The Mitchell capital. (Mitchell, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1918, 1906-01-26
MORNING OF DISCUSSION
Retail Merchants Get Down to Bust
ness and Listen to Some Inter-
esting Talks.

When the members of the Retail
Merchants convention assembled
Wednesday morning in the city ball
there was a noticeable increase in
the attendance over the meeting of
the previous evening. Additional
delegates came in from the west and
north and more came in over the
Omaha road.
The first business OF the morning
was the presentation OF the report
Of T.. S. Tyler, of Sioux Falls, secre-
tary, which follows in full;
Mr.. President and Members of the
Retail Merhants s. Hardware Dealers
Association of South Dakota:
The past year has been n of good
cheer. The mercantile trade of South
Dakota from reports received by your
secretary from all over the state has
shown an increase in the amount OF
goods placed out to the consumer;
but in many instances, the profits
that have accrued have not materially
increased. The merchants Of this
state, all things being equal and hav-
ing to meet only a fair and legiti-
mate competition, should have rolled
up on the credit side of the ledger
more in the way of profit to offset
the disastrous years that have come
in the past, as much or more in dol
lars than has been the record for
many years gone by. But has that
been the case? distance lends en-
chantment" and the competition
that the retail merchant meet to-
dow in hio lhncinocc 10 nnnr.. Fror, kl,o
distance than from his own locality.
This is a matter that can be allie
Waited, perhaps not wholly, but TO a
certain extent by national ~leeisla-
tion and by state legislation and by
local ordinance i'm each town or city.
If a national pure food law, Just
and right and fair TO all mankind,
could be enacted, it would have a
tendency to destroy the trade Of COM
petitors from a distance. in. certain
lines of goods and thus take away a
competitor that is a strong factor
against your interests, and not only
take away your competition, but
would also be conducive to the health
of the consumer.
The retail dealer in whatever com
modify living in the small communi-
ty feels the effects of the distant
competitor much sooner than the
q who lives, in the large town or
city, but all will, no. matter where
located, feel this competition and
teel 1T more strongly and more rap
idly unless some way is discovered to
keep it Jut of the borders OF our
state. / am not in a position TO offer
a remedy.
In the past year there have been
I,,A fD,r, ~, al Srtc In, ,-.l 49,
transient merchants, ped1lers, bank
that nature, and while this kind
Of competition is not entirely Grad.
icated from the state. it las been.
eliminated to a great degree.
Immediately following the conven-
tion OF 1905, held in the city Of Sioux
Falls, / started upon a systematic
form of advertising and the placing
of the membership cards of the as
sociation in the hands of nearly 100
merchants of this state, east Of the
Missouri river. One hundred and
tfty-five replies nave been received
containing remittance for member
ship. Ninety cards have been re-
turned. Either the parties had sold
out or left the state, dice. or refused
to hold the cards. A great many ans
wers we're received to the balance Of
these communications. declining to
pay their membership fee, but at the
same time held the membership
cards. A very large majority retain
ed the card and made no reply to the
five OF six communications which we
sent them A large majority of
the retail dealers Of this state want
to see Immediate results which it is
impossible for any one to give. In
connection with the Insurance Com
pany which has been established, a
solicitor has been on the road most
all the time. With the reports that
he would make the letters that would
be received at the secretary's Office,
a very close touch that Office has
with the merchants OF the state.
There has been received by the Sec