The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1880-03-16
THE COAL QUESTION.
The Retail Dealers Speak and
Give Their Own Figures,
10 Which a Few Figures, Not
Their Own, are Added.
SALT LAKE CITY.
March l4tb, 1880.
Editors Herald.

E March I4tb, 1880.
Editors Herald:
In an article appearing in YOU
paper this morning. you made som,
, statements, which We think SHOULD
be refntsd, in justice to ourselves anc
: our customers. We allude to thu
Again"
In the first place, we are able to
state, without fear of contradiction
that, not only are there hundreds OF
families IN this city who are unable 10
buy $50 pounds at time, bat there
are hundreds of families here who are
not able to even buy 100 pounds of
coal at time; and every retail
dealer IN this city can testify to the
fact that during some Of the cold
weather, this winter, a large number
OF people bought as low as Zoe. worth
OF coal at time, and were cot able
To purchase mere than that. Now. 8
few facts about figures. They say we
try TO make people believe that we are
doing this business for the benefit OF
the poor and net ourselves. and
TIA. anyone SO believing this pos
sesses very little sense. The following
are the figures and profits made on coal
before Mr.. Gould made up bis naind
TO pinch us dealers and take the little
profit made by US himself, which will
compare favorably with the figures
be himself offers &c sell for now. We
gave tor Rock Springs and Weber
coal, at the yard, 1925 per ton. It
cost 75c. to haul it, leaving the cost
delivered $500. We have never
charged more than SOC. per 100
pounds, which makes the cost per
ton $40. sacked and delivered, in 100
pound lots, leaving a profit OF 81 Der
ton for saCking, delivering and some.
times having SIX to ten blocks TO 90
with 1t, often carrying it up three and
four flights of stairs. We delivered
800 pounds of Red Canyon for 81 /
sacked, and S1.75 uusaoked, and any
one who buys from Mr.. Gould can tell
We charge more than he
charges for the same amount and
kind. We delivered any kind of
coal in the market, at the same price
per ton, charged by him delivered, as
of our customers can testify.
There is no merchant in this city who S
makes less actual profit On his goods +
han We do. The fact of it is, we only 4
get poorly paid for saeking. hauling t
md delivering the coal, or the actual G
abor done. Y
Since Mr.. Gould has concluded to 81
n0nopolize all the little. profit there e
S imseli, We have had 10 resort to a Z
lumber OF ways Of getting coal to sup p,
,ly our customers, and in conse- !
Iuence have been obliged to make a
higher charge on account of the extra
Expense of getting it. There is no d
oubt but what Mr. Gould wishes 10 Il
accommodate the poor, but there is S
ne thing sure, if the facts as oil
tated in tue article above alluded to, b.
hat "the retail dealers have made q SO
est little harvest cut of the business, S,
t the expense of the poor" are true, tt
lr. Gould has found it out, and ike 81
II monopoiists, he wishes 1t all, aud
as refused 20 sell coal at any price in "a
rder to "freeze US OUT" but we can as
lform him that we managed to live Ii,
onestly before he came here, and we
nagine we can live now without him. nj
IL We have ever asked is an equal nS
low with any of bis other customers. E
Ee have paid cash for ell we had, to
nd often have been obliged to put up al
18th slack coal without a murmur, sti
moving it would do no good, and We ga
aye had to be the sufferers in conse- tr,
lence. We do not pretend to say ha
g sell coal through any particularly tn
motives, but have tried to "a
lake an honest living by being paid &
r honest labor done.
There is one other thing con. jul
scted with the coal trade In small th
IS, that should be considered. We
,e obliged to trust lots of the time,
here if We refuse great distress would
, the result; and a large per Centage
this trusted out is lost; so taking CT
sses in slack coal, and bad debts,
e little profit made is eaten up. re
Who are the poor If We are not? af,
Or stock in tradeis generally enough i'm
oney to buy ton or two Of coal, br,
Id our means Of delivering it. 81,
he power Mr.. Gould exercised over t9,
/, shows the power he has over
cry home and family in this city,
Ould he choose to make use of ii,
Jos. HEPWoRTH, Or
P. @. CoWLING, Ste
JOHN B. FURsTER,
JOHN ATKINS,
CHAs. BALMFORTH,
JOHN LAWSON, bv
JAMES STIRLING. 70