The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1904-07-23
retail, MERCHANTS WARNED.

RETAIL MERCHANTS WARNED.
In his address on Tuesday at the
convention of the retail merchants.
Mr.. George J. Williams, organizer for
the South, warned retail merchants of
the danger to them in what is known
as the parcel post bill now pending
in Congress. He said he thought the
merchants of the South should organ
ize and oppose this bill. because it
was framed to eliminate the retail
merchants.
There is no doubt that this bill has
behind it great deal of money. The
vigor with which it is being pushed
is evidence of this.
The bill, it is understood, is in the
interest of mail order houses. located
in the large cities. but principally in
New York. If this bill were to be-
come a law the retail merchants, in
nearly all lines of business, would
soon feel the effects of it. The great
stores of New York and Chicago would
flood the country with samples of their
goods. Indeed, they might even send
statesmen into any county to inform
the people how TO get into commune
cation with them. The trade that
properly belongs to the retail mer-
chants of the home towns would grad
ually go to these large mail order
stores of the great cities.
Thus far the bill has not met with
much encouragement from Congress,
for the reason that congressman have
been informed by the retail merchants
of their respective districts that the
bill was hostile to home trade. 1t
might be said that there is no danger
that the business of local merchants
would be hurt if the bill were to be-
come a law, but those who have stud
led the subject know better than that.
From nearly all the towns and coun-
ties trade is now being drawn by
these great mail order stores, and the
amount of this trade would be great
ly increased if the parcel post bill
were to be adopted.
The local merchants get all the local
trade they can, and even then they
often find it difficult to pay their liv-
ing expenses and satisfy their various
business obligations. Their taxes are
heavy, and rents are high. Besides,
the wants of the people ought to be
supplied by the home merchants. These
home merchants have reason to ex-
pect that they will be given the pref
erence, other things being equal. They
bear a large percentage of the cost
of carrying on the government in
their respective cities and towns, and
therefore should have all the trade
which their territory furnishes.
There is an advantage of course in
buying of the mail order houses, be-
cause, as a rule, they offer their goods
at lower price and have much larger
stocks from which to make selections,
but the fact ought not to be over
looked that those who buy from the
home stores have the privilege of
seeing what they buy.
If the parcel post bill should become
a law country merchants, and even
merchants in the larger towns, would
see their trade gradually go to the
great mail order stores of the big
cities. In many parts of the country
much of the best trade now goes TO
big mail order stores in New York,
Philadelphia and New York. Millions
of dollars year are lost in this way
to the smaller cities and towns. The
parcel post bill would even draw trade
from people of the rural districts
Thus the way would be opened for
the gradual disappearance of the re-
tail store, as we have it to-day.
New York is already drawing mill
lions of dollars a year from the South
for life insurance and in settlement
Of cotton gambling obligations. That
city therefore is getting enough from
the South without the additional mill
lions it would get if the parcel post
bill should become "a law.