COST OF LIVING.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1473, 28 June 1912, Page 9

COST OF LIVING.

LAND'VALUES. HOUSES FOR WORKING MEN, (By Telegraph.—Press Association.) ' Auckland, June 25. Tho Cost of Living Commission resumed to-day. .Mr. Edward C. Banks, farmer, of Matamata, taid tho price of land in his district, which was nearly all dairying country, iiact advanced 4U per cent, in tuo last ten years. Dairy lnrmers were paid IUJd. for uutter-fat this season, alto bonuses of Ijil. iUr. G. L. Peacocke, land and estate agent, and for many years editor of the "i\ew Zealand farmer," said he was acquainted with tho land values of Auckland. They had risen very steadily during tho Inst twenty years. 'i'lie chairman: Can you give us any idea of the percentage of increases in tho price of lands during tho past ten and twenty years?— Suburban lands have trebled and quadrupled in value, and rural land has increased very much indeed, in somo cases by 50 per cent. Witness added that all agricultural land had increased in value. He knew of land that a few years ago would fetch only .£'s an acre, which would now sell at .620 an acre. In other cases farms (subdivided) within thirty miles of Auckland had sold at ,£IOO, whereas the prico had not very long ago been .£3O im'acre. The prico ot beat" had risen from 21s. and 225. to 255. and 2Gs., and many people had thrown up dairy farming and gone in for beef-rais-ing. In many cases land was a great deal higher in price than it should" be for legitimate farming purposes. Where land was rapidly- increasing in value, farmers often stopped in one place for two or threo years, and then sold out. In fact, many farmers made their living out of selling their fariusi— / Mr. F. G. Ewington, for forty-five years a land and estate agent,.said that in 1902 a 'house of four rooms let at 9s. a week, five-roomed houses at from 11s. to 125., and six-rqoined houses at lls. Now fewer vrorkingmen's houses were being built, as capitalists did not consider them a profitable investment, owing to repairs, rates, etc., costing from one-quarter to a third of the rent. There was consequently keener competition for these houses and rents had increased. This often forced working men to buy allotments , and erect houses on inadequate capital, with the result that they were often compelled to forfeit the money they had sunk in the property. Witness advocated opening-up of the land as a means of getting rid of the redundant population in the cities. Mr.'Henry Green, representative of the Waterside Workers'N Union, sot forth figures showing, tho increases that had taken place in the prices of various commodities. In five years, bread (the 21b. loaf) had increased from 3d. to 3Jd., potatoes from 4s. to 9s. Bd. a cwt., meat (mutton) 4d. to 3d., (steak) Vd. and Bd. to 9d., (beef) from 4d. and sd. to 6d., (pork) 6d. to Bd., (bacon) 10d. to Is. and Is. 2d., milk 3d. to -Id. Touching on the prico of coal, witness said it was possible to get coal at Henderson for 2s. less a ton than it could be procured in Auckland, where, said witness, "the ring" had control. Fish had increased from 3d. to 4d. (schnapper and flounder) to 6d. each for much smaller fish. In 190G bricks were sold at 28s. and 305., and now their prico was ,£2 6s. Gd. A four-roomed house five years ago co=t ,£172 10s. to build, whereas now contract price for the same house was .£305. Land at New Lynn, which five years ago cost .£3O an acre, now sold for ,£IOO n quarter acre. Rents for small cottages in various parts of the city hnd risen from 7s. Gd. to 12s. Gd., 9s. to 125., and from lls. 6d. to ISs. 6d. .

Mr. William Ranstead, farmer, of Waikato, said that of recent years there'liad been an increase of 25 ner cent in the price of land in his district owinrj to tho splendid season and great increase in prico ■realised for produce in London this year. There had been a great increase in price of land during the past month or two. It was the price of produce that affected tho .price of land. VIEWS OF PROFESSOR SEGAR. ■■ .; .THE OUTPUT OF GOLD. ■•■ (By Telegraph.—Frees Association.) Auckland, June 26. The , Royal' Commission on the Cost of Living continued its investigations to-day. . Mr. Jas. W. Wiseman, saddler, said that during the past few years thero had been *a steady rise in the price of leather, probably about ton per cent. This was chiefly duo to a shortage of hides caused through outside competitors purchasing hides in New Zealand. Considerably moro leather was used than in previous years. Labour had increased in cost by about ten to fifteen per cent. Witness did not wish to express any opinion as to whether then; wns a ring controlling the sale of hides in the Dominion. Ho did not know, of any method by which certain sellers , favoured certain customers.

Professor Hugh Win. Segnr, of Auckland University, said the cost of living in New tcalaud had increased during the last 20 years, but this increase had not been any more marked in New Zealand than in other English-speaking countries. As a whole it was, ho thought, certainly less considerable than in Canada and (he United States. The standard of living was dependent in part on prices of commodities rather than the reverse. People wore buying commodities of better quality, and having to pay more for that better quality .than previously for an inferior quality. Ihev got tho impression and complained that things were getting dearer. Many purchasers were unwittingly getting poorer, and not better, quality in some of their purchases, as it was the practice in certain lines for shopkospjrs to . supply progressively poorer quality of goods in order to be able to supply their customers with an article at the price to which tnry had been accustomed. Whilst monopolies, combines, trusts, and other associations of manufacturers or sellers of necessaries of life might have raised die prices ot certain commodities beyond ilio level tnat would have been readied under free competition, he did not think they could fee.held responsible for a large proportion i i ln ? vcas ? in . H'o cost of living as a whole. I Uβ rise in price of land in New Zealand had not contributed to the Tro in price of commodities. It was itself Iar"olv tho result of the samo causes that ho'd produced the riso in nrices of commodities acting through thoss prices. It was certain that no farmer in New Zealand got more for his produce in London en account of. the price he gave for his land or the price he could get. for his land increased cost of living, continued Jroiesior Segar, was mainly due to the great merenso in the currency of the world us compared with the inoreaW of its trade and commerce. The chief factor of cur-rum-y was the output, of gold, which had increased no less than a little' over fivelulu n>. the Inst twenty venrs. ■ The next important factor was probably the extension of banking facilities ond the increased use. made of them, resulting in coikH-e-rable economy in the use of the rapilly growing stock of money. Continuing, Frdicsior Segar .said he considered tho Government missed an excellent chanoe of cheapening coal in Auckland in ?iot ncf|timng and working tho Waipa coalfield but it was right that advances in the feid oi production by the Government should bs considered with the utmost caution Air Alexander C. Canghey, of the drapery firm of Smith and Caiishoy. depend that so tar as New Zealand goeds were concerned tho pro/its derivable had decreased owing considerably to preferential tariffs. \\ ith regard to clothing generalh belter goods were being sold, tho people not being satisfied with goods that they wore, content with ton years ago. Hβ did not, however, say that this was not good economy, lor the goods lasted better Ths cost of drapery to fliers themselves had increased considerably, particularly in regard to cotton good?, which, however, wc-ro being sold .it practically the same price as ten year:- ago. Some goods, he said, were being sold under cost, price, and in this regard he instanced Clarke's cotton, which could bo obtained cheaper retail than wholesale. Such article.- had to be kept ill stock, however. To witness's knowledge there was no such thin? a< a nn; in conMchon with his Iradu in Anckla:id. Ther« find hcoii an attempt Iβ boycott him bt ouo time, but that iva- nnricnt histoiy. Speaking upon the rincMion generally witness said (hat really the most important c-iUf.-> of the increased cast of livin" was that civilisation was not content to bvo the simple life. Mr. Samuel Wins, manager for R. W. Halliday, meat merchant, said that tho cash retail prices for meat showed a slight reduction over tho period sinco 1BO:1, but tlu-ro .fbto centiaual slisht fl^tun^

tions. Cost of delivery had increased considerably. Witness said 'Hint there iros <i Butchers' Association in Auckland, but his firm did not belong to it. Wages, as far as the drivers ami those working in tho shops were concerned, had increused by übout 20 por cent. Dr. lTight: You only took the comparison of prices back as far as 1303 ?—Yes, 1 could not get any records further back than that. . : Dr. Hight pointed out that it was linrdly fair to tnlco M 0 . ,! for comparison with I'Jl", for prices had been very high during the former year. Mr. Georgo George, director of technical training for the Auckland Education Board, considered that there had been no change in the cost of education during the. last nine years, except of course that occasioned by the introduction of free places. In some cases ho considered the burden of providing the necos.-nry funds for education bore too heavily upon some workers. The cost of the books and material had not only to be considered, but also the loss of earning power occasioned by the fact that children who could be earning money had to be kept at school. THE WELLINGTON SITTING. Auckland, Juno 27. The Auckland sitting of tho Cost of Living Commission will come to an end on Saturday. On Sunday tho members of tlie commission will leave for Wellington, when they will commence sitting on Tuesday. It is probable, however, that all that day will be taken up by committee work, so that tho faking of evidence will not commence until Wednesday morning..