The problem of scarcity was getting to be so acute as to create fear of serious unrest among the suffering masses. In Pasay, the people looted the market and, in an instant, the stalls had been cleaned out. The pillage was caused by the very high prices of foodstuff. A sack of rice cost ₱180.00. A purchaser would go to the market with twenty or thirty pesos to buy provisions for the day, but went home with a little supply and an empty pocket. Wages increased a little, but how could a worker survive on two or three pesos a day? And how would an employee receiving one hundred pesos a month eat and clothe himself and his family? The salary should be increased five times to provide a decent income.
Juan Labrador
Spanish member of the Order of Preachers; Rector of Colegio de San Juan de Letran.
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