120 COST OF LIVING IN THE UNITED STATES
Bureau of Labor Statistics index has been higher; sometimes
that of the National Industrial Conference Board. The
Board’s budget for this item is based on equal proportions of
anthracite and bituminous coal, and gas and electricity in the
proportion of two to one. The light items in turn are com-
bined with the coal items in the proportion of one to two.
The present combination of items in the Board’s light budget
was only adopted in 1922, however, the index prior to that
time having been an estimate which, although it took ac-
Cuart 4p: InpEx NumBers oF THE ComBINED CosT OF
FutL AND LicHT, IN AVERAGE AMERICAN COMMUNITIES,
1913 To DECEMBER, 1925, INCLUSIVE
Based on figures in Table 1 and Table 5
National Industrial Conference Board seseem———m
July 1914 = 100
United States Bureau of Labor Statistics sessesscsecses
Year 1913 = 100
INDEX
SUMBERS
250 —
TUEL ano LIGYT
4.
og
ool.
ar
ri ————hrrr eat ir
2d wr or vy ‘ea 28
count of electricity from the beginning was, nevertheless,
made very largely on the basis of gas costs.! Had the esti-
mate made on the basis of electricity and gas been included
in the present ratio from the beginning of the series, the fuel
and light index would be lower than at present, thus bringing
the Board’s series practically continuously below that of
the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The Bureau of Labor Sta-
istics’ budget includes wood and kerosene, in addition to
1See pp. 37-38: 48-51 of this volume.