Little Falls transcript. [volume] (Little Falls, Morrison County, Minn.) 1876-1894, 1884-04-11
sHoPPINGIN VENICE.


Enc Mental ht1aration of Dealing With
an italian. 81
Indeed, I am fast coming TO believe
that an immense loss Of human Happiness
IS caused in our own country BY our
stupid and uninte lectual system Of hav-
ing fxed prices for oil articles. We 60.
into 2 shop, pay what is asked and then
go tamely away with our bundles. Any
fool can do this: and what measurable
benefit has insured to him from d rams
action in the way Of finer mental acute.
ness OF an ampler or nobler command
OF the Language of persuasion, amaze
ment, vituperation, grief, despair; in
fine, Of the whole gamut of human pas
sion? The story is told Of a Damascus
merchant, that a friend, on coming in
and finding him in . condition of abject
prostration, and supposing it must be
caused by some domestic affection,
received for answer that it was
worse than that. "By the tomb of the
holy prophet! what. do you think ?"
cried out the afflicted merchant; "why,
but AN hour ago there came into my
shop an American traveller to buy sill
ver-mounted dagger, and the slave paid
me the full price asked the first time.
What possible satisfaction can there be
in doing business on such principles?
shall abandon trade if this is what the
thing is coming tot" Now there was
deep reason in the poor fellows grief.
The finest life of man lies in energy of
intellect and fire of passion. When
bargain meansa keen encounter of wits,
and the buying and selling OF yard Of
ribbon stand for a splendid opportunity
to overwhelm an antagonist with argu-
ment, refutal, ridicule, pathos, appeal
to the whole Heavenly hierarchy, then
at once does the pitiful business of bar
ter swell to the dignity of the battle
field or of the contests of the forum.
Starting with charging two or three
times what you are willing
finally to take, s. grand
range Of defensive positions is secured,
one after another Of which may be aban-
doned after hard fight, and still in the
end victory of twenty five to fifty per
cent. be won. Now an italian would
sooner give up business at once than
sink to the dull and monotonous prose
of what is called trade with us. He
freely avows he derives far more pleas
TIRE from ''selling man" handsomely
once than from having him for regu-
lar. customer for years in any such dull
and stupid conditions. Once in while
indeed, he prints ''Fixed Prices" on the
window of his shop, but this is merely
to indicate the point at which the battle
is to begin. Too we'll he knows that be
would soon lose every native customer
it he We're debarred the pleasure of beat
ing him down, assaulting the character
Of his goods and courteously informing
him that he is a thief and an assas-
sin. For the excitement OF
the conflict is a mutual one and belongs
to both seller and buyer. Very anus
ing has it been to me to watch the steady
growth of passion for this species of
encounter in the young ladies of our
party. Whenever they return home,
with their cheeks and eyes unusually
glowing and brilliant, I prepare myself
for an animated narrative of @ series of
brilliant mancuvers. The yard of silk
on pair Of scissors bought shines, to
them, like spurs or epaulets won on q
battle field, as they begin to unfold how
the dealer started out with charging
seven francs, and they rejoined with an
offer Of two; however, forthwith, he
sworc that the article cost him every
penny Of seven and he was only giving
it away at that, and they laughed in his
face and warned him against the perils
of too profuse generosity; how then he
pathetically demanded whether they
wanted to reduce to starvation a poor
but honest family, and they trium-
phantly replied that they had seen pol
enta quoted at only three cents a pound !;
how, finally, they knit their brows like
fate and resolutely left the shop, only, af-
ter they had, gone far enough to make
him sure they meant it, to see him run
after them and, with showers Of compli-
ments, agree to give the articles at their
own prices.--[Special Correspondence
Boston Herald