These forms for food, clothing, fuel and light and sundries, were sent out for completion through the channels used by the Ministry for Economic Affairs in its inquiry (viz.:--officials of the Post Office, of the Ministry of Labour, and of the Local Government Board, and in the Six-County area through other sources), and to the same towns as in that inquiry (viz.:--towns with populations of 500 and over). In the case of the larger towns more than one report was asked for, graduating from two returns to twenty returns according to their population as shown in the Census of 1911. The following table summarises essential particulars regarding the forms:-- ---------------------------+-----------+----------+--------------------- | | Number | | Number | of | Returns Form. | of Forms | Towns | collected |dealt with.|from which| by | | received.| ---------------------------+-----------+----------+--------------------- Prices (Food) A | 450 | 250 } | Prices (Food, Fuel and | | } |Post Office, Ministry Light and Sundries) B 2| 436 | 220 } | of Labour, and Prices (Meat) B 3| 434 | 227 } | Local Government Prices (Clothing) B 4| 436 | 216 } | Board Officials. Rents B 5| 91 | 71 |Rate Collectors and | | | Town Clerks. ---------------------------+-----------+----------+--------------------- (2) _Rents._--The forms for rents were issued through the Local Government Board, and in the Six-County area through other sources, and filled in for the most part by Rate Collectors in the several districts and towns in Ireland. They were asked to state the rents in July, 1914, and in March, and June, 1922, of about 20 houses in their districts showing the number of rooms and the Poor Law Valuation, the latter figures enabling us to ensure that the same classes of houses of wage earners were being compared. Enquiry was also made in connection with the rents of tenements, and due allowance was made for this in the final figures. The rent figures include rates in every case. (3) _Compilation of prices for individual commodities._--The next step was to calculate from these returns the average retail prices of the individual commodities selected, and this was done as follows:-- * * * * * One set of average retail prices was compiled from the returns of the Post Office officials, and another from those of the other officials, and a division of the forms was made on this basis.