It looks rather as though we were heading for another peak in prices since, from September 1, several commodities have advanced further, bread among them, "which Will be rather a blow to the poor. We must concede, however, that our bakers have so far been lenient in the matter of bread in not raising prices before, since flour has been up for some time. We have to consider that, not only has the price of flour risen, but baking costs have creased considerably since electricity gas and coal have soared, so that the increased charge for bread is reasonable. There is hardly any profit in it atrany time—or so a baker tells A strange sidelight upon costs abd, returns though was revealed to us by a little Chinese tradesman who apologized for having to "charge little more high" for account rendered since, as he explained: "evelyting more dear; rent more high, lightee more high, materials, chow, evelyting more high; only la-hour no more dear." The last sentence speaks volumes. "Alas that bread should be so dear, and flesh and blood so cheap." Most of us have increased our servants' wages, but with other matters being so difficult, Chinese employers have not all been able to increase workmen's wages, Flesh and blood is indeed cheap in this unhappy country.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.