The Daily Missoulian. [volume] (Missoula, Mont.) 1904-1961, 1917-08-19
Cut Down Deliveries to Set
Men Free for War is Appeal

AS matter of fact, the merchant
does not often want her to carry her
packages. His promptness and whl-
ingness to serve her irregular and
careless habits of buying is one OF
the ways he builds up goodwill. Our
canny merchants err in spelling GUS
toners; in gratifying their whims, in
fetching and carrying for them o,ntil
n woman has come to feel sometimes
that if she offers TO carry bundle she
will be classed as an undesirable Gus
toner.
The great necessity on us demands
Il prompt. vigorous cutting out of the
waste in all delivery of foods. have
spoken here only of food products, but
we all know that what has been said
applies equally to all sorts OF shop
ping. and particularly to department
stores. The report of the commercial
economy board declares that in our
.rcat cities the cost to the department
store of delivering packages Is from
; to 81 cents apiece. 1t is no uncom-
mon thing for the cost of delivering
IN article to exceed the cost OF the
lrticle. and probably One-half of the
Iaily purchases Of a department store
night be carried home by the women
nemselves
How is all this vast. unnecessary
20 OF men and horses and trucks and
noncy and time to be cut out and the
.eliVcry SSytem put on Il rational ba-
lis where il is strictly confined to
What is necessary.
Cooperation Often Helps.
There are not a few towns in the
country where it has already been put
IN such a basis by co cooperative deliv-
cries. Ann Arbor. Mich. has had such
delivery conducted by its merchants
for eight years. Formerly it took 20
wagons to carry home the daily buy
ings of the peoplc--now it takes but
is. In other towns there has been
saving in cost of from % to IS per
cent.
Wherever Il cooperative delivery
has been well managed the average
saving has been around 50 per cent.
OF course. this means a reform in
the method of ordering. One delivery
a day is all that ought to be expected
under present conditions. If a woman
knows that is all she will get she will
quickly and easily reform her ways.
or carry her extra bundles.
Asking Al, That's Needed.
The womans committee of the
council of national defens efrmly be-
lieves that all that it is necessary to
do today to secure hearty and prompt
CO. operation from women in carrying
out such savings as this, that their
fellow committee on the council OF
national defense has demonstrated to
be possible, is to let them know That
it is asked. 1t urges women every
where to aid in the reform. They
can very promptly encourage their
merchants to establish central or CO.
operative deliveries. and call on them
to limit their deliveries to not over
one a day on each route, cutting out
a accommodation deliveries altogether.
They can discipline themselves to reg
ular and thoughtful ordering. They
can carry small packages. They can
discontinue the wasteful practice of
having goods sent home ION approval,
which nearly always means waste ef-
fort in delivery as well as extra
changes within the store. In a certain
department store with total an
nual sales of s3,00o,0o0 returned
goods amount to 20 per cent, invoiv-
ing a waste of more than $4,000 an
nually.
Each woman will do her part If
groups of women everywhere Will
spread the reasons why the govern
ment through the Womans committee
is making this request. there will be no
doubt that we shah see that hundred
thousand men freed from useless selV-
ice.
\ package in the hand will then be
as truly a badge Of honor as Red
Cross button the coat lapel