Show FOOD THIEVES IN SAN FRANCISCO San Francisco led in the movement to exclude the Chinese The people there had a valid argument that white men could not compete with the Mongolian Mongo Mongo- lian han in such work as Chinese could do Now we think they should petition the Government to do away with the law against the Chinese and apply it to the thc Italians The Italians have ha the retail trade in vegetables and fruits in that city and the people are well nigh frantic at the extortion heaped upon them They vary in profits to the sellers of from to 1000 per percent percent percent cent an average according to the Chronicle of per per cent The Chronicle gives a great many samples samples samples sam sam- ples of their graft For instance two cargoes of melons arrive e each containing containing- crates Clates The noble Rienzi takes one and sells it to his neighbor Signor Scipio for two bits a crate and makes his return to the producer accordingly Then rhen the Signor Scipio takes the other and sells it to the noble Rienzi for two bits a crate and he also I makes his return Then the noble and the signor signer sell to the retail men at 50 cents a crate The are all carried on at the wharf and twenty minutes' minutes time is sufficient for the whole business Then if the cargoes are too large Jarge for immediate consumption one is dumped in the b bay y on th the claim that it was spoiled and consumers are arc charged ten prices over the original cost Then the classification of products is changed When a man pays PR'S for a No 1 1 article he gets No 2 or 3 The tricks evasions c and violations of the laws are arc infinite and all the time no one is to bl blame me Still it seems to us that the remedy should be simple The establishment of one central house in inthe inthe inthe the city with agents in the country and on the wharves to buy produce wot would d not be he very expensive expensive expensive sive and fair prices for cash could be established and maintained The same thing should be done here for fruits vegetables and meats The fhe combine here would dread dreada a movement movement- of that kind more than thc they would a dozen suits in court It would not require a n great deal of capital but hut men should be behind lit fit whom the thc combine would see at a glance it would be useless to ir try to lo freeze out |