Spirit of Jefferson. [volume] (Charles Town, Va. [W. Va.]) 1844-1948, 1881-08-30
Spirit Of yefttrspn.
charlestown, Jefferson County, West Va.
TUESDAY MORNING. AUGUST 80, 1891.
A SECOND LITERARY REYoLU-
TION,

The first literary revolution consisted in
the publication of standard books in every
department of literature at from ne-third
to one>tenth of their former cost.
The second literary revolution consists in
still further very great reduction (condi-
tionaD even from the revolution prices. while
at the same time, the average quality of til Q
books will continue to be materially improved.
HOW CAN THESE THINas BET
To attempt an impossibility could of course
result only in failure, and it would be use>
less, In our own interest, or in that of the
many thousand customers who have shown
US such earnest favor, and have given M
snch great patronage, to announce or prom>
Use what could not be performed. We have
dealt frankly with our customers in giving
facts concerning costs and profits in the past
aud we do i. now, by giving facts aud figures
illustrating how We can afford to still further
reduce prices.
FACTS AND FIGURES
Please note, at the start, our apology for
not having done heretofore what we now
propose to do, and consider
lst-We published our first book opIy 40
long ago as January, 1879. Previous to that
timo we we're entirely without experience in
book publishing. What knowledge we had
of the business was gained in newspaper pubs
fishing, and in book selling.
2d-We were also at that time almost en-
tireiy without capital, and until so late as
February, 1881, we abored under the diff.
Guilty OF being without capital even approx
mately adequate for the magnitude of the
enterprise We we're undertaking.
3d-Our entire scheme was in opposition to
all previous methods of publishing aud book
selling. And from the beginning to the
present, VIC have had the combined bitter
opposition OF almost the entire book pubs
lshlng and book selling Glasses of the Uni
ted States.
4th-Starting thus, with a minimum of
knowledge, and less capital, and with such
immense opposition, we thought it best. in
the interest of both the readirg public and
ourselves, that we undertake too little. ratb.
er than too much partial success would be
better than total failure
5th-ln spite of our want of resources and
of experience, and in spite of opposition.
and with the necessity of organizing and
training our mec forces, and necessarily try>
ing many experiments, all of which no one
could expect would be uniformly successful
we have from January l, 1880, to June 80
1881, manufactured and sold nearly 9. 600.
O00 volumes of standard books, for which
we have received the considerable sum of
S709 52l 80
6th-In circular issued in January of
the present year We made the following
statement: 1.-The public have so long been
taught to believe books tn be expensive lux
urles and low prices impossible. that incre>
dulity has from the first been the greatest oh
stacle to the progress of the Literary Revo.
luton. 1t was easier to make good books
wa IN 10
could be done. We could readily have made
prices even lower than they have been, but
for the terrible tax we have been compelled
to pay to this Incredibly"
we have during this period, from J Janu-
ary l, 1880. to June 80, 1881. paid for ad.
vertislng, the large sum of Sl4O.S7 93
ibis immense item necessarily has to come
out OF the prottis ,re make on The books sold.
7th-Although our scheme originally eu.
bodied the principle of selling directly to
the consumer, and doing away with the ex
orbitant cost of middlemen, we have not nm.
dertaken to put aside the book seller and
the book agent altogether, because a large
portion of the book. buyers of the country
have got into the habit of looking to them
tor their supplies, and if We were to supply
the wants OF such customers at all. we were
compelled to do it through these ordinary
nS
duce or compel these middemeu to work. as
we have been doing, on a more reason,b ,blv
small percentage of profit (the immensely in
creased sales at the reduced prices, even
with the smaller commissions, really give
the bookseller larger net profit than he
formerly had). Accordingly, we have du.
ring this period, from January l, 1880. 10
June 30, 1881, allowed to the book>sel llers
aud bnok>agents commissions averaging
about 20 per cent of our total receipts. In
other words, in addition to the S7O9 .52l 80
We have received from the public for onr
books, the public has also paid to the mid,
| diemen the large sum of SIT, $50 80 simply
for handling these books. making the total
cost of the books to the consumer 1886 0Ol..
65.
sth-From these statements you can read
lily see that if
From the total amount
which the public has
paid for books sss6 oOl e5
We deduct the amount
We have paid for ad-
vertising these books Sl40s7ss3
And the amount paid
to middIem+n for
handling the books 177.3sO.33
We have a total deduction of slsaso a6
AND remainder of..-............S66s 642 80
Thus il is evident that if the public had
bought these books directly from US, the nm.
necessary expenses of advertising. and of
paying middIemen for handling them, being
avoided. the books would have cost them
only s56S .642 80. being almos. SO per cent
less than the $3.50 .9Ol.65 which they have
paid for them, and our net proceeds would
have been none the less.
BETTER ILLUSTRATION.
The above figures show clearly the possi-
oilty OF great reduction from our prices
as heretofore given without Diminishing our
net income, but they do not necessarily show
that it is possible for us to manufacture and