Springfield daily republic. [volume] (Springfield, O. [Ohio]) 1887-1888, 1888-08-04
GOVERNMENT CLOTHING STORES.


TIVE wan N1o<~A oScsAss
The largest clothing. boot and shoe
store In this country is run by the United
States. though they sell things down at
cost pfices. and there is no profit in it.
Every army recruiting station is branch
store where supplies are dealt out. 1t is
different from ordinary stores. in that the
United States treasury furnishes the
money that buys the boots, hats, blankets
and clothes, and the money that buys
from the United States also comes from
the treasury Besides his pay each sol
der In the regular army has an allowance
for clothing which varies from $17S.S5 to
$228. 40 for his FIVE years term. This Is
only from $85. u to $500 q year. II the
soldiers had to 60 around and buy their
own clothing at ordinary rates they would
not have q new coat more than once every
other year. and they would have to sleep
In their underclothes to keep warm.
So the United States has gone into the
business Of supplying their ordinary
things to soldiers at the bottom price at
which the contracts for them can be
made. There is no rent, nor salesmen's 3
salaries, nor insurance. nor profit to be
paid by the government. As result the
prices at which clothing is sold to the
soldiers are 40 low that many working,
men who are paid four times as much
wages as the soldiers are not clad as well.
The blue coats cost sass. They are made
of good material, well cut, and sre better
lifting than the uniform of the average
policeman. for which he pays several
times what the soldier pays. His caps
cost forty nine cents. His stockings cost
nine cents pair. and they are better than
the Bowery stores sell for q quarter. while
the forty nine cent caps are ss good as
any man could want For his blue
trousers the soldier pays g. They are
80 cheap that he can buy half Q dozen
pairs with his months pay. which is more
than many young men who look down op
soldiers can do.
The two bits Of extravagance are the
flannel shirts and the blankets. The shirts
cost thirty-eight cents more than the
trousers, but they are as good shirts as
an be bought at any price, and they do
are washed The blankets are sold for
S4.2s. 1t is easy enough to go to almost
any dry goods shop and buy cheaper
blankets than the soldiers have, but these
blankets are wool and weigh six pounds
One pair of them Is enough in cold
weather. and they are warmer than
several pairs Of cheap blankets. The
United States consider the health of their
soldiers. and though they economic on
the caps and trousers. they supply the
hest wooden shirts and blankets.
There are various kinds of shoes that
sell from g. ~ to $S.O4 Then there are
heavy stockings that sell for more than
the nine cents that summer stockings
bring There are underclothes for sale
that are of such good quality that the
officers often wear them in preference to
the underclothing that they can buy In
the usual way.
The United States go further. and sup
ply all the necessities Of the soldiers a.
cost prices. and their cost rates are fire.
quently lower than those at which pri
vate storekeeper could buy. as the United
States buy In large quantities and are
sure pay 1t also tends to increase man
ufacturer's outside trade II he gets large
garment contracts. and big manufact
urer with q large stock on hand can
afford to sell to the United States at cost
Ii he sold at the same rate to private
sellers they might cut retail rates. while
the United States sell to nobody but
soldiers.
When recruit Is sworn In the sergeant
takes him into the clothing room and fits
him up with full outfit. The cost Of 1t
is taken from his pay. though at the rates
at which the government sells 1t dres no,
take him long to pay up. No one may
buy clothing In this way from the govern
ment except soldiers, and it Is crime for
any clothing to be given or sold to any
one else. II the government were to sell
to everybody at the same rate the bust
ness of the furnishing goods stores = the
neighborhood of recruiting stations would
ts ruined. New York Sun
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