Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1890-04-26
THE DEFINITION OF A PEDDLER.
He Invades Peoples Homes and Persuades
Them to Buy What They Do Net Want.


Them to Buy What They Do Net Want.
Philadelphia Press.
In amplIflcation of its recent decision
in relation to hucksters and peddlers, ,
the supreme court yesterday, through
Justice Williams, delivered another
afiRfnn which discusses the declaration
of rights, accurately pictures the oharac-
teristics of the peddler, announces the
right of farmer to sell his own produce
from door to door and defines the scope
of the interstate commerce law.
Agents under salary, selling product
manufactured by Rhode Island firm,
were convicted in Schuyklll county of
'peddling, - and were fined. The SUI
preme court decided that the Schuykill
county court was right in enforcing the
law against these peddlers. In passing
upon the points raised in behalf of the
peddlers, Judge Williams said:
''The peddler is a transient with no
fixed place of business, who seeks Gus
toners by invading their homes, and
makes sales by persuadlng people to buy
what they do not need, and who, by the
time he is wanted to answer for his rep
RESERVATIONS and engagements, is out of
sight. 1t is this matter of tracking Ia
boring man or woman into the house and
laying seige to him or her by an unseru-
pulous and self possessed stranger who is
after money and has no delicate scruples
about the manner in which he gets it
that has made the peddler dread in the
country and IN the villages.
AFARMER IS RIGHTS.
''I do not regard the sale of the
natRrgl products of the soil by the farmer
selgaBaener by whom they are raised as
affected by the laws relating to peddlers.
Farmers are not within the m ischief
which these laws were intend ed to.
remedy, except as they are the victims
of that mischief. The carriage ofthe
surplus products of the farm or garden
to a market town or from house to house
is not peddling, but Is incidental to their
business as farmers Peddlers are for
hidden to sell goods, wares and mer-
ohandise. These words were never in
tended to include farm products in the
hands of the farmer; nor is the trans
portation of such products to market
for sale, or to regular customers who are
supplied by the grower. the sort of busi-
ness at which the laws relating to ped
ping are directed.
WHAT INTERSTATE COMMERCE Is.
''It is broadly asserted that our laws
on peddltng are an invasion of the ex-
elusive right of congress to regulate in
terstate commerce. We have under
stood interstate commerce to refer to the
free interchange of commodities between
citizens of the different states without
regard to state lines: our laws relating
to5peddling erect no barrier at the state
l5Ekss provide for no inspection or stop
page, and levy no tax on the introduce
ton into or transportation through the
state of any sort of property whatever.
The citizen of another state may come
into Pennsylvania when he will and
where he will, stay as long as he chooses,
open as many places for the sale of his
goods as he may see lit and enjoy the
same measure OF freedom in regard to
the conduct of his business as native
citizen. But when he comes into the
state permanently or temporarily, he is
under the protection Of its laws and the
correlative duty of obedience rests on
him. His rights are equal to but not
above those of the citizen.
''If it is true, as is now asserted, that
the @nerant stranger who now treads
the country roads, carrying q pack or
box filled with sham jewelry and worth
less watches to sell to those who are
credulous enough TO believe his repre-
sentatlon, for many times their real
value, and who, as soon as ne has gone
through a nsiehborhood, moves quickss
ly out of reach-if it is true that suais 5
person is the ward OF the Federal c6nsti-
tun, engaged in interstate commerce,
with the power of the government of the
United States interposed between him
and the police power of the state, il must
be admitted that we have stumbled on a
startling and unlooked-for result of the
investment of the general government
with the power to regulate commeree. -