The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1892-03-12


and purses, and necessarily loads
himselfup with slow selling as well
as seasonable goods. He is n citizen
of the place, bears his full share ol
the burden of such citizenship, pays
state and local taxes on his stock oi
goods and other property, con-
tributes OF his means in response to
the demands for one object or an
other made upon all public spirited
citizens, and cannot evade If he
would the obligations which ac-
company the advantages of citi-
zenship. A store next door to him
becomes vacant. Along comes a
stranger who takes the vacant store
for few weeks or days and opens
up a,stook of alleged "bankrupt,"
damaged" or other goods which
or offered at ian alarming sacrifice"
as they "must be Sold" In ninety
nine cases out of a hundred the
purchaser is sold as well as the
goods, which are next to worthless.
BY the time the discovery is made
as to the real nature of the "bar-
gains" thel stranger is gone with
the remainder of his stock to play
the same game somewhere else.
During his stay he has done no
thing for the place except pay his
rent, if he does that: His stock of
goods pays not l cent of tax, state
or local. The "lying merchant"
contributes nothing to the various
causes that rarely appeal to the
resident merchant without re-
sponse. Whatever business he has
done has been at the expense of the
trade of the local dealer, and the
sacrifice" prices of the strangers
worthless goods tend to demoralize
the prices of the local dealers gen
uine wares.
Senator Gears senate bill No.
ia is intended to put a stop to this
abuse. Itmakes it unlawful to "sell
any article of wearing apparel,
hardware, tinware, notions and
general merchandise by any timer
ant vender without. first procuring
a state and local license." The act
is not to apply to sales made to
dealers by comm ercial travellers or
selling agents in the usual course
If business. nor bonafide sales of
goods, wares and merchandise by
for future delivery. 1t is
timed at those pests of legitimate
business, the transient seller with
stock of "cheap" goods of one kind
n another who takes a vacant store
or short time and opens up an
auction" or "great sacrifice" sale.
BY the Gear bill such a dealer must
reface his work in the state by
a deposit of$1 900 with the
reasurer of state as security for
egitimate claims that may be made
gainst him. Then he must take
ut state license extending one
ear. the fee for which is $3.50.
n addition he is required to pay a
ocal license fee of $125, which is
ot to be in lieu of any other local
ee that may be imposed by the
roper authorities. The penalty
or the violation of either of those
is fine not to exceed
100 and imprisonment not to ex-
eed ninety days.
To still further guard the people
gainst frauds by these wandering
merchants the following sections
ave been inserted in the bill:
'ec. II. No itinerant vendor shall
dvertise, represent or hold forth
ny sale as an insurance, ba ankrupt.
mt, assignee, trustee, estate,
xecutor, administrator, receiver
r closing out sale or as a sale of any
oods damaged by smoke, fire,
Vater or otherwise or in any sim
lar form, unless he shall before so
Ding state under oath to. the state
reasurer, either in the original ap-
'lication for state license or in a
supplementary application, sub
filed and copied on the
license, the details of said bank
uptcy, insolvency, trusteeship
losing out, damage, etc.. such, de-
ails to include and cover all the
acts relating to time, place, per-
ons, ect.. necessary to exactly To-
ate and fully identify the same.
ec. IL. Any false statement in
n application, either original or
supplementary, for a license and
ny failure on the part of any IL
ense to comply with all the require
lents of the last preceding section
hall subject said itinerant vendor |
the same penalty as if he had no
cense and to the further and adj l
itional penalty of fine of 5000,