The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1916-05-11
THURSDAY, MAY II, 1916,
The Case Of the Peddler.

eliminate the peddlers from hehosna'
It is probable that licenses will be
boosted. that fines will be made pretty
close to the limit permitted by the law
and that every possible activity OF a
watchful police department will be
brought into play TO prevent the
wandering merchant from plying his
business in Kenosha.
The question of how to manage the
peddler is as old as any problem OF
municipal rule, Long before cities had
charters OF councils or mayors, the ped
dler went out with his pack, seeking
to rake in the shekels 1t is probable
that as long as time endures the men
with the packs will be busy. The ped
dler is generally regarded as q nuisance.
OF course, this does not apply to every
man who sells products from wagon
or even from a pack which he carries
on his back. But for the most part the
peddler is an unnecessary addition to
the burden of modern society. He in
trudes himself into the homes of I'M
willing customers; he sells them things
they do not want and do not need and
usually exacts as price for them a
price higher than they could be bought
in dozen other places. He is an in
sistent merchant who pays no taxes,
save a meagre license fee, never adver-
tises and gives to the customer no
guarantee as to the honesty of his deal
ings, He grows affluent in the com
munities where ignorance prevails. He
usually has a fippant tongue and is
ready with harsh words and some times
threatened assault to the women who
fail to fall for his Establishments. His
store moves as often as he does. He
pays no rent, owns no building. He is
just a parasite which clings to the body
polite and takes a living from it with
out giving anything in return.
His stock of goods may come from
places reeking with disease. There is
nothing to show that they do not He
leaves no pedigree with the city clerk
when he gets his license for day IS
trade in Kenosha and usually as the
sun goes down he sneaks back to his
unhealthful lodgings in some nearby
city, his pockets bullying with the
profits of ignorance or intimidation.
The peddler is first of all a problem
for the health department. Every one
of the men who travel with packs on
their backs should be forced to show
chat the contents of the packs are not
infected with disease germs from the
tenements of the cities. The people
take long chances in buying anything
from the wandering peddler
You can boost the license of the ped
dlcr, you can arrest him and his brother
daily, but the profits of his business
are sufficiently large to permit him to
pay licenses and fines and then come
back smiling for more of it. The real
solution of the question of dealing with
the peddler is to educate the people.
The people must be brought to know
that the peddler is simply product of
the old saying that a sucker is born
every minute. The peddler fourishes
ON account of the inherent desire for
bargains which is abnormally de-
veloped In the mind of pretty nearly
every woman, The idea of getting
something for nothing, the idea of bar
te1lng and buying an article priced
first at four dollars for fifty cents is
more than the average woman can
stand. The peddler is aware of this
fact and for this reason he flourishes.
There is no demand for the pack of
the peddler in the modern city. There
is no need for his intrusions in Keno
sha. Everything that any peddler car
RES In his pack can be bought in the
stores of Kenosha, What is more.
everything that he carries can be
bought at price lower than he offers
to sell 1T for. The peddler usually car
rles things for which there is little
market-things which the high grade
merchant puts away in his basement to
meet scattered demands for things that
are cheap and which have no guaran-
tee of quality.
If you want to rid Kenosha of ped
diers and all such sort of business. the
way to do it is to let the people make
peddlers understand that they can not
foist their inferior wares on them.
Let the woman who is threatened nv
peddler at once notify the police and
see to 1T that the fellow is arrested and
then let the courts see that fine is
put On him which will teach him that
ms presence is not wanted in Kenosha.
Let the people get accustomed to
Keeping trade in legitimate channels.
Kenosha stores can supply every de-
mand of Kenosha people and can sup
ply these demands at price that is
falr and in keeping with honest mer-
chandising. We believe that this Is
all that the people of Kenosha want
ana that they are going to get lust
this kind of treatment.
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