Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1909-08-19
PEDDLERS TRICK
BY SHORT WEIGHT
FAULTY SCALES GREATEST MEN
ACE OF THE RETAIL
DEALER.
PEDDLERs SHOULD NOT BE IL
cENSED UNTIL WEIGHTS AND
MEASURES ARE TESTED,

Albany, n. Y, August 1.-THE
Importance Of effective state regula-
ton of weights and measures as a
protection to the producer and dis
tributer, as well as the purchaser,
was pointed out by Fritz Reichmann,
state superintendent of weights and
measures, in an address before the
Retail Grocers' association. He said
that the huckster is, perhaps, the
greatest menace to the retail dealer,
and offered the suggestion that no
peddler should be licensed until after
his weights and measures have been
tested and sealed.
'The principal difficulties the retail
dealer encounters" said Superintend-
ent Reichmann, "are unfair competi-
ton and shrinkage by decay, evap-
Grafton, or decline in market value
The unfair competition is due to the
few INSCRIPTIONS dealers who, under
the guise of under-selling, give either
poor quality or short quantity, and
generally the latter, because there is
pure food law which is more or less
effective, and the quality can be more
easily judged by the purchaser.
"A serious cause of unfair competi-
ton is the peddler or huckster, who
IS by far the greatest short-weight
artist, next to package-gOods manu-
facturers. | actually believe the
huckster is, perhaps, the greatest
menace to the retail dealer, and no
peddler should be allowed a license
unless all his weights and measures
are tested and sealed, and he gives
full weight and measure, and if in a
single instance he is caught giving
short weight and measure his license
should be revoked.
81 could tell you of many amusing
instances of peddlers giving short
measure by using six-quart measures
for a peck measure; measures with
double bottoms; measures cut off at
the top; measures relapped, or where
the commodity is filled in only on the
bottom with the measure turned up
side down, and a hundred other In
geniOus schemes.
at is a perfectly evident fact that
peddIer is not in the business for
his pleasure or for philanthropy, and
if he purports to sell for less than
the whole market price, he is simply
working upon the feelings of the
housewife By having her believe that
she is getting a bargain, and then
getting even with her by giving her
less than she pays for"
Unfair Competition.
Superintendent Reichmann declared
that the selling of goods by jobbers
and wholesalers directly to- desirable
consumers was source of unfair
competition to the retail grocer. He
advocated the enactment of legisla-
ton which would put the inspection
of weights and measures ami the in
spection of the method Of selling
commodities upon an efficient and
businesslike basis. Some such meas
ure as the bill, which was introduced
i'm the last legislature, he said, should
be placed upon the statute books
The measure simply provides,
he said, that the standards of the
state of New York should be those
that have been legalized by resolu-
ton in congress, that all fees for the
testing of weights and measures
should be abolished, that the number
of sealers, of which they are required
bv law at present one in every city,
town and county, should be reduced
so that one or two sealers could PEI
form the work in the county at no
expense to the dealer; that the le-
climate and honest dealer would
thereby be benefited and the unscrup'
rIous and dishonest competitor would
have to either give full weight or
measure, or get out of business.
Under the present law, where IN
towns and many cities of the third
class the seaIer tests for solicited
services only and charges fee, the
dishonestand INSCRIPTIONS compeut'
or is certainly not the one who is gong
to invite the sealer to inspect his
method of selling commodities or In
spect his weights or measures. The
individual sealers, according to this
proposed measure, would be directly
responsible to the state department
of weights and measures"
Failure of Legislature to Act.
The failure of the measure to pass
the last legislature was attributed IN
mart to opposition from the city OF
New York. There is probably not
one of you here" said the speaker
.wbo has no. suffered from the lack
Of efficiency in the weights and meas
rras service of the metropolis OF TINS
state. There are perhaps reasons
why they should wish to have their
own standard or not do things so as
- nroduce uniformity throughout the
state When the state, the mouse
l,aaners, the dealers. and the labor
inc classes realize the great and fun
damental importance of honest ano
fu1l weight and measure, a srea'
many of the trouble now confronting
rs will he solved.