New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-07-27
Req, Power Will Go to
Executive Committee,
Financiers Say.
"NEW BLOOD NEEDED"
REORGANIZATION CRY
MANY Old Employees May BE
Dropped In Building up
Of Big Concern.
John ClsAin's promise to reorganize

John Clsain's promise TO reorganize
rs properties 30 insure The payment
e 200 cents on the dol,ac 'ntere' ga
III. creditors vino eca:o e.-iaerc MOT
oar J. oBricn rea3 tie -,utemfnt -
,-r;oav's meeting. -; ~. o-I :eri ~"
hose r. close touci nth tie wcFh 81
80 receivers are iEciired 70 think that
any reorganization plan VIII a. inc
rost End ~. CiaAin the oua7'-e"ecr'
two head Of the company. vI'h
strorr executive comr'lttee naFl"s '"'
-eal say ~ INC management
The ClaAn plan, so far as II ma
hoar mac ,ublic. contemplates the
naymert Of al Indebtedness IN iuiI
,,. ,ri,b long extensions OF credit
Tho nlon those clcse 20 the receivers
.h;,r r,ore Iitely to 20 through. if any
Zoos co,tpmp,ates sharp eddctlon
:, 40 claims against The Claflln and
.i;;cd comnapies. the introduction o.
rev money and general cieah'ns w
&c tho CiaGir stores b: eliminating
scores % employees who have Guti'v .'.l
.ncir usefulness and others VINO owe
.hc;r roeitions % the fact that they
are related 70 one or more Pei'o"'
high in the CIahin company .....,
Clafin methods. which the receivers
examinations have so far tound 10 pe
archaic. when compared with those OF,
lowed in such houses As MarsnAl'
tiold & Co. will be generally over
La,Iod ard more up-to-the minute
;doas substituted. To do this. IT is
rionnod 10 secure a staff Of high ciasS,
,,orchandise men and executives ana
renlace everybody connected with 'he
establishments that cannot denver
work equivalent to the salary PAID
keynote of Trouble.
Tho main trouble with the Clanlh
a,.aton, since the head Of the house at
TAINTED 70 keep the business going by
hn,,;ro a chain of stores. has been due
"a economic error on the part OF VI
Clafin and his advisers in not reallz-
INC that under the system followed one
n-ofit was secured, not two.
Theoretically. the Claim company
90 the feeder for the retail stores,
made a iobber's profit. the subsidiaries
a retailer's. As matter or iact'
there was but one profit to divlde oe
t,yeen them. as the retail stores naa
N coil in competition with stores thn'
I'D buv ms cheaply as the II. d.
CIaaip Company. In fact, in many
lines the II. B. Clafin Company was
selling goods in competition with man
ufacturers who sold direct.
The books of the several enterprise
NAV not. and probably did not Sho"
that but one profit was beng gain
cred. but in the everincreaslng pal =,
ances due the main company run
qome of the stores and the pie OF ac-
commodation notes the receivers eN-
merits see the results OF the error.
According TO those in the best pos
tion 10 know. the stock on mana OIL Vn'
II. B. Clahin Company IS IN Goou COZ,
dition. and worth 20 gong cohcei. u
nearly the s6.000,000 al when u Is cal
ried This impression has been par
tally confirmed by three mercahtlIIee
experts. who went through the s'oi''
and so reported 10 the receivers, r.,
Some Of the departments are hlgii!
profitable, ard in reorganization pan
will help materially. Thus, IN pan
kets. long Clalin specially, orders
are in hand to-day for near deliVerie'
totalling more than Sl,OOO,OOO.
The receivers will retain sucn spec
ialties if there is a chance Of say u,
the stores. but they will not permit olu
methods TO continue. Already some ..
these have disappeared, notably one o.
paving all employees on the l2Ih ..
ench month for work that would no'
be completed until the last OF the
month.
New Methods Planned.
az. has been Mr.. Clahin's way and
that Of his father before him. was
the onlv explanation offered. The
nrohIem of what TO do with the old
helm is not so easy, but as 1t Wall DC
a hard task TO put any plan through
these probably will have to shift as
hest they can. unless Mr.. Clatlln should
in some way arrange to pension them
n doubtful arrangement, as ms re-
sources will be needed in other direc'
tons.
There is no disposition on any
ones mart to question Mr.. Clatln's
right TO pension old employees" said
one of the lawyers yesterday. who Is
familiar with the inner workings OF
the company, but one OF the most
serious weaknesses in the company was
the number of employees whom it would
have been cheaper TO have pensioned
at full pay and allowed others to take
their places. Clafin's kindness OF
heart was RESP: nsble for this.
Another thing was nepotlsm. mat
prevailed to greater extent than any
one not in the trade or in active con
nection with the house has any idea
Practically every third person IN places
of importance was somebody's cousin
or brother-in- law or nephew. and held
his place on this account. THIS
helped neither in the selling OF goods
nor in maintaining discipline.
These men and the men who have
ceased to be of value in the trade will
be replaced by new blood. If the com
pany is reorganized. the best merchan-
disc men in the country Will be put TO
work, if money will secure their ser
vices. New blood will be the word all
along the line. 1t will be hard upon
some. but surgical operations are
usually painful"
Plans Hourly Nursing Service