Omaha daily bee., 1891-09-27
DECEIT IN DEALERS BRANDS.
One Thing Tha. May Operate Against Home
Industry Patronage.
FOREIGN GOODS UNDER OMAHA NAMES,
Broom Factories of the City-omaha
Furniture Factories-Whcre
Chairs Are Made-Rest
for the Weary.

as TO the necessity for 'home patronage
that 1T does not appear necessary TO add any
thing more for the present at least, on that
branch of the subject.
My attention on several occasions has been
called to an abuse which must be looked to or
"home patronage will become a farce. The
people of Omaha are asking for home made
goods, but it is a fact that they do not always
receive what they ask for. A custom has
grown up in the business world which makes
it a comparatively easy matter to deceive tho
public, that is the branding or labelling of
goods with q name other than that Of tho
manufacturer.
The dealer anxious to advertise himself and
to make his name and business appear i'm
portant in the eyes of the consumer insists
that his name and not the manufacturers
should appear on the goods.
The manufacturer anxious to make sales
comedies the point and puts out his goods
under what he calls especial brands that is
under the dealers brand and not his own.
Thus Mr., a. III the grocery business sells
-four branded, for example, 'My Choice, Mr..
A, Omaha, Neb. ~ and other goods in the
same way. If q consumer orders Omaha
madc Hour, he can send out this brand when
1t may have been made at some place 800
miles from Omaha. a gentleman calls for an
oIDdnd Ulub cigar anu Juo ueulbr UdluS OUT
one from a box bearing his name, but that is
no sign that it was made in Omaha, for east
ern manufacturers, when requested, stamp
the retail dealers name on the box. Brooms
made in the penitentiary are never marked
so as to give the consumer the correct idea of
their origin, but If labeled at all they usually
bear the name Of the jobber or retail dealer.
The consumer desiring to encourage homo
industry cannot be too careful in
guarding against deception. Make
the dealer identify his goods, and
the best Identification is the manufacturers
own name or brand.
The cigar manufacturers have seen so much
deception on the part Of dealers that they
will urge the Manufacturers association to
adopt a Nebraska trade mark to be con-
trolled by the secretary Of that organization
who will allow only Nebraska manufacturers
to use it.
Besides deceiving the consumer the special
brand is a bid for the manufacturer to turn
out inferior goods. When his name does not
appear on certain articles the manufacturer
can not be expected to take the same pride in
its excellence as he would if his reputation
was at STAKE. JzS
1t is not the lntention''to attempt any re-
form in the matter 'of special brands,
as the custom HJiis worldwide
and cannot be easily wiped out.
The Only object in mentioning the subject is
to warn the consumer that when an article
is labeled or branded with the name
of a local dealer it is no
indication that the article was made in
Omaha. )51T
L have noted that the soap factories of
Omaha appear to have received more benefit
than most any other line from the agitation
of home patronage, and am inclined TO
ascribe it to the fact that soap is almost al
ways stamped with the manufacturers name,
which makes it impossible to deceive the
consumer. U
Where Brooms are Made.
In Omaha there are two broom factories,
Fred Krause, 1917 Chicago street, and II. E.
Copson, 1109 South Fifteenth street, employ
ing sixteen people, with a pay roll of $40
per week. One can supply all
the brooms that would be used by quite q
large population, but if ali the retail dealers
sold only the homemade article, work could
easily be found for twice the number of men
employed here at the present time.
The home manufacturers are at a great dis
advantage IN having to compete with penlten-
tiary made goods. At Lincoln the contractors
pay the state 40 cents per day for broom
makers in the penitentiary and these goods
enter into competition with the output of
factories employing honest labor.
In Omaha the floors ia several thousand
houses, the homes of laboring men are daily
swept by penitentiary made broOms. Many
dealers, both large and small, in this city sell
penitentiary brooms, why! because they can
buy them for less money and make a greater
profit. The consumer pays the same price as
or a broom made by honest labor.
1t may be OF interest to the thousands who
WELD brooms to know something of the
method of manufacture.
The state of Nebraska leads the list of
broom corn states and the farmers have found
it a most profitable crop to raise. The broom
corn arrives at the factory III bales Of 800 to
500 pounds.
The first operation is the sorting, which Is
based on quality and color, the green being
preferred. The broom-maker, fastening the
handle into his machine, commences to tic
on the broom corn by winding around the
wire as the handle is revolved. On opposite
sides of the handle he binds on two punches
of the broom corn which makes the shoulder
of the broom. Then he covers it with layers
of finer broom corn, turning the handle
round and round, drawing the wire taut and
holding it with an occasional tack driven
over the wire and into the handle. II Is
bard work, standing all day on one foot and
using the other to revolve the machine.
When the broom leaves the hand Of this
first operator 1t has a sort of crazy appear
ance, suggestive of untrimmed whiskers,
through which the wind has been freely Cir
culating.
The next operation is the sewing, which in
some factories is done by hand,
the broom being held by a clamp.
In other factories a machine IS In
use which does the work faster and better
than it can be done by hand.
Then comes the trimming which puts on
the finishing touches and the work is COM
plete.
One factory in Omaha has consumed dur
ing the past year eighty to eighty-iive tons of
broom corn at an average price of 500 per
ton, which shows the importance of this in
dustry to the country.
If only the laborinR men Omaha, who are
supposed to be intensely hostile to prison
made goods, would insist dpon having Omaha
brooms a great improvement would be noted
at once in this line of manufacture.
Omaha Furnitnre Factories.
The average citizen may not be aware of
the fact that furnitur6 manufacturing has
become an important industry in Omaha but
such is the case. Six factories are engaged
in the business and are etrploying 237 people
with a yearly pay roll of Sl23, $40. AS no two
of these factories are engaged in turning out
exactly the same line OF goods il will be nee
essary to mention them in detail.
Where Chairs Are Made.
At the intersection otSpaulding street and
the Belt hEe there issa line brick building
used by Murphy, Waseyb& Co. as a chair
factory. Maple and otti timber of which
chairs are made is not anNebraska product
and accordingly the woiiS of turning" out
the wood is done at thej mills in Michigan
and Indiana. AT all those mills there is a
large amount OF waste lumber, pieces
too small for any other purpose,
and these are turned out INTO chair rounds
and legs. 49,
The pieces are shipped from these mills TO
rho Omaha char furtoryy xybara thAu a re- ,nttt