Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1897-12-09
~. DAILY KENNEBEC JoURNAI THURSDAY DEcEMBEB 1897
Daily gtuut'tf sa,,saal.
TRADING STAMPS.
Court Of Appeals Decides Their
Issue is Illegal.
Asevere Artaigoment In Justice sheuhard ,
Opinion.

me court OF appeals, this afternoon. in
an opinion written by Mr.. Justice Shep-
ara ahrmed the judgement of the police
court IN what is known as 1.-The trading
stamp case. says the WASHINGTON. D. e..
Evening Star of Tuesday. Dec. 7. The
OPINION OF the court, which although
most shrewdly planned. of the MANY de-
vices 10 obtain something for nothing,
the tradlng stamp enterprise could hard
~ have come more clearly within the
scope OF the statute prohibiting gift en-
'erprises' had 1t been well known and
expressly stated in the contemplation of
Congress at the time of it's enactment.
Further on, the court says 1.-THE WASH
lnSton Trading Stamp Company and its
agents are not merchants engaged in
BUSINESS as that term is commonly UNI
derstood. They are not dealers in ordi-
nary merchandise engaged in a legiti-
mate attempt to obtain purchasers for
their goods by Offering fair and lawful
inducements to trade. Their business is
the exploitation of nothing more or less
than cunning device.
With no stock in trade but that de-
vice and the necessary books and stamps
and so-called premiums with which to
operate it. successfully, they have inter-
Vened in the legitimate business carried
on in the District of Columbia between
seller and buyer, not for the advantage
of either. but to prey on both. They sell
nothing to the person to whom they fur
nish the premiums. They pretend simply
IN, fac Ia
forcing their stamps upon a perhaps I'M
willing merchant. who pays them in
cash at the rate of S. thousand. =
There is not a shadow of rational founda-
ton for the stamp company's claim that
1t confers benefit upon buyers by pro-
curing for them an actual discount
The case. it will be recalled. was insti-
tuted in the police court. where Joseph
~. Sperry, the manager of the Stamp
Company. and Gustave Lansburgh. 4
local merchant. were convicted of violat-
ing the statute prohibiting gift enter
prises. they having admitted participa-
ton in the trading stamp scheme.
They were each fined 500. whereupon
they appealed to the court of appeals,
where the cases We're fully argued last
month, Mr.. A. S. Worthington represent
ing the defendants and Messrs S. T.
Thomas and A. B. Duval appearing on
behalf of the District.
The readers of the Star are familiar
with the scheme and the prosecution of
the defendants, and the court of appeals
says that the defendants were lawfully
convicted of an. offense clearly within the
prohibitive powers of Congress.
The plea of Mr.. Lansburgh that he was
convicted merely of Offering a discount
o. premium to his customers in the Civ
ing of the trading stamps to them. the
appellate court holds, is not disclosed by
the record in the case, and he must. the
court says abide by the result of his
co-defendant's conviction.
The defendant Mr. Lansburgh the
court further says. made himself the ac-
complete Of the other in an active way
in the promotion of the unlawful scheme
of the Stamp Company.
The court. holds that there was no
error committed in the case by the police
court and that the judgment below must,
therefore, beaffirmed. AS there is no ap-
peal from the judgment of the court of
appeals in criminal cases it's decision in
the matter is, therefore. final one.