The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1917-07-18
PROSPERITY SEEN.

PROSPERITY SEEN.
lBy John G. Shedd. president and
manager Marshall Field & Co.'S great
department store.1
In giving you my opinion that this
country is to enjoy unparalleled pros
perity' during the next few months
it would be advisable to recite some
facts regarding the effects of the war
on the retail business of England and
France.
At the outbreak of the war, retail
business of all kinds had a tremen-
dous slump, stocks were reduced and
purchases were limited, due to the
apprehension that the consuming and
spending power of the public would
be curtailed.
Merchants were utterly amazed,
however, when the Christmas business
experienced by the various stores dur
ing the month of December, 1914, was
larger than had ever taken place.
They were still further COMPOUNDED
when business during the year 1915
was more than 10 per cent larger than
that of 1914, and in 1916 more than
20 per cent larger than that of 1915.
AS a matter of fact, retail business in
England up to January 1, 1917, show
ed a phenomenal increase over any
previous business.
People Buying Freely.
People were buying freely and the
purchase of luxuries was extensive.
There was a large demand for silk
underwear, silk hosiery, jewelry-
pianos, furs, expensive lingerie
things of higher qualities and finer
grades, whatever the price.
This was made possible by the fact
that labor enjoyed more constant en-
ployment and had very much higher
wages The effect of this was to
cause extravaga many for the first
time enjoying a taste of luxury. So
general were the purchases of lux
uries in England that a serious effort
has been made to curb them by i'm
port laws.
The prices of all merchandise made
tremendous advances. In England in
the first year of the war 20 per cent
of the total productive capacity of
manufacturing plants for civilian use
was devoted to manufacturing mate
rails for war purposes. The English
director of commerce has recently
said that IS per cent of the goods
manufactured at present are for war
use. The result of this heavy drain
on factories and machinery was a
large reduction in the quantity of
goods manufactured for. civilian use.
Prices and Wages Up.
This condition Immediately jim
creased prices. Wages increased be-
cause of the efforts of civilian manu-
factUrers to maintain in a partial de-
gree the volume of their production.
While this situation was the primary
| cause of advances in prices, a short
age of labor and materials contrib
uted some share. The extraordinary
advances in retail prices did not seem
to affect the phenomenal buying of
the people.
Notwithstanding wonderful pros
perity, retail distributors were forced
| to adopt severe measures in economy
in order to offset the great loss in
men. Paper. string and boxes were
| sparingly used. The return goods
| privilege at present is limited to thir-
tty-siX hours from delivery; it's entire
abandonment has been under consid-
Grafton. Deliveries We're concentrated
on three alternate days of the week.
| While we all appreciate that war
means destruction, at the same time
from the experience of England and
France since August, 1914, war has
meant sustained business.
What War Means to Us.
! In our own country people have not
walked to the full realization of what
the war means for us. We can profit
in our civilian life by knowing and
needing the experience of France and
England. The release of men will be
the great need of this country, and
everybody here must sacrifice as Eng
land and France have done.
War expenditures in this country
by our own government and by the
allies will release a huge volume OF
money. This money will go in the
main to wage-earners, many of whom
! have not been in the habit of possess
ing such wealth before, and this
money will be spent This will great
| ly stimulate retail selling, altho re-
tail merchants may be hampered to
more or less extent not only in secur-
| ing merchandise but in the necessary
readjustments which will be involved
in the turning over of men to the gov
eminent
Women Can Do Much
| Women can do much right now to
| relieve the strain of conditions con-
| fronting retail merchants and obviate
the necessity of the government pass
| ing stringent laws that will vitality af-
| feet the many privileges extended by
retail distributors. One of the most
/ necessary and immediate steps that
women should take is to. discontinue
| the extravagant and wasteful habit
of having merchandise sent home and
! then returning 1t.
They should make their selections
/ in the store, carry their purchase
home if possible, and. unless the mer-
chandise is DANA ged, 1t should be kept
not returned. They should bring
| their children to the stores instead OF
having the goods sent to the children.
The adoption of this plan by every
woman turnout the country would ef-
! feet great economies for all retail dis
tributors, enabling them to release a
large number of men at once. and
| would not make necessary drastic gov
/ eminent laws or the forcing of re-
/ taiiers to make extra charges for the
service of deliveries and calls for re-
| turn goods.
Prices of all merchandise have al
ready made heavy advances, and II
is not at all unlikely that they will
even go higher, and largely for the