The Winslow mail., 1912-04-13


quiet investigation to learn what mem
bers Of Congress act as attorneys for re-
tail mail. order houses.
Lsrkin & Co, OF Buffalo, N. Y, have
sent kilograms and letters to various
members of Congress stating that re-
tail merchants of the smaller ci; les and
towns are bound to be forced out of
business by their ''direct to you" meth.
DDS. Many Congressman have taken
exception to the activity Of retail mail
order houses here Hon. 81. A. Barn
hart, of Indiana who is also publisher
of the Rochester, Ind, Democrat and
knows the benefits OF the mercantile
interests to community, has asked
this house how much it has paid in
taxes or for the benefit OF any public
spirited work in the 18th Indiana Dis.
| trict.
The Washington Herald says: "Mr
Taft Is wisely appealing 10 the busl-
ness sense of the country, while at the
same time he is not displaying lack
of courage in dealing With the great
monopoiistic corporations which are
alleged to exist III defiance of law. 1t
: is impossible to repeat too often or to
emphasize too greatly the value of this
business support" However, he seems
to be discriminating as to the business
support he seeks. Recen. ly he held pro-
longed conferences with julius Rosen-
waid, President Of Sears, Roebuck &
Co., Chicago. It is rumored that Mr..
Rosenwald will take charge of cam
paign finances. Advocacy by his Post
al Department of a scheme for trans
portation whereby the products of old
settled communities are to be shipped
into growing sections of the West and
South as cheaply as it is charged to
the local industries and dealers thereof
confidence.
The Interstate Commerce Commits
sion has decided that the Texas State
railroad commission did not have au-
thority to lower rates for Dallas ship
pers in territory competitive with
Shreveport, La, that the rates should
have been made according to distance.
The Washington Times says: "Discrl.
imitation in railroad rates is just as
much q means of protection=as the i'm
position of import duties at custom
house.. Members of the House POST
office Committee have reported bill
wheraunder the Government will
charge to Industries and dealers located
III the districts OF individual members
of the committee, for shipment of thirty
miles, one hundred times as much per
mile to carry merchandise as it would
charge per mile to the distant manu-
facturer or retail mail-order house to
ship merchandise three thousand miles,
A campaign Of deception has been
engineered by retail mail-order houses
assloted by certain advertising agen-
cies to make publishers and managers
OF newspapers, particularly i'll the larg-
or cities, expect q large amount of ad-
vertising from them if Parcels Post be
tOrial advocacy and favorable news
treatment of Parcels Post. Other advo-
Gates have excited the cupidity of ma
nagers Of city department stores to
capture through it extra business III
smaller cities and towns and get adver-
tisers to influence their newspaper
publishers. Ifaware of plans now made
by big retail mail-order houses TO cap
ture their own trade, such department
store managers would be more content
to "live and let live" The supposed
chance to swallow smaller fish" blinds
them to the peril that they are near
sharks Meanwhile certain astute
gentlemen of advertising agencies laugh
in their sleeves at the gullaoility of
such newspaper publishers. realizing
that precious little advertising busi-
ness will go to such newspapers; for,
if parcels are carried in all American
territory at low uniform price, maga
zines and farm journals, ETC., which
reach all parts of the country will con
tinue to get the advertising of retail
mail-order houses. In u number of such
magazines stock is held by advertising
agencies. They know that Parcels Post
would increase the profits of retail
mail-order houses through Governme t
subsidy and lessen the business of To-
cal dealers and their ability to adver-
tise in their local newspapers. But so
far their game has worked remark bly,
we'll.
1t Looks Like A Crime