Cameron County press. [volume] (Emporium, Cameron County, Pa.) 1866-1922, 1907-03-21
EMPORIUM, PA. THURSDAY, MARCH 81, 1907.


To the Editor of the PRESS:
| notice of late there has been a num-
ber of articles in the PRESS on mail
order buying, but they have always
been all on one side Will you kindly
publish the enclosed article which was
published in the Farm and Fireside of
Feb. 1st, showing the other side of the
question:
CHAs. EDGAR.
MAIL ORDER DISCUSSION.
Mr.. N. r. Hicks, of Greene County,
Illinois, sends us the following letter re-
garding mail order business:
"When our home merchants tell us
that by trading with them we keep our
money at home, we seldom stop to con.
slider how too true this often is. They
should keep at home only legitimate
profit. They tell us they are selling
just as cheap as they can to come out
whole. Also, most of them tell us they
loss hundreds, and even thousands, of
dollars yearly through the credit busi-
ness.
"From these facts we may form GER
tain conclusions: First, if our mer-
chants books balance on the right side,
we undoubtedly pay for the delinquent
credit mans goods. Second, ifthey are
selling on cash basis, they should keep
at home only their profit on the goods
sold. The remainder should go to our
wholesale city merchants
81 recently received bill of goods
from one of the firms advertising in
Farm and Fireside and was well salts
fed with every article. If your editor
will allow me space, | Will give some
plain figures The goods delivered to
me at my nearest railroad station cost
S14 80, including everything down to
my stamps. On pricing the goods with
my local merchant | found | had saved
1881 clear. | feel as though can keep
that saving at home just as well as my
home dealer"
From practical experience Mr.. Hicks
has found out some of the reasons for
the marvellous increase in mail order
business. Mail order merchants buy
and sell for spot cash. They have,
therefore, great advantage over local
merchants who sell on credit. In order
to enlarge their trade the mail order
merchants share the advantage of the
cash system with their customers, by
selling them goods at lower prices than
the local merchants demand. The
credit system necessarily means higher
prices all around than the cash system.
Again, the credit system usually in
wolves bad debts. Unless the local
merchant can make his good customers
pay enCugh-extra TO cover his losses
from delinquent customers, be fails in
business. Cash customers are getting
tired of paying their local merchants
for goods delivered to people who don't
pay. In fact it is contemplate mean
ness for merchant to saddle his losses
on honest customers who pay for what
they buy. Under such Il system of
business, pay customers are up against
the dishonesty of both deadbeats and
| of debt-shfting merchants.
OF course, the local merchants are up
in arms against the mail order houses,
| parcels post and new conditions that
tend to relieve cash customers of the
double burden imposed on them under
the credit system. Under this system,
honest customers feel that they are
| actually being cheated, and they are
more than justified in buying where
they can save money to keep at home
where it belongs-in their own pockets.
j. @. BARNETT.