The Yakima herald. [volume] (North Yakima, W.T. [Wash.]) 1889-1914, 1909-01-20
THE PARCELS POST.

Perhaps no movement of national
Importance since the establishment
of rural free delivery has occasioned
more controversy than the proposed
establishment of parcels post by
the government.
Rural delivery was fought by ru-
raj postmasters because 1t eliminated
them from the government pay roll
and now the country merchant feels
that the parcels post is about to de-
prive him of his just share in the
trade of his community because he
thinks it will operate in favor of the
catalogue house.
Where the question is one of JUS
tice, sympathy should lie with the
home merchant as against the for
eign mail order concern. The home
merchant is a distributor of many
and untold blessings. He is always
present and stands ready to back all
enterprises for the good of the COM
munity with his financial and moral
support. Without the home mer-
chant a community is in a bad way
and his elimination from the retail
field would work a serious hardship
on every man, woman and child in
the community.
He is the man who constitutes the
back bone of cities like North Yaki-
ma. He pays large rents and taxes
and it is just and equitable that he
should have fair profit on his mer
chandise. He exchanges goods not
satisfactory and rights defective mer-
chandise, if he is conducting a bona
fide business. More than that, as
the population increases he adds to
his stock, permitting of better Sc
lection by his customers, all of which
is an untold blessing. There is no
question but that in North Yakima
the home merchant is deserving of
the solid support of the home people.
But there is another aspect to the
whole situation which should not be
lost sight of. The commercial pur-
suits in this country along with ev-
erything else have been undergoing
wonderful evolution. Merchandise
ing today is different game than it
was twenty years ago. The same
principles do not apply, old ideas are
out of date and old systems antiquat-
ed. The whole situation has changed
and is still undergoing a change, the
final elimination of which no man
can foretell. The result is that the
modern business man to be success
ful must be constantly on the alert
1t is game for the enterprising,
the daring, the resourceful, no 9TH
ers need apply Competition and
modernism have reached their zenith
in the retail situation.
Growing up along with this diff
cult and hazardous business diem
ma, is the mail order or catalogue
house, located in the center of the
wholesale center, backed by unlim-
tied capital and with consequent ad-
vantage of an inside price in the pur-
chase of stocks of goods. and an al
legged consequent reduction to the
consumer
The average man has been learning
lot of things in the last decade.
Along with his wisdom of things in
general has grown up suspicion of
business methods and quality of goods
and prices have been made part of
his mental stock in trade. He has
heard a lot about the mail order
business and the antagonistic atti-
tude of the home merchant has awak-
ened his suspicious that the proven
bal 'nigger may be in the woodpile. /"
Consequently it has been just as nat
ural that people should send occas-
ional orders to catalogue concerns as
that boy should see for himself
what is going on in the world when
he gets away from home for the first
time.
That past patronage of mail order
houses Is indicative of future trouble
except insofar as the advantages Of
trade lie wholly in that direction, is
not true. 1t is more or less a craze
which will run it's course because, all
things being equal, people will dis
cover in time that they can do better
at home, because they can see what
they are buying, and the recourse
is at hand and immediate.
1t seems, therefore,, that any body
of merchants is pursuing the wreng
course when it confirms the suspicion
that they are afraid of mail order
competition. Nor will any artificial
wall erected for their protection be
of prolonged usefulness. If the par
GELS post is a factor which will pro-
mote the general welfare of a ma
jority of the people, it is bound to
come. Opposition to it is just as USE
less as would be antagonism to the
reduction of freight rates between
North Yakima and Chicago upon the
ground that this reduction would
work in favor of ones competitor.
The most efficacious method of fight
ing the mail order house is an open
business policy, good goods and fair
prices.
1t may be true that the parcels
post will help the mail order house,
but to prevent its establishment may
not be the proper solution of the
problem.