Daily independent. [volume] (Elko, Nev.) 188?-1915, 1891-09-03
SUBSTITUTE sWINDLE.
Dishonest Ioruggists who PAIN on
Home-A6ade Goods.
HoW - Unsusp06tinG Public Il In
1oSSd Upon 81 UnprincI1lod
= OOalers In Household
- RSSSsdlSs. o.. i

Mr.. A. Frank Richardson, Of Neu
York, has done the public good servic<
by calling attention ia his recent ad.
dress before tho National Editorial as.
ISOLATION at st. Paul 70 the petty but
extensive frauds practiSod upon custom.
ers through what is known as the sub.
stitute Swindle. The modus operandi
Of these dishonest deals. says the Chi.
cago Tribune, may b briefly explained.
There are many standard articles which
hate attained 10 y largo sale and wido.
spread reputation by their Legitimate
merits and the liberal advertising OF
their proprietors. Certain unprincipled
druggists and small dealers have taken
advantage Of these circumstances 70
counterfeit these goods by initiating
them just closely enough to keep them
selves out Of tho clutches OF the law. At
Detroit and in other cities there arc
houses whose entire business consists
in manufacturing limitations of these
articles, or substitutes" which arc
made 80 aS TO closely resemble the orig
inals in materials used, in the name.
and in the general appearance Of tho
boxes, bottles or wrappers. AS m In
ducement to these small dealers and
the better to enable them to carry out
the swindle, their names frequently arc
printed on the PACKAGES by tho manu-.
facturers. and the false caption "our
own make" is often added. It Is easy
to see how the swindle is worked. A
customer goes into a store and asks for
q popular remedy. The dealer says that
he has it, which is probably lie, but
recommends the customer to buy q
preparation put up by himself, which
he claims to be equally good, and
which, he says, he eau recommend, be-
cause, he prctends, he has compound
ed it himself" and it IL his 'own make"
and, besides, while the desired article
may be fifty cents q bottle, he can sell
his own preparation ut twenty-five
cents. Nine times out Of ten the Gus.
toner, relying upon the statement OF
the druggist, will be induced by
motives of economy to take the sub.
stitute, which, of course, is worthless
aud which may be dangerous. The
dealer is enabled TO do this because he
buys very cheaply from the manu-
facturer and thus the two get the ben.
eft Of the advertising of the genuine
material and divide large profits. Thus
IN unsuspecting public is swintlled.
1t is needless to say that the druggist
or dealer who will descend to this con-
@mptiblc business merely because he
cnn make a larger profit upon the sub
stltutc than he can upon the genuine
article Is common swindlerc md mono
the less swindler BECAUSE the trick is
devised so cunningly rs to save him
from prosecution and deserved punish
mcnt. 1t is fraud upon manufacturers
who are making legitimate article
and who have spent thousands of dol
lars TO orlng IL before the public, and
fraud upon customers who are tricked
into buying n bogus article which Is
worthless, II not something worse. It.;
is-time that this contemplate business
was stopped, and it can be if the press
OF the country will vcntilate and cx-
pose it and If the public will refuse: to
patronizc druggists who palm Off these
nostrums upon 1t. Customers should
demand tho article they have every
reason to believe is the hest, and if q
dealer begins the old story recommend
ing preparation he has made himself,
which he knows to be pure because he
made it, which has his name on the
wrapper, etc., 1t should be sufficient
cause to refuse it promptly md 20 else.
where for their goods. It is the lowest
and meancst form OF common thievery
and IL the public will join hands with
the press it can be broken up It Is
certainly for the interests of tho former
to do so, as it is tho principal sufferer.