The Oroville weekly gazette. [volume] (Oroville, Wash.) 1905-19??, 1918-08-16
SHOWING UP A LEACH


!
The business of the catalogue mail or
der houses in this country mas grown
beyond all understanding during tne iis,
few years. People who rail against
| swollen fortunes" have no hesitahcs
in contributing toward the most power
| full monopoly in the land. That they are
imposed upon cuts no figure In secur
ing some things cheaper than can be
purchased from local dealers Is SUI :
ficient stimulation to induce further pat,
| ronage of the same houses Inc iocai
home dealer is made to suffer loss vi
business to the detriment OF communities
Men who depend upon the home mer-
| chant to carry them through days oi
/ stress will send their cash away from
home for Indifferent articles. paying as
much as they would at home for better
goods The following article from the
New West Coast Trade throws some lighl
on the ways that are dark and tricks
that are vain of one of these mail order
houses:
| A week or so ago we referred briefly
| to the findings of the federal trade com
mission against Sears, Roebuck & Co.
The big Chicago mail order house plead
ed guilty to five of the counts of the
petition filed against 1t for practicnS
unfair competition against retail mer-
chants. More detailed Information on
I this case is now at hand The order
issued by the commission requires that
the company shall cease the following
practices:
! l. Circulating catalogs containing adj
jvertisements of sugar for sale wherein
lit is falsely represented that because Of
large purchasing power and quick NOV
! ing stock the company is able to sell
sugar at lower price than its COM
petitors.
2. Selling or Offering to sell sugar
below cost, through catalogs circulated
throughout the country
3. Circulating catalogs containing ad-
vertisements representing that its com
petitors do not deal fairly, honestly and
justly with their customers.
4. Circulating catalogs containing adj
|vertisements offering its teas for sale in
which advertisement 1t Is falsely stated
that the company sends a special repre-
sentative to Japan who personally goes
into the tea gardens of that country and
personally supervises the picking of the
tea.
S. Circulating catalogs containing adj
vertisements offering coffee for sale in
which 1t Is falsely stated that the com
pany, purchases all its coffee directly from
the best plantations in the world
The practices forbidden by the order
were all admitted by the company. The
report of the commission further says i'm
part:
THE company admitted losing $780,
900 on sales of sugar in the latter part of
1915 which .totaled $7S0.OOO The com
pany offered sugar for sale at 3 to A
cents pound. the commission says, al
iieging 1t was able to sell sugar at
lower price than others because of its
ability to make large purchases and
such advertisements were false and
as the company sold sugar
at less than cost In all cases and the
of1er to sell was limited and was always
other groceries be purchased at the same
time and that sufficient price was re-
,eived to give profit on the combined
The Trade Regulations committee of
.he National Retail Grocers association
reserves credit for bringing this case to
ne attention Of the commission. Much |
nan John A. Cunningham and Sol Wes |
erheld working with an investigator of |
he federal trade commission.
NOW the Sears Roebuck & Co. have
IT. Of unfair competition and
ne underhanded, contemplate practices
ne e9earS ah sSe the rsta s
~ to bring this case the facts brought |
'ut,, and the order Of the commission |
o the attention of the consumers in GEN |
ara, ara al ana on eat house patrons in particu
o az the publicity you can get out of it.
Don't let the agitation die down pre-.
one its PVT d keep It alive until it has
well vel give publicity to the case and pub.
lish the findings. AS st. Louis Inter
state Grocer says:
uno a, IVA was r,ard rank outrage perpetrated
me 81 company plainly intimated that the
dealers were charging too much for SUI
gar, when anyone with knowledge of
never paid them sufficient margin
Being big institution with plentw ~
money and skill was able to carry its
b bv tb ant E haied before the bar of justice
the merchants. '''e'' i'o''
sears, Roebuck & Co. has made mil
lions, 1t has grown to be the largest dis
tributor of merchandise to consnmers a'T IN
LIS nj country. has posed as the enamel
p pao' OF the people and its protector
a tbat - ing nlgh prices. and now we find
tent with underselling them on sugar r.
an az appreciable degree to show them mn
through hiding the shells through IN.
Srien n'' az On deal, this four flushing
e eu 20 the world that 1t has been double
tthhoss,ing mem. Moreover It stopped To
bv c lGwest depths Of unfair competition
vertlsements which represented TINT az" ;is
oo,ipetit0rs tthe retail merchants NJ
course ,'s,, dId not deal fairly. honestly and
justly with their customers "''''
While grocers were largely concer,o,
n ~ '.,,s case. the principles involved an
ply 10 all classes OF merchandise and tba
e ase f Hardw, be Of interest to all retail
torlally on this case. says in part: ell
1T has been the habit Of cata,og
some INN IN America sa. to use leaders for
oomnooi 're. Leaders used by anglers 70
conceal from fish the connection OF the
,,ne to the hook must have taken their
n dnanne from the leaders used by such
o4S"cerns as Sears Roebuck The nrIce
OF a popular commodity reduced ia iass
tnan cost Is not only sure to attracf
r r,,i, H. nut may be depended upon -
competitors. Consumers sufferinss S I'LL
an acute attack Of bargain fever are
pretty to.s sure ,, to stampede, and in the rush
n ~ s,ke win them q few items with
the en-. to the morsei Of the d av'
~ mas been long time COMING hr+
me dow has fallen. The catalog housas
nave been getting away with commarcioI
murder for many years and small deal
trs a. over the country have suffered
terIIDiV from their methods. II is good