Evening Republican, Volume 21, Number 214, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 25 September 1917 — The Ft. Wayne Market. [ARTICLE]

The Ft. Wayne Market.

Indianapolis Star. Ft. Wane city officials are considering closing the city’s $200,000 market square because of the high prices charged by fanners who dispose of produce there. The producers, it is said, ask even higher prices than tlfe retail stores. This is a phenomenon that is not peculiar to Ft. Wayne. It has also occurred on the Indianapolis market, although the trouble here is generally believed to be due to monopoly by the middlemen, though not wholly so. The situation suggests a wrong attitude of mind on the part of some farmers as well as middlemen. Of course, the farmer, who takes the time to bring his produce to a public market, stands in the sun all day to dispose of it, and takes t 6 himself the work and the worry of selling his products in small quantities, should have a higher price than he would receive from the middleman. But the price should not be higher than the ordinary retail price, which is often high enough to cover the legitimate cost of handling by, it may be, several middlemen and to include speculator and unjust profits besides. Possibly the farmer’s product is fresher and hence more desirable than that of the retailer, but it should be remmebered that the price charged by the retailer is often artificially set through the operations of middlemen, and is not representative of the real value of the goods. \ The practice of some farmers, noted in cases other than that of Ft. Wayne, is to find out the highest retail price and then charge the customer that price. This course may be nautral, but it is certainly not considerate and is, at this time, unpatriotic. What has the ordinary retail price to do with the price charged by the farmer? The farmer’s price should be the lowest he can charge and obtain a reasonable return on his investment in the labor of producing and selling—not the highest he can squeeze from an already badly squeezed public. Even in - the case of consumers who visit farms, by automobile or other means, farmers often demand city retail prices. Of course, the only effect of persistence in such practices is to discourage direct buying and to play into the hands of the middleman, from whom the farmer must accept lower prices.

The entire stock of clothing and furnishings at the Peoples Store must be closed out this week, as Saturday, Sept. 29, will be the last day. Store will be open each evening this week till 9 p. m. S. LEOPOLD, Mgr.

Sew Club will meet Thursday afternoon of this week with Mrs. Ivan Carson.

A charmingly appointed pink rose dinner was given by the active chapter of the Kappa Alpha Theta Sorority of Butler College for the “rushees” at the home of Mrs, Hilton U. Brown last evening. The tables were arranged with pink roses and pink shaded candles tied with bows of pink tulle and the guest favors were corsage bouquets of pink roses. Name cards in the design of baskets of roses adorned with the insignia of the sorority marked the covers for seventy-five guests. Miss Arda Knox presided as toastmistress and gave a response on “The Relation of the Fraternity to the College.” Mrs. Walter Krull gave a toast on “What It Means to a'Girl to Go to Butler,” and Mrs. James L. Murray on “What It Means to a Girl to Be a Theta.” After the dinner a playlet, “Scenes From Rushing,” was given by members of the active chapter, Miss Mary Louise Bumpier, who returned home from Whitestown, where she is spending some time, sang a group of songs, and a harpist gave a program. Among the guests were Miss Mary Cellaring and Miss Grace Dudley, of Cincinnati, O.; Miss Phyllis Dean, of RushviUe, Miss Cordelia Higgins, of Lebanon, Miss Margaret Rose and Miss Katherine Burton, of Martinsville, and Miss Marie Hamilton, of Rensselaer. Mias Marjorie. Hall and Miss Berenice Hall were the members of the committee in charge of the affair.——lndianapolis Star, Sept. 25. The nine patients at the hospital are reported to be getting along nicely*