THE COST OF LIVING.

Taihape Daily Times, Issue 220, 3 July 1917, Page 5

THE COST OF LIVING.

r . * i 3fe (To thY Editor.) Sir, —Will'you- allow me the space Sftfcxmr valuable paper to publish the foSrwing letter dealing with the cost of living, that is to say, what a "homeless man" has to keep his family upon at the present time, and still we are asked by our Cabinet Ministers to study economy! I have made out what it costs per meal per head; this is to show you there is no waste in my house. It costs 3d per meal per head, and so much of the 3d goes 1 towards paying for boots and clothing, and there are seven in my family, and seven at 3d each per meal is 1/9 per meal, three meals per day at 1/9 is 5/3 per day! three hundred and sixtyjg five days in the year at 5/3 per day, £96 6s 8d per year. This is what the homeless man has to live upon, and now, Mr. Editor, I will just add the house rent and firewood, and you "will see how much "the homeless man will be in debt, providing he is getting the highest award wage or arbitration wage. His rent is 15/ per week, and nine cords of firewoord at 26/ per cord, £ll 14s; rent, £39— Hiking a total of £146 16s 9d per year. This man will only get in on an average 23 days per month, because he may be out of work say, three weeks, and he may be sick besides. Therefore his cheque for twelve months would be £l38 —leav-, ing him in debt to the extent of £8 16s 9d per year. Sir Joseph Ward stated about two years a#;o that he did not know how the homeless man with a large family made ends meet when their annual earnings were not less than one hundred and eighty pounds, and not more Fhan £250 per year. Surely Sir Joseph was woolgathering at the time he stated the above, because if a man works every dayin the year, including Sundays, Xmas, and all holidays, his cheque would only be £lB2 10s, and I believe I am correct in stating that tlfe award wage does not average 10s per day, even with the 1/ per day war bonus added. No wonder the birth- : rate is declining when we have to live on 3d per meal. In the above letter I -have quoted the,, experience of myself and family, but in doing so I feel I am only stating what the' position of the average working man is in respect to the cost of living at the present time.—l ami etc., it t J. T. DAVEY.