Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1912-06-12
THE. RiZER CASE

af this county last Wednesday. The
trial occupied twelve days. Judge
Brennan of the Polk County District
Court presiding. =
| While the Judge refused to sign
decree until he could 90 over tthfee
figures again, he announced an In In
tention to find against the defendant
In the sum of $2,319.9l and the costs.
If a decree is signed by the judge
in accordance with his announced in
tcntion, or for any sum whatever
against the defendant, the case Will
he promptly appealed to the supreme
court. ...=
The undisputed evidence in the
case establishes the following facts:s
| /. That for some reason the
Standard Lumber Co. has been quite
generally disliked by the people of
Ryan and vicinity for the past sew
era' years, and to get business Mr..
2izer had to overcome that dislike
CT prejudice. ---s,r
2. That the business Of the Ryan
Cash Store, owned by the Standard
Lumber Co., had been run at a loss
for more than three years prior to
May 1909 when Mr.. Rizer was en-
poyed as manager.
j. That the Standard Lumber Co.,
rad no experience in the manage
| ctn ocian from
its experience in this Ryan store,
and Mr.. Rizer was hired to generally
supervise the business at Ryan and
fix the prices at which all goods
should be sold.
4. That the Standard Lumber Co.,
a. no time directed or even request
c. Mr.. Rizer to make any particular
profit on any sales, but on several
occasions Mr.. Rizer told his employ
ers that he believed that he was.
selling the goods, other than eggs
upon which there was no profit, at
an average of twenty per cent. above
their cost.
5. That to meet competition and
conform to the customs Of the retail
trade, goods had to be sold all the
woy from no profit at all to as high
as th1rty-five per cent. profit, and
in exceptional cases even higher,
end that at best the average profit
could not be anything more than an
estimate. f5
6. That Notwithstanding the fact
that Mr.. Rizer''s statements to his
employer about profits were only es-
Inmates, they were remarkably close
estimates, for all goods, other than
eggs, sold at the Ryan Cash store,
lwhile Mr.. Rizer was manager, were
IsoId at an average increase over
their cost price of 10 44710o per
cent. And a. goods not sold at that
profit were in the store. at 4 the end
Of Mr.. Rizer's term Of service.
z. That F. M. Foley, who manag.
ed a similar business in Ryan for
MANY years prior to April. 1910, tes-
titled that he was not able to! make
more than Is per cent on his gross
sales for the last year that he was
in business. And successful mer-
chants like Messrs. Drew and Clark
o. Manchester testified in substance
that sales of goods at retail at an
average Of twenty per cert. above
Their cost was a good average, profit
the way business has for several
years past and is now being con-
Quoted in this county. The testi-
mony Of these witnesses was not
contradicted or disputed by anyone.
g. All the help employed in the
store testified that Mr. Rizer was in
dustrious and tried at all times to
please the patrons of the store and
increase the business of his employ
er, and that they did not know Of
his ever doing dishonest act and
all quit the employ of the Company
because they did not want to work
for people who would treat a man
as they We're treating Mr.. Rizer.
r y b -. q
g. That every sale made in the
store was recorded on triplicate sales
slips, and rang up on cash reg
lister that also recorded the transac-
ton, and the cash register record
and one set of the sale slips were
sent each day to the Standard Lum-
her Co., at Dubuque, where a COM
plete duplicate set of books were
kept.
10. The evidence did not show that
Mr.. Rizer took any of his employers
money or goods He presented his
bank account for the period of his
employment by the plaintiff and ex-
planned where he got nearly every
dollar deposited by him during that
| time.
II. Without charging or proving
a single dishonest or even question
able act on Mr.. Rizer's part, the
plaintiff made the broad claim that
their profits were below what they
should have been and in support of
their contention presented an array
| of figures and theories. FL.
II is the general belief of those
familiar with the facts that Mr.. Riz-
er did as we'll for his employer as
any man in the county could have
done. Wherever Mr.. Rizer has liv-
ed he has had the confidence and re-
spect of the people generally. And
as a business man he has the repu-
!ation of being competent, honest.
energetic and obliging; and his
friends, and they are many, conf
IDENTIFY believe that the final outcome
of the present suit will help rather
than impair his business career.
Mr.. Rizer is a young, man and