2 for 23c

Young businesswomen who needed only 7,000 more cigar-store coupons to get the percolator for the apartment last week fell victims to the price war that has for some months been agitating the tobacco business. Last week's developments: 1) Schulte and United Cigar stores offered 15-c- cigarets at two packs for a quarter--but no more coupons. Cartons of ten packages, $1.20. 2) The Atlantic & Pacific and the Liggett stores (whose longstanding price cutting on cigarets is chiefly responsible for the present troubles) met the United and Schulte cut by announcing (in New York) that they would sell two 15-c- packages for 23-c-. Cartons of ten packages, $1.15. Last month President David A. Schulte of Schulte Retail Stores Corp., announced that he was going to do some price cutting that was price cutting. His boast was premature. For, of course, A. & P. and Liggetts sell so many products other than cigarets and cigars that they could afford to give away cigarets, if they chose.

3) Total output of cigarets in April was 9,608,903,979, an increase of more than two billion over April, 1928.

4) Small independent tobacconists announced that they would continue to sell 15-c- cigarets for 15-c-, but did not specify who would buy the cigarets at this price.