Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1911-08-17

BEATING MAIL ORDER hOuSn''
The agent Of a Chicago grocery
house who is selling groceries TO
the people of this vicinity called &c
the Reflector office today to enter
a protest against articles denouncing
the buying of groceries out OF town.
He opened his pack and expatiated
ON his wares and the prices at which
he was offering goods. 1t was seen
that he sells articles in bulk, not
in the standard packages. He taxes
orders for large quantities and gets
cash. The buyer pays the freight,
In his talk he made this asser-
t,on: III all the grocers OF Abilene
were like ]. e. Brewer they would
drive me out Of business. He does
me more harm than any business
man here" The reason is that MT.
Brewer advertises that he will dup
licate any order that the out OF town
grocery houses make and with goods
of as good or better quality. He can
do H. so can any merchant in the
city. The man who buys groceries
of Chicago takes what is sent MIN
and gets no more for his money
than he would at home. More than
that. he is injuring his own COM
munity and doing an injury to MS
own property valuation, II every
body sent to the mail order houses
for goods there would be only q
whistling station in Abilene ana the
property of every farm and every
residence would depreciate one nan
in six months. 80,
But the principal thing Is this:
II all merchants who are complain
ing 80 loudly that the mail order
houses are getting their business
would let the people know what they
can do in prices, they would. as this
agent says, "drive them out OF busi-
ness" There are firms in Abilene
that are always lamenting that farm
ers and others send away for gooos
Int for months at a time never tell
the people that they have a tnine
to sell. II you go to their store
thew will wait on you, but the mail
order firm sends big catalogue 70
the house or sends salesman WITH
samples to call on the customers
How are the people to know thal
the merchant can duplicate prices!
The mail order man tells them tna'
+be home merchant asks high prices
The merchant says nothing. He s't'
hack and urges the papers to "roasl
the mail order houses" We coulc
nu the columns of the Reflector
within a week with mail order al
vertising at rates higher than th'
merchants of Abilene pay-but u
would be mighty poor business Il
do 1t.
When merchant prints his RICE
and tells the people that he can ant
will duplicate mail order prices i
makes the mail order house squirn
M
and that is the only thing ina
will do 1t.
The average man wants to trad'
at home. He also wants to save al
the money on household expenses
that he can. He honestly thinks hi
lis saving money by sending away TO-
groceries, implements and othe'
Things. The way to keep his trad'
at home is not by abusing him fol
sending away for goods. We thinl
lbe has a mistaken notion OF econom!
when he does it but the patron o
1.-The mail order house is honest II
his conviction. The only way nj
can be reached (and the other wa!
has been tried unnecessarily 10
Iyears) is to show him that he cal
do Just as well here in Abilene an'
nobody can do that successfully ex
Icept the merchants themselves
Roasting the mail order house
Through the papers will not do 1t
THAT, too, has been tried for year
and the mail order business grows
THE merchants have 1t in their owl
hands to stop this growth and b.
their own enterprise and by publicit'
of their own prices and offers "driV'
Them out of business.
nan uApD LICK STORY THAT