Pierre weekly free press. (Pierre, S.D.) 1889-19??, 1906-01-25

aCed SUN by mail order houses. sEOr
instance, | have before me the expan-
sive advertisement of a Chicago con-
Germ which sells extracts. They adj
vertise an old scheme-premiums to
agents who sell various quantities.
Here is the scheme as described by
the concern in its own advertisements:
Ladies and Girls: We want you to
help us introduce among your friends
our celebrated Red Cross" f1avoring
extracts and earn any of these pre-
miums or your choice of several hun
dred others. Our extracts sell at 20
cents and are quickly sold, because
extracts are used in every family.
Ours once bought are always asked
for again-and our first customers are
our best ones. We sell them on a
guarantee-mone back if not salts
factory.
In this advertisement we illustrate
few of the many hundred premiums
we give, which are fully described in
our new $50 page catalogue.
We have premiums for selling one
dozen up to forty dozen, and you are
at liberty to stop work at any time
and select your premium from this big
assortment We believe our offer to
be the most liberal ever made by re-
liable firm. You will be surprised to
find how pleasant the work is, and
how quickly you can sell the extracts.
By our plan you are not overstocked
11yit1 do FNn
yourself how many can be sold.
No money required in advance.
Your credit is good with u.s. Send us
your name and address; we will then
send you by mail, postpaid, one dozen
assorted Red Cross" flavoring ex-
tracts TO commence with; also our big
premium catalogue. If you can't sell
them we will take them back; but
there's no can't about it-you can. Do
it now
Surrounding this appeared small
cuts of various of the premiums given.
Take these as examples:
Women's Melton coat, ~ inches
long, velvet trimmed, for selling four
dozen Extension dining room table,
for selling four dozen. Tea or dinner
set Sc pieces, for selling three dozen.
Combination desk and bookcase, for
selling five dozen. Velour couch for
selling four dozen Chiffonier, solid
oak, for selling five dozen.
And SO on. There were lot more,
to be given for selling from one dozen
up to seven Dozen
Now let's do a little figuring. These
extracts, the firm says, retail at 20
cents bottle. That means $2.40 per
dozen.
The woman who sells only four doz-
en- bottles, meaning $3.50, can get for
her work cloth coat. 1 have some
acquaintance with the retail cost Of
women's garments-let us put the
value of this coat at only SIS, which
admittedly would not buy anything
but the merest shoddy.
That leaves 81 go to the firm for it's
four dozen extracts, or less than 10
cents bottle. Can absolutely pure
extracts be sold for this with a profit
to the manufacturer?
AooulS NlS lily Netii anu SlO1S y
still another thing to say-the concern
whose advertisement this is are not
manufacturers, according to the mer-
camille agency books. AS a matter Of
fact, they aren't rated at all. But such
concerns are always dealers, rather
than makers, and that means second
profit to be figured.
It is certain beyond reasonable
doubt that these goods are adulterated
and sold in violation of the law.
The certainty is, too, that very
large quantities of them are sold.
Every town and city has nagging wom-
en- and children ringing it's doorbells
to sell somebody's extracts or baking
powder. These sales are small, but
they are legion. The aggregate, be
sure, is enormous.
Admittedly beyond reach of food
laws, these impure goods compete
with every grocer in business. They
rob him Of trade nv the hundreds of
| dollars worth. Yet it is just SIS i'm
possible for the food authorities to
reach them as it would be to enter
each home in the land and take sam.
| pies from every table.
The sellers have no places Of bust.
/, ness. They are not merchants. Their
sales for the most part are made with.
out witnesses and in private. The
| buyer is without means OF detecting
the fraud and knows not whether her
| purchase is perfectly pure or wholly
| spurious.
Whether a federal food law would
reach these long-distance fakes is I'm.
| certain. The chance is that some way
| of doing it could be figured out un.
4 der the interstate commerce clause.
Certain is it that no state law will
ever reach them.-St Paul Trade
] Journal.