COST OF LIVING.

Colonist, Volume LIV, Issue 13465, 10 July 1912, Page 4

COST OF LIVING.

COMM rSS lON'S WELLING TON SITTING.

PitICES OF COAL, CANDLES AND DRAPERY.

[United Press Association.]

Wellington, July 9

Before the Cost of Living Commission Mr Stanley S. Brown, managing director of Samuel Brown, Ltd., said that Westport coal cost ex wharf £1 5s por ton, and tile cartage to yards was Is (id. per ton. With all costs the price rose to £1 13s Sd and the average soiling pruv was £1 15s 7d. In 1906 the cost of th<* coal was Is a ton loss, and the selling prices 2s a ton more, so that they were now realising 3s less than in 1906. Tho price of labour and horse feed had gone up considerably. At pre.sent there wero 32 coal dealers in Wellington, ;»i»u there- was perfectly free conrpetleWo here. Mr. Edward Bull, secretary ami manager of the New Zealand Candle Co said that thei price of candles!had'1 not gone up in recent years. otr.toments had been made that he would like to refute. Tlio merchants never had anything to do with fixing the prices in Wellington. It was -also ineo.-Te-ct to. say that tlio operation's of the Burmah Candle Company had l)rought the price of candles down Id. The decrease was due to the drop in the price of paraffin, wax. There had not been two meetings of the Now Zealand candle manufacturers with tlio object of raising prices. Tho removal of the duty on imported candles would send tho local factqriej: out of operation in a very little time. His firm would sell to any merchant.

Mr. Win. Sim. manager of the Wellington branch ol: the D.1.G., said that ho had been in th" drapery trnoo for :'!) years, and had noticed no appreciable rise in the price of drapery or men's clothes in the last ten years. There wag a demand for a hotter cv.t :.md style of clothing, mainly noticeable in tho working classes. Ten years ago thousands?, of pairs of moleskins won sold, whvro now only a few were sold.