The Cost of Living.

Horowhenua Chronicle, 24 September 1910, Page 4

The Cost of Living.

The question of the enhanced cost of living is still being very much debated, especially in the United States, where the effects of dear living is boing keenly felt. The increased cost of living is also having serious effects in England ami. ou the Continent of Europe, ond not a little of the unrest of labour is probably duo to the deamess of living. Sir Thomas Lipfcon, who has spent a lifetime in the provision trade, presiding at a meeting of shareholders of Lipton's Ltd., pointed out that aii'ticlcs of universal consumption, such a.s sugar, bacon, butter, ham, lard, meat and poultry, have already .increased in retail* price from o0 per cent to 100 per ceait, and indexations point to a furthei increase rather than a return to former conditions. "Rising prices, when they come slowly and steadily are usually regarded as favourable for trade and business generally; but tbds rise is much too rapid to allow salaries and wages to respond, and hence tho purchasing power of the people, save those few who can ha classified as the rich, has been curtailed in the near .uture to , a still greater extent." Sir-Thomas attributes the rise to the increasing output of the world's gold mines, and maintains that "it is possible in a comparatively short space of time a financial "and economic problem of the greatest importance will require to bo faced, and one in which banking interests must bo involved in many directions." In America the subject Jias aroused far more attention than anywhere else, and the foremost economists of the country have instituted careful inquiries, and have come to various conclusions. Mr Alex Dei Mar, who has been a director of the U.S. Bureau of Statistics, and who is a recognised authority on finance and economics, gives, in'a pamphlet, his views on this very complex problem which are of extreme interest. His elaborate statistics show thattht average cos of living in the United States has risen about a third, am. there appears to be a decided tendency to still further advance. The principal causes assigned by the various authorities who have examined the_ subject are a.s follows: (1) tilit tariff; (2) monopolies; (3) combinations, and "gentlemanly .understandings" to enhance the prices of majui.fnctu.rcs and farm products, (4) increased production of gold; (;> the demands of labour: Iβ) exhaustion of natural resources; (7) hefgbtened standard of living; (o extravagance of living; and (9) the congestion ol population in cities. Mr D e l Mar admits that while some oi these have undoubtedly contributed to occasion the rise of prices, but maintains that not any of themj o- all of them together, arc sufficient to explain the whole extent of the rise.

Mr Del Mar's arguments and conclusions summarised, the dollar total being converted into sterling, are as follows :.—" What has to be discovered is a cause or causes sufficient ti explain a rise of a'bout a third in the cost to the consumer of tho commodities and services represented oi indicated by colossal sums, such as the earnings of the population, wind amounts to about £0,800,000.000, and their expenditure, amounting to not much less than £6,000,000,000. Among lie causes -to be considered is the influence of monopolies, combinations and unclertalvrngs made in restraint of trade, or with the object to maintain or enhance prices. There can be no doubt that among the causes alleged this is the principal one: nor can it be disputed that tli€ tariff, by creating or upholding, monopolies has largely contributed towards the rise. But a furthei explanation of the rise is only to be fmindin two other main causes, both oF which are commonly left out in tlie.se discussions. These are the lotal weight of taxation and the expansion of currency. In 1909 the I'ederal Government uisbmscd ove.i C 200,000,000. Tn IJJO2 (the latent official statistics) the various states cities and towns disbursed 1231 200.1/,0, a rate of expenditure which by this time probably amounts to £'300,.,^..)00. niacin- th o aiy(Tl . o . gate cost of Federal and loeafoxpenditure about coi)0,000,000 The federal taxation to rovide for these disbursements falls chiefly upon articles of consumption an! at least to that extent it enhances their cost and pnee; tho State and, local taxation falls ch.etly upon la.nds and houses but largely also upon licennXi° t, f nce i l^" ce - enhances the l>l ices of both rents and commodities Tt is obvious that increased taxation has played and is pJaviu" cost of living, and what is true oi America is true almost of every conn. tn in the world. The higher cost, of commodities and services i.s in a largo measure responsible for the