New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-02-25
Bv SAMUEL HOPKINS ADAMS


IN, cleaner the other Indianapolis
BETTER Business Bureau firmly established itself the conn
dence local merchants and working hand and glove with
the better element the local and with the police Its eHo
to eradicate commercial plague spots Here Chicago with only
passive support newspapers and spite OF obtse and
short sighted indifference the leading merchants the
Better Advertising Bureau of the Advertising Association OF Chi
caso is quietly conducting campaign which before finished Is
likely to put advertising the list of hazardous occuPa
TONS to employ the insurance Technology.
IF it won't be the fault Of the Bureau Secretary t. L.
Greene Mr. Greene remembered by followers of athletics
the uback Bob Fowes famous University OF Pennsylvania
team and he carried the football mans fighting spirit into the
advertising campaign fake ad affects Mr. Greene much
rat errerand with strkngy similar results 1t is SAID
among his that tell what is gong to start
him action and you usually don't know until the action over
For instance it would be far cry from SD hire IN the
downtown district to typical exhibition Of activity the part OF
the Better Business Bureau But here is the tale:
The fire butter and Next to that store N
Samuel Moist conducts Chicago Piano Company which ad
veses startling bargains Mr. Hearsts es they have
Hearst papers Chicago which just about the kind OF adve
Using you might expect hem) Although the fire damage
confined to b and the harm Mr. Moist stock next door
was adjusted the for SIS the piano man be-
held in the event hand of Providence held out to aid asT
ing advertiser With Mr. Heas ready help he proceeded to
unfold Of disaster his stock whereby the public might reap
unprecedented benefits For two days more only the smoke
and water damaged bargains astand then days
on top of that-and additional days and the old
familiar dodge You could according to the MosteaS
proposition print hundred dollars moderate priced
piano and three hundred dollars first class instrument fully
guaranteed Such figures $3.50 Upright for sos and S4Zo
Upright for $50 set forth as bait
Secretary the advertising and bit He not only
Bit he bought His investment article stenled Hall
Sons warranted Is years. Price $3.50 represented that
the value was actually $3.50 and that the and in
good condition At first $225 asked but this reduced to
sI65, al which price the deal concluded
just and heard that The sounds emanating
from will merely specifying that in the middle register
an expert could positively identify them music AS Tor the
pearance this article while not have suffered from
III. butter and egg store conhagraon had obviously under
gone of ordeal by fire. AT venture should that
the immediate agency had been cigarettes laid the top and
left there while otherwise engaged Deep and
frequent sky CLOSED the smooth
surface The piano looks if had ten nights baoom
and then few hundred more nights.
Having determined these facts the Better Business Adver
Using proceeded upon them with the result that
Mr. Moist awaiting trial upon charges Nothing dis
couragcd Mr. Mos partner print Mr. Hearst continues to
carry some very queer looking piano ads
Fire is no specially Better Advertising Bureau But it
Just happens that another interesting recently handled
lated to that Eagle Brand Nuway White Leather Dressing
is product of the American Shoe Polish Company which exploits
it as noninaammabc" complaint from the Public Safety
Commission Advertising Association declared that the mkt
ure actually nammab Therefore Secretary Greene called
upon President OF the Shoe Polish Company with bottle OF
the preparation and match whereh ne proceeded perform
simple but convincing experiment Mr. Swain assumed the att
tude familiar (or many months the outset OF the work but
far now The Tribune Bureau Investigators the part
of the misleading advertiser: that his advertising nobody
business but his This view shared by Mr. Greene
He sedy suspected that might be the business OF the Bureau
Of Fire this theory he had the before Chief
Inspector Hejda Mr. Hejda President Swain five days
change his label President Swain didn't do it, He called the
Bureau Fire Prevention explain that there had been
in the formula and that the future output would be actually
nHammsble-as it, in fact has been. Thus through the
agency of the Advertising Association i, improbable that
worthy Of Chicago have been saved from
giving and mprompt imitation Of Ejahs Note
for Edtor-or was it EIha1 ecalD in
chariot OF FIRE.
Although the newspapers little active interest in the
Better Advertising Bureaus work nevertheless the general
situation Chicago regards clean
aging Chicago Tribune has long been noted for its high
s,andards and while there few columns
who could hardly stand the Of rigid investigation neverhe
less genera nnt to safeguard the readers against fake and