The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1909-10-28
WOULD RAISE PRICE
ON ROUGH STOCK
Which ii to be Shipped Out Of the
Barre District--A Barre Manufae-
turer's Solution Of One Prob
lem Of Today.

lem OF l0Qay.
pressed the opinion today that the best
pressed the opinion tday that the best
methods Of safeguarding the interests
Of Barre granite in the monumental
business is to raise the price Of rough
stock which is shipped outside the Barre
district, and he quotes the following
letter received from one Of his sales
men in proof Of II:
In reply to your inquiry a. to the
cause Of ME depression IN the monument
al business would say that there are
probably a number Of different reasons,
each Of which contributes more OF less
TO the falling of Of orders this year;
but in my opinion the most serious cause
and the most dangerous one to the Barre
manufacturers il the alarming proper
tions which the manufacturing business
has grown to among the retail dealers
throughout the country, and especially
In my territory in the middle west.
Il am giving below list Of firms IN
the state Of Wisconsin alone from whom
always got large orders for Barre
work, but their business has been stead.
ily decreasing for the past five years
until All present 1t hardly pays to call
on them a. they cut nearly MI their
work and are buying only the work that
they can get at prices 70 low that it
does not pay them to cut IL. The list
contains the names Of twenty -one firms,
all Of whom are IN first class standing
and using mostly Barre granite.
There Is only one way to overcome
this condition 81 affairs and that II for
the Barre manufacturer and the quarry
owner to get together and stop selling
rough stock to anyone outside Of the
Barre district, or raise the price to them
TO at least 50 per cent per foot The
quarry owners wonld be forced to buy
their work and the Barre manufacturers
would get the benefit ol the increase in
business.
"A great many Of the manufacturers
and quarry owners IN Barre are under
the impression that these dealers cannot
cut their own work a. cheaply as they
can out it in Barre, bat they are entirely
mistaken in this ae there is practically
no trouble with the unions in this sec
tion and great many 81 those frms
have good men who are working nine OF
ten hours per day Al zBc per hour Com
pare with The union conditions In Barre
and the wages ycu have 10 pay and you
will see Il viii be only q matter OF a
short time when the Barre manufactur-
ers will have TO do something to protect
themselves.
"And Il seems to me the only way TO
do il is b stop selling them rough stock
altogether, or raise the price on IL enough
10 protect themselves and discourage
the retail dealers from doing their own
manufacturing The nunlher OF retail
dealers who are doing manufacturing is
increasing every year, and If there is
anythne fo be done the sooner il IS
done the better as the dealers are con.
stantly equipping themselves for the
manufacturing business aud the longer
the present conditions are allowed To go
on the more it will hurt when the change
does come.
1T seems strange 10 me that the
Barre manufacturers have not forseen
this condition Of affairs and tried. or
might say insisted, on the quarry owners
making the price Of rough stock higher
to those outside Of the Barre district
thereby giving the Barre manufacturers
the consideration they are entitled to
on account Of the large amount of stock
used BY them and helping to hold the
manufacturing business in Barre where
il rightfnllv helonasn