New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-07-08
and each store has been grabbing something to get the
public with We intend get up abreast Of the times

principles of retail business, ana the
practitioners of the old style. the fight
for the towns trade promises TO be IN
teresting. While I was in Seattle Nc
Cormack Bros. were splurging on
1920 600 Fire Sale" in which appeared
such items as S24.50 Coats for s14.98,
s4es Skirts for s2.9S, % Cent Hosiery
for 10 Cents, and so on. MacDougall-
| Southwick's MAY sale offered sport
suits Of the value of S3975 for s25;
! cloth suits valued at S35 for s19.75,
and So blouses at 81. From the Rhodes
| Company advertising before me one
might infer that this concern has no reg
ular trade worth considering, since
practically all its offerings are "spe-
cial": $3.50 corsets for s1.39; "reg-
ular" $3.50 hats at sl95, and dresses
marked to sell' at $3.50, here
specialized at SO. Formerly" is the
catchword of the Fraser-Paterson Co.'S
Moving Day Sale" at which skirts,
formerly" $3.50, could be had for
1855; hats, formerly" SO, for SO;
MILDLY blouses, formerly" sl.75, for SO
cents; and 81 waists for S1.3S.
In the specially shops the same meth
DDS prevail. "The Pulling Power Is
Value" shouts the Lundquist-Lilly es-
tablishment in loud type. and expects
| its readers to believe that they can
get $40 suits of clothes for S25 by
simply going upstairs" The Florence,
another upstairs shop, offers $50 gar
ments marked down to S13.75 at its
| first anniversary sale. This shop, by
/ the way. exhibits a remarkable fore
/ handedness in its ANNIVERSARY" since
it has been in business about three
months only! Hays, the Sale Wizard,
is another fancy advertiser. He offers
an Eastern Manufacturer Entire
Surplus Stock of 1000 Pairs of High
grade Sample Shoes" Two thousand
! pairs of sample shoes would, indeed, be
surplus for any manufacturer. But
small considerations such as facts
do not influence the wizardry of Mr..
Hays. II. NJ. Rogers is also a sale wizard
Of shoes and clothing. In his headline
he offers Walkover Shoes for S1.98
And he has them in stock; few de-
crepit pairs of vague age. However,
have yet to learn of any one who has
been able to get fitted with a Walkover
Shoe at Mr.. Rogers's Red Front Store;
and most of his stock is truly lam
entable collection of odds and ends.
For a time Seattle supported an adj
vertising genius who specialized on
fake sales of merchandise. His name
is George Francis Rowe, and ! am in
formed that he is now operating or
preparing to operate in New York City.
! Tribune Bureau of Investigations,
kindly note.) When a schlock opera
tor had collected a particularly unsal-
able lot of trash. Mr.. Rowe would be
called in to write the advertising and
sell it off, it is said, on percentage
basis. After several successful ad-
ventures in this field, he exploited one
sale so "raw" that the Post-lntelli-
gencer turned down the advertising,
and took Mr.. Rowe's comments upon
its action in decidedly i'll part. In fact,
the newspaper sent reporter down to
/ investigate the sale.
eve will sell everything in stock at
cost or less" Mr.. Rowe was advert's-
Ing.
The prices asked didn't appear to
/ the Post-Intelligencer reporter TO
bear out the claim. He made sore
purchases, including a shirt "Value
$780," for S11O. The same shirt was
purchased at neighboring store f'r
ST. 1t was 50 a dozen article Of ve'y
poor workmanship. Mr.. Rowe was ar
rested and fined s25. He departed
from Seattle, but his footprints are
still plainly marked upon the local
sands of time. You may see them,
conspicuous on all the principal shop
ping streets. In my casual wanderings
met with the following instances of
fakery:
A Closing Out Sale, which had been
closing out for six months. A Crei
tors Sale, which was alleged to be the
biggest in Town" 1t was old enough
to be, having been in progress for
nearly a year. A Colossal Mercantile
Eruption" which looked il. Two
Bankrupt Salvage" sales, respectively
seven months and year old. One sale
of fake United States army and navy
goods. One Trustees Sale" exhibit
ing counterfeit Porosknit underwear
in the window. A clothing auction CT
pure junk. A jewelry auction, ditto
A monster Sacrifice Sale" of mems
shoddy clothing. Half a dozen sample
shops in shoes, hats and women = wear.
And a $4,000 Free Museum of Anet-
omy, for "Men Only" All these,
blotching up Seattle's respectable bust
ness streets with their disreputable
signs and placards. And, apparently,
the reputable merchants lack either
the energy or courage or foresight to
make any effective protest.
What, then, about the local advcr-
Using club? Has il no voice in the
matter? II has voice and that's the
extent Of its powers. There's nothing
! l. liz