New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-04-15
Bv SAMUEL HOPKINS ADAMS

I l, hb 90 70 the establishment of an advertising
tenn it possesses no official advertising club there ISM aho
tv Of its sze-probaby another city OF halt ITS slzen the
country Of which this be said once boosted an 0ca
advertising organization Ihis was some years "e'' W
tender plant faded and died ,
Does it therefore follow that advertising IN the oaPa OF
the United States is haphazard practice without standards
on. or protection of the public against akes' 1t does not
There arc powerful influences working the other decuo
T o, mainly upon the local advertiser. SO while the con-
un7er-and this another Washngtonian anomaly
well guarded against takers and snders within the community
he isn't guarded at all against takers and "ndlers from WIN
, local merchant who habiualy INDUCES in sharp adveT
; ,ract;cc Is liable to be called account by his telo"
merchants financial employment or medical pirate VINO
chooses to invade and hold ITS citizens mas ready
aid and assistance Cat price, from the local with one
honorable exception The Star The Washington f1ef'u "
~ duced this differentiation of home and foreign crooked ad
,crising to bowling absudiy in print when Pubhshed so
called Guarantee of advertising applying only to local dealers and
their goods Like the sham that it this guarantee has
since dissolved and vanhcd but the Herald advertising '
parently than before i couIdn be. 49,
To my statement that there advertising club IN Wash
ngton exception will perhaps be taken by Mr. l. j. Columbus
Secretary of Retail Merchants Association which MAINTAINS
on Advertising Vigilance Committee his however is only
subordinate committee of organization whose fundamental
interest is not advertising But Secretary Columbus wishes TO
argue the Vigilance Committee does the WORK "heh III
other cities performed by official advertising clubs ne WI" meet
no opposion from Indeed I'll further and say that
does this work efficiently than most of the regular adverh'
ing clubs Of which | know
AT the outset the Advertising Vigilance Committee consisted
IS civ men all members Of the parent body the Retail Merchants
Association Large advertisements published IN the papers
announcing that the committee would be glad and
vestgatc complaints from citizens Not response was re
officials would have been content rest there
Not Mr. Columbus
If the people won't come to us said he, we'll go to
them.
Accordingly the little ncighborhood organizations which
represent what activity there is Washington, invited
to nominate representatives join the Vigilance Committee
Z
added AT Washington perceived that the committee
meant business Complaints began in The friends and
families of the members reported instances of bad
chandisng be referred the committee. Where the
plant appeared Just citizen member detailed
gate report Nine of ten the merchant reched the
matter on its being called his The tenth
ported back the whole committee promptly followed up
by formal the offender which usually scared him into
righteousness From the time vigilance works inception
mercantile advertising conditions both the and IN
the themselves very bad senby improved Many
of the criticisms based claims OF value Two
of the the city Woodward Lathrop and Lands
berg Brothers. orestaled criticism by eliminating value claims
from their ads Though there still bad practitioners OF
this method-such as Goldenbergs which ascrbes fairy
large proportion of its bargains and far
offer 81 Congoeum rugs for $40 only incidentally
mentioning side remarks that the
damaged-on the whole the advertising Washington
high higher should than Batmores.
this very point Of value advertising that the Retail
Merchants Association secured reaching legal decision
furnishing known the Southck Shops Inc had been
Offering through newspapers incredible bargains Warning
given the proprietor by the Vigilance Committee He paid
no heed Then the Committee borrowed Mr.. c. f. La Ngne
from the Fair Trade League for which he has been conducting
Investigations. Mr. La Vigne formerly Director of the
Tribune Bureau of Investigations, where hard contested
he proved his ability offender coil of ev
dence from which there Considerable doubt
expressed the Merchants Association whether
could be hoped for the basis of false claims of value Mr.
La Vgne studied the District of Columbia advertising law
fully and thought otherwise Following the lines which had been
successful The Tribune he the Southwick Shops
an ordinary customer and invested the bargains 100
paamas for $485 $3.50 shirt for $l.29; 50cen hosiery for
20 cents and Then he proved that the values
mary and arbitrary that the equally good merchandise
could be bought the neghbohood only for less than the
claimed worth but much below the actual charged The
shop proprietor stood pat the proposition that he had right
10 any value his merchandise other words that
value is all in the eye OF the seller.