of sheep, which is somewhat an Improvement on monkeys — still there are giddy black' sheep. Unfortunately, no mention of rejuvenating women was mads, so, if man ever does discover the secret of eternal -youth, he evidently Intends keeping it to himself. ti :i it "Mother of Eight" has provoked another correspondent, "Anxious Mother," to hold forth on the worries of keeping a large family on a small salary. % " Anxious Mother" writes: My husband Is earning £3 7s a week and there are seven of us to keep, and "he thinks I should be able to keep the home on less. We are living away In the country and have to buy everything at dear rates, I will give you the prices of some of the groceries: Tea, 8/9 per lb; sugar, 7d; butter 1/11; cocoa, 8/8; bread, 1/8 a loaf; potatoes, 8/6 a quarter cwt.; fowl wheat, 8/6 a bushel; 501 b. flour, 12/6; 251 b. oatmeal, 8/6; kerosene, 16/- a tin; coal, 25/6. a ton; meat 8d and 9d per Jb; bacon, lAO per lb; cheese, 1/6 per lb; soap, 2/2 a bar; rice, sago and tapioca Is lOd per lb. Do you think now that it is possible that I could live on less than £3 7s a week? "Wellington Is a city of contrasts. Hke all great cities," writes a correspondent. "On the other 'hand we have wealth and extravagance, on the other poverty and distress. While social (workers have, to appeal for funds and flothing for poor children, we find Borne people squandering their cash on furs and on fanoy rugs for pet dog». I would be the. last m the world to grudge our faithful canines food and drink and kindness, but there is a limit to my (fondness for animals. And I draw the line at clothes for dogs. I saw a dog on Lambton-quay the other day, dressed In an expensively embroidered Tug. Round its neck was a dinky collar, and attached to the collar was a string with a woman at the end of it. Surely we aren't going v-to adopt the fashion of the super-rich classes of Britain, America and France of dressing up pet pugs m costly furs and neglecting the children of our poorer sisters !" m :: it A cable tells us regarding the House of Commons that (1) it is proposed to reduce the duty on sparkling wines; and (2) a Labor motion to abolish the duty on tea was defeated by 242 votes to 46. So Fat and his fattened female are still doing tjietr bit to show how they won the "way.