Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1913-07-28
DEALERS |
ANSWER A CRITIC
Not Asleep, but Preferred Con-
forming to Law Rather Than
Evading 1t.

Regarding an article published in
local Sunday paper yesterday, IN
which the action of local leather man
ufacturers in procuring the enactment
of city ordinance providing for the
appointment of officials to measure
leather, was represented as having
been unnecessary and uncalled for.
Julius +. Kaufherr, of the leather
firm of Kaufherr Bros, who repre-
septs the manufacturers in this mat
ter, declared today that the means
mentioned in the article for dealing
with "the situation created by the
MASSACHUSETTS law penalizing the sale
of leather in the Bay State not meas
ured by sworn official measurer,"
was not. as alleged, Overlooked" by
the leather manufacturers. but was,
on the contrary, seriously and fully
considered and then rejected for suf-
ficient reasons.
The statute in question declares
that no leather not measured by
proper officials in Massachusetts, or in
any other State may be sold unless
such measurement has been expressly
waived in writing by the buyer or
seller" of the leather.
Paper Jumps at a Conclusion.
By taking advantage of the quoted
clause, which the newspaper article in
question assumes to have been over
looked by the manufacturers when it
says that this proviso would have
been disclosed "by a more careful
perusal of the Massachusetts statute"
the necessity for official measurers
WnIIIH annnrdtnor fn fho artio
have been removed.
This obvious solution suggested it.
self to the manufacturers immediate
ly, as Mr.. Kaufherr asserts, but 1t
was found to be attended by grave
difficulties. first among which was the
fact that many purchasers of leather
would not sign such a waiver, which
might involve risk on their part
This fact, which was brought out
when the local leather men actually
drew up a waiver and submitted 1t to
certain of their customers, is borne
Nout by the following letter sent out
by the directors of the Haverhill Shoe
Manufacturers Association to each Of
its stockholders:
Manufacturers Letter.
copy of chapter 500, acts of 1918, an
act relative to the measuring of
leather. This association Is respon-
sible for the origin and aided in the
passage of this bill. Leather manu-
facturers are sending letters to their
customers asking their signatures to
waivers of the provision of section
of this bill. Inasmuch as we have
labored for the necessary statute to
compel sworn measurements "a
leather, thus destroying the oppor-
tunity for fraud with resultant
heavy financial loss, as has some
times been the case in the past, 1t
appears to the directors of this as
ISOLATION that the act of signing a
waiver of any provision of this bill
would be unwise and very incon-
sistent. Communications have been
sent to the Lynn and Brockton as
sociations calling attention to this
matter"
A second objection to the employ
ment of the waiver clause" seen by
the manufacturers was that 1t would 1
entail a loss of time reoydired to
have such waivers sent 10 custom
ers and signed by them each time
they made a purchase. )And, finally,
waiver. it was b9lieved, would
open up the possibility of vexatious
dispute between thf. parties with re-
gard to the ACCURACY of measure
ment
For these andy other reasons 1t
was decided, the manufacturers say,
to have official measures in accord
ance with the teAms of the Massa-
chusetts statute. 4 In other words
the manufactured say, they pre-
ferred to conform TO the statute
rather than to evadA 1T in the way
sllPQested nv the article IN question.