Daily national Democrat., 1859-02-19
Dangerous Business Principles.

Will SUCCESS, ~ ula HOW also De tune TO say
a word to our leading business men in regard
to those unsound principles on which their
business is generally conducted.
1t is generally and even seriously complain
ed by mountain traders that Marysville mer-
chants are selling at too enormously high
prices and that San Francisco merchants are
generally satisfied with far smaller profits.
AS merchant myself, am compelled to ad-
NIT that such may really be the appearance,
but at the same time pretend to say that
the whole idea rests upon mistake, an un-
fortunate mistake on the part of our mer-
chants themselves.
San Francisco merchants are selling for
cash, or on account payable on next steamer
day, or payable after thirty days time; but
at the thus agreed terms the cash must be
forthcoming, or if not, interest must be paid
them from that day; in this way the vender
ofgoods exactly knows in advance as soon as
the prices and conditions are agreed uron, to
how much his clear profit amounts But
how different is all this in Marysville There
is certainly not another city in California
where so large, and | may say, ridiculously
large, facilities are accorded to the noun
tain traders, as is the case with the merchants
here. We, at least many Of US, are not sell
dom selling large amounts of goods in Sep
tember or October, knowing beforehand that
the greater part of it will not be paid up be-
fore April or May next, and mostly without
any extra charge for interest, if we admit
then that we paid for instance IS per l00lt
of flour, that we charged our friends So so
for it, and that we then wait about eight
months for the money, and if further we see
to how much at 3 per month amount the
interests we had to lose, we will find that we
are not only making no profit whatever, but
that on the contrary we are losing 10 cts. per
100 lbs. of flour, sold at SO high price that
everybody would complain of Sell bacon,
ham, pork, sugar or whatever goods you may
like. at profit of 10 or even 10 profit under
similar circumstances and you will always
arrive at the same happy result!
Besides so absurd result, we will also
gain the certainly not very enviable reputa.
tion of selling at enormous high prices, and
whenever we want to avail ourselves of some
opportunity to buy lot of goods cheap for
cash, we have to go to the banker and borrow
the money at high rates ofinterest, for under
such circumstances we can never have our
selves ready cash at our disposal. Let us
then change so ridiculous q system and at
once consider that load Of goods is not
load of dirt, that we had to pay our money
for it and that we must know in advance how
and when We shall get it back, and If we
consent to sell at days 30time without sha-
dow of security nor even a receipt, we must
have written right to charge interest from
the very day of expiration Of those thirty
days. This must be insisted upon by all, as
general rule, for this alone can enable us
to sell here as cheap as jobbers may do it in
San Francisco
All around US takes every day more and
more the aspect of better regulated state of
things, why then should we, who consider
ourselves as an intelligent part of our popu-
lation, stay behind and not also come for
ward and adopt more reasonable and sound
business principles?
Others as we'll as those who avail them
selves of our actual bad system, will 60 to
San Francisco as soon as they are able to
buy for cash, laboring assthey all do under
that same mistake, that they are now paying
enormous prices here in Marysville.
The amount Of goods brought from San
Francisco to Marysville is not only not de.
creasing. but on the contrary really increas.
ing from year to year, but the increasing
portion is more in favor of our forwarding
houses, than in favor of our merchants them
selves L therefore thought it appropriate
and even necessary, to advise the latter to be-
come conscious of their real position.
Those of our mountain traders, who are al.
ready accustomed to buy their goods for cash
in Marysville, best know themselves tha.
they are able to do better here than elsewhere
and that in smaller lots chiefly, they buy far
cAeaper here, than from jobbers in San Fran
cisco.
1t is to be regretted that our leading mer
chants have not as this is the case in other
business communities, a place where they
could meet once week or at least once
month, in order to talk over their own inter.
ests as well as the prosperity of the whole
city. Such meeting from time to time
would certainly be fraught with the most IA
yorable consequences. A MERCHANT.