The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1907-07-22
MAIL ORDER WAR
IS ON IN EARNEST
Chicago Is Headquarters for
Association of Retail Mer-
chants of the West.
"H0ME PRODUCTS" THE CRY
POLICY OF STRONG COMPETE
TON is PLANNED.
"H0ME PRODUCTS" THE CRY

Chicago, July 21.-War has been declar-
ed on the great catalogue houses of Chi
cago and other cities by the 10000 retail
merchants Of the west. In one of the
most striking economic movements this
country ever has known, the small deal
ers are fighting, as they say, for their
lives.
The mammoth institutions employing
thousands of workers, doing their bus
mess entirely through the medium of
their bulky catalogues, spending no
money in the communities whence they
derive annually millions of dollars of
patronage are forcing increasing num-
bers of home merchants to the wall and.
so their opponents claim are making
commercial graveyards of once prosper
GUS towns"
In this life and death struggle. jobbers
and manufacturers also are involved with
the retail merchants.
Organized Attack TO Be Made.
An organized attack on the catalogue
institutions is to be made by the Home
Trade League of America, which has eX
listed for several months in the Monad-
mock building, largely as q publicity bu-
reau, but which is shortly to incorporate
and institute more systematic and aS-
gressive campaign against the catalogue
houses through a board of twenty-one
managers, with a vice-president and an
advisory committee of ten members from
each state.
The backbone of the league IS formed Of
commercial associations, national state,
and local in character, In Illinois, Wis
Minnesota The officers Of associations
in scores Of cities are in constant cor
Tespondence with the league, which will
continue 10 have its national headquart-
ers i'm this city. Officers of the league
will be selected from the most aggressive
of the leaders OF these associations of
business men.
Plan of Campaign.
Alfred C. Clark. manager of the league.
Yesterday outlined the policy of competi-
ton with the catalogue houses as now be-
ing conducted in a thousand cities and
towns, principally in the middle west
Mail Order Houses See Conspiracy.
In many parts of the country retail
trade associations are taking up the fight
following a policy of their own, which,
however. does not have the approval of
the league. One of these schemes has
been for the members of a retail lum-
bermen's association in Iowa to write to
the catalogue houses asking for cata-
logues, each member agreeing to write
two or three letters a week. calling for
answers Catalogues ordinarily cost 81
each, and in addition there is the eX-
pense of stamps and stationery.
For months this has been going on, and
the catalogue houses have now applied
TO the district attorney of northern Min
nesota to take action against these thou
sands of individuals for using the malls
in furtherance of conspiracy TO injure
their business.
Paul f. Ewert, assistant United States
district attorney at St Paul. viii direct
the prosecution of the retail lumber deal
ers who are accused of an illegal COM
binatiOn in restraint of competition The
principal charge is that they are using
the mails to drive out several concerns
which have been selling lumber through
the northwest by means of mail orders.
Most of these concerns are in Chicago.