The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1898-01-01
monE AsENr THE TRAPPING STAMP.


A subscriber l.. M. Barnes sends to
this journal an advertisement calling
attention to plan he has inaugurated
to counterfeit the effects OF the trading
stamp" system which has been adopted
by some Of the merchants of his city.
Mr.. Barnes scheme, regarding which
he seeks our opinion, is but one of many
that merchants have been forced to
adopt in protection against the social
ed trading stamp. We have already
presented the details of a plan devised
by the Retail Merchants association Of
New Haven, Conn.,, body containing
in its membership several jewelers. who,
though they have adopted the stamp
system, are active In its opposition. The
purpose of this plan Is to cure the evil
by enforcing the stamp scheme ad libi-
tum, somewhat after the principle OF
General Grants cure for a bad law.
This necessity for merchants to devise
schemes to counteract the stamp evil
was one of the arguments which led to
the decision of the United States court
of appeals of the District of Columbia,
published in full in the Circular of De-
cember is, to the effect that the trad
ing stamp is gift enterprise within
the scope Of the United States statute
Of the District of Columbia forbidding
the operation Of lotteries and gift enter
prises. An appeal has been taken to
the United States supreme court, not
from the decision itself, but to test the
constitutionality of the anti-lottery
statute. Many states, almost all 1t may
be said, have on their statute books a
similar anti-lottery lazy; therefore mer-
chants need devise no schemes to bat
| tie with the trading stamp, for it is
necessary only for them to invoke the
protection of the police in their respec-
| tive communities.
| Even should all recourse to law be
| ultimately futile, it is only matter OF
time when the public will understand
! the true status Of this trading stamp
| scheme When customers make pur-
! chases and ask for premium checks OF
| stamps they are simply asking the mer-
chants for per cent discount 1t is
4 just as cheap for the merchant if, say
/ the purchase is for dollar, to take 81
cents as it is to take the dollar and give
the stamps. This is what Mr.. Barnes
has done, only he practically takes only
so cents. If the merchant can afford
the discount he can afford to give 1t di'
| rect to his customer instead Of to :
I third party II he cannot afford to give
/ it, and the stamps are demanded, ther
he must charge enough more for hi
goods to make up for the expense o.
the stamps. Merchants are not SO phi
| lanthropic that they are willing to GIVE
4 away hundreds of dollars week. ant
| when premium stamps are demanded t
/ this extent the cost Of articles sold i
simply added to- sufficient to meet thu
expense. AT first glance it looks to thu
! purchaser that if checks can be obtain
ed with each purchase which will ulti
mately command some article as pre-
1 MUM. they are worth getting, but TIL
| fact is that these stamps are bough
! and paid for by the purchaser, ant
!, when the time of redemption come
4 they do not command one-fourth VIVA
| they in reality cost. The scheme is
dear investment for the people to In
dulge in. and this they will ultimatel.
appreciate 1t is not at all probabl
that the public will continue to enrlcl
parties who place themselves between
merchants and their customers, and al
ready merchants are abandoning IN
handling of stamps. The merchant
will not lose anything by this discontln
uance, and the customers will saw
moDey. jewelers. Circular.