The Bourbon news., 1913-06-06
TRADING AT HOME
BENEFITS THE BUYER.
Lexington Leader. ]

| Of all the problems and perplexi-
| ties that beset the Lexington .mer-
chants, there is none so battling and
at the same time so exasperating as
the practice of Trading with the itener-
ant merchants who periodically visit
Lexington.
| Within the past month out of town
merchants have been having displays
at some one of the hotels in Lexing-
| ton which they do more or less during
the year, and their show rooms are
crowded with Lexington people, who
without malicious intent, do Lexington
merchants great deal of harm Last
week the Leader received an adver-
tisement from a prominent Louis
vile dry goods firm announcing a dis
play of goods to be held at a
Lexington hotel, which they wished
inserted in the Leader and for
which they were willing to pay the
highest price the Leader charges
for advertising. But the advertise
ment was refused by the business
manager of the Leader, because he
realized what it would mean to the
Lexington merchants, and knew that
the display of ready to wear garments
|
the foreign merchant could afford to
sell them, as he has in addition to
his regular expenses, the extra eX-
pense of travel and hotel bills for the
employees travelling with the display
| These foreign merchants do not pay
one dollar of Lexington's taxes. They
do not subscribe one dollar to the
many charities which Lexington mer-
chants are daily asked to subscribe
to, and to which they always gener-
ously respond. They do not pay one
dollar out to any Lexington person
for salaries. They come to Lexing-
ton, stay two or three days, and de-
part, carrying away $1,000 or $1,5OO,
and never spend outside of their
hotel bills one cent toward the up
keep of the city or for the benefit
of any citizen.
The problem is not peculiar to Lex
ington. 1t besets every city which
has prosperous, discriminating class
OF buyers and a progressive, accom-
modating, enterprising class of mer-
chants.
If the money which is sent out of
Lexington to buy goods were merely
to buy articles which cannot be OBJ
tanned here, or to secure values ma
terially better than a dollar will buy
here, the merchants would have no
cause to complain.
The above statement is putting the
case very clearly and very mildly.
Every business man in Lexington
pays for the privilege of supplying
the people with their useful needs. He
employs clerks and other help from
among the local home people. He
contributes in taxes, rents, salaries
and donations, an immense sum every
year to the welfare and prosperity of
the community, and his only return is
through the volume of his business
There are goods to beobtained by
mail, at prices far below the prices
offered by local dealers. This does
not mean that the local merchant is
being underSold. 1t merely means
that if the local merchant carried
goods of this quality on his shelves,
where they could be seen before pur-
chase was made, they would lie for
ever unsold. The Lexington mer-
chant has the same access to the
wholesale markets that any dealers
of reputable goods have, and he can
not afford to put in his stock goods
that will not bear inspection, or which
when sold, will bring discredit upon
the business which he is striving to
build up.
The home merchant is ever ready
to meet your urgent necessity. When
the eye is caught by the invitation to
visit display or inspect special line
of shoes, dresses, waists, hats, etc.,
is not the home merchant entitled to
an opportunity to meet the new de-
mand? That is all he asks.
|
The reader can readily see advocates
of buying at home are reaching out
daily in their effort to attract patrons
from adjoining towns. That which is
applicable to Lexington can also be
applied to Paris. Our merchants are
capable of competing with the mer-
chants of Lexington in the quality of
goods, cheapneSS and in quantity of
stock
Follow the policy advocated by the
Lexington newspaper an BUY AT
HOME, thereby helping home enter
lprises and keeping money among home
people. Few if any Lexington peo-
pie spend their money in Paris. Why
should the people fthis city turn
their money into Lexington enterpris-
es or spend it with Lexington mer
chants, where it will remain. Trading
at home benefits the home people as
we'll as the home merchant.