The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-08-13
NEW YORK IS HUSTLING.
sTRIYING TO GET RAoK TRADE Lost
By DEFAULE

assumed the aggressive attitude toward the
trade OF other largo cities that IL Is in to-day.
The idea that New York's prominence as o
city. its advantageous position as the practical
gateway Of the country, and tho tremendous in.
forests and enormous capital centred In II, were
all that was necessary to insure 1t the bulk Of
the country's trade for all time. has been dis
PEELED, and the merchants Of this city arc
working on the same lines that have been
followed In the very smallest towns In the
United States to bring and keep here the
trade which should never have been allowed to
get away. Tho tremendous results Of this ac-
tivity are being shown daily by the arrival OF
merchants and buyers from every part OF the
country. most Of whom have not been here in
years, and some not at all, hut who are fiocking
in as tho direct result Of tho efforts Of the Mer-
chants Association, which 10 itself merely the
representative Of tho various trades OF New
York. Commercially. Now York is practically
now city; Its busting methods have completely
reyolutionized things, and the cities OF the West
and South which captured so much trade from
It stand agape watching the same methods as
they employed improved upon 100 per cent,
winning It back again.
A board Of trade or somo organization which
would have for its object the offering OF induce
ments for business mon to come hero has been
the one essential to q big business city that
NOW 1OTk mas hl"dyS 49, eSAaNo
mon Of the small towns of the country long ago
discovered the value OF such an organization,
and one can be found in almost every enter
prisinR place, East, West and South. Tho
big cities Of tho West and Southwest followed
on the same lines some years ago, notably Glove
land, Chicago and st. Louis, and then 1t
was that the lack OF somo such thing be-
gan 10 be felt here. Business which had
always come here began to go to other
- IL zA -a-Irat InN
steady and the city began to feel 1t. The opinion
OF business mon was that New York was too
big and too important to go hunting for trade,
and so the legitimate business Of the metropolis
was allowed to drift away. After tho first year
tho pace was faster, and when the years that
were hard for the whole country came. New
York suffered q bit moro by comparison than
any other place. Meanwhile the cities which
had lured away New Works trade, encouraged
by success. made extra efforts to get moro Of 1t.
They got 1t, too. and still the New York bust
ness men kept out of the fight. They not only
declined to do anything aggressive. but took no
defensive measures.
1t is impossible to estimate the extent to which
New York lost by the desertion to the big cities
OF the West of the small buyers and merchants
who had always made New York their market.
The hotels lost, the theatres lost, everything
and everybody lost. and the general prosperity
The man to open the eyes of the business men
Of the, city to the absolute necessity Of doing
the Merchants Association, and the instrument
with which he proposed to restore business Was
Mr.. King had been studying the matter for year
when he suddenly saw the opportunity for which
IL nd sssn lo9nlhE: As be q m msm oee o. Of !n the eT %en
who appealed to the railroads OF the country
e sfek sss:nS is,s seS s time an on ind sas,r rsduf iS peo,
pie to como on and witness the
eonable amount of time to see something OF tho
during the week or ten days which were allowed
the effect on business Of SO many strangers in
is,s went ar sMfy things rs K a,rSppssd d u S2sE I to their
that he held the key to the situation. gathered
around him a number Of the best,knoWn bust.
peign against the West, rners and 'southerners
s5F oSn ci Of th %ili E"St' E. T Test, Charles T' II.
M %sSs: y oHsn @; 2 aan!1sF H.. s Maass. and AZ; e eHariss
I. Root. AS a r. suit OF their meeting the Mer.
chants Association was formed, with themselves
was also made President, and the organization
procee4e! to boom trade. on the lines proposed
s 1s d. and ntpf keep ra at the them a'l until they came AoWn
sqfticieniIy in their rates 70 make It worth the
70 New YORK and make their purchases.
The Merchants Association was organized on
i Ig1 own 1s sa nad rd aa I'VE for wf Susins %as II qSS& rss Fsi Il
road lines advanced upon were those In the Joint
o alH = HSoDsi the New S@i England rS"t territory ali the
G n, e Chicago and St. p L9T ;So and $50 sGpsh 18th the
ton. After a great deal OF argument the Joint
Traflc Association agreed to the terms Of the
SsFea ss ss''' rs assssdIAfi 4ssss and 10 n1 Ss t tn s sfsss
to 81. The trunk lines ixed Sept. i to
ship lines which agreed to cooperate fixed dates
on which reduced rates would be given TO mem
tion, the Southwestern Association, and the
southeastern Assertion all declined to give
have persisted in their refusal. although every
in~ducemsnt has been brought to bear upon
. sas H.s qasts is s sSn Pr sSRsS fFq RIa ssf h sSq Sssn it:
E po,n The co sss;Ss,ati IN a to few be a as,d f e oi ID
regarded as encouraging; To-day. tomorrow.
and sunday the southwestern Association
inston, and Ricfm nd, and so will the seaboard
Air Limo. From those points the merchants and
To-; ster mshin line. which is one Of the lines that
has made the CONCESSIONS asked by the Mer,
Railroad agreed to the reduced rite on Wednes-
day. and yesterday word was received that the
ranged 70 give redussd rates for three days Vs. end.
Ing sunday. to Richmond. Norfolk. and Wash
t enrsIon. y rn tSis s's city S9 fPom sars rsanSeb b. r way ok Of
the Ocean Steemship Company:
The result OF all OF this negotiating with rail
roads has been the arrival already of fully 1000
buyers and merchants. Improvement has not
only been felt in every branch OF trade, but also
presence Of strangers in the city; The sales OF
the big dry goods houses ms iaia prom ms 10 n 2,
the result OF the energetic methods employed by
the Merchants Association.
There was a new lot OF arrivals In the city
yesterday. Fully 200 merchants and buyer:
registered, at, the Merchants Association. and
announced that they were here for business
They came from Michigan, Ohio, Minnesota
Louisiana, California, Missouri, Texas. Idaho
all Arkansas. and represented almost every
kind OF business. Among them was q man from
Texas who hadn't be n in New York for forty
years. and several who hadn't purchased herr
for ten years.
Aennouth County FARMERS ReapinE Pronta
FREEHOLD. n. j., Aug. l2.-The potato ship
ments from hero last week and this week hcv,
reached great proportions. There were alto
gether lis car loads. containing from $50 to III
barrels to The car. and making a total of 10. sOt