The Aberdeen weekly., 1918-03-29
MANY STILL LOVE
TO Be HuMBueGED
Seem Not to Mind Having "Some-
thing Put Over" on Them the
Least Bit.
PINK PuAMAs FOR SHIRT
Mail Order Houses Find lt Easy .
Make SubstItutIons Because OF
the Cost Of Making
ExchanQes.
(Copyright.)

| (Copyright.)
| It was q famous American Snowman
| who declared that the American people
love TO be humbugged. That saying Is
many years old now but sometimes 1t
| seems that there Is about as much
truth In 1t now AS there was when II
was first uttered.
People as a rule do not like the idea
| Of having something put over" on
| them. but from the way In which the
| great mail order houses In the big
cities flourish 1t seems that great
many people do not mind 1T bit.
The business man who, when he gets
a call for an article which he has not
| In stock, attempts to substitute some
| other article of similar nature with
| out telling the buyer of the SubStitu-
ton, is putting something over" on
his customer Few retail merchants
nowadays attempt to do a thing of that
kind The great majority Of merchants
do not do this for two reasons. One
reason is that they wouldn't do 1t II
they could and the other Is that they
couldn't do II If they would. The man
who buys an article over the counter
and sees what he is buying before he
pays for It, is pretty sure to get what
he wants.
Ordered Shirt, Got PaJamas.
But there is another class Of mer-
chants, of which the same thing can
not be said. A man who has been close
II connected with some OF the big mail
order houses is authority for the state
10 r1S - hxx ri
merchandise departments of many
mail order houses have standing orders
to substitute with the nearest thing
they have If the articles ordered are
not in stock and available for delivery.
1t is related that in one instance as a
result of these instructions. man who
ordered dress shirt from u mail order
house received pair Of pink pajamas
instead.
1t is easy for the mail order house to
get away with this substitution of an
other article for the one that is Or
dered for the reason that to exchange
an article received from a catalogue
house is a costly undertaking.
Exchanges Are Costly.
If mail order buyer is disappOint-
ed in his purchase. as he Is very apt to
be when he compares the article upon
its arrival with the picture and fiOwery
description which appeared In the
catalogue. the wisest plan Is to take
what he gets and make the best Of it
for every time he sends an article back
to be exchanged he rs piling up the aIx-
press or freight charges and even II
the article Is exchanged as requested
the buyer is not apt TO fare much bet
ter on the second attempt.
The mail order houses are well
awure of the fact that the majority Of
their customers will not go to the trou-
BILE and expense OF returning an ar
ticle if Ii does not come up to their
expectations and as Il result they can
work the substitution game to their |
hearts content
The home merchant, however, cam |
not do business In this way and, as has |
been said. the majority of them would |
not do it if they could. The home mer- |
chant. if he has not the article called |
for. may offer another with the expla- |
nation that 1t is of the same quality |
as the one for which the customer |
asked. Good merchants nowadays even |
hesitate to offer something 'Just as
good" to the customer especially when |
the article called for is one that has
become well-knOwn and popular
through the advertising done by the
but to attempt to make
Il substitution without the knowledge
Or consent of the customer! Well. 1t
Isn't being done by the local merchants
today.
Substitution Made Easy.
Substitution is made easy for the
mail order houses. also. by the fact
hat they do not sell much of what Is
known as advertised" goOds-that Is.
goods that have been thoroughly ad-
Tertised by the manufacturers and
nave become nationally known through
such advertising. A large part of the
which the mail order
houses sell purpOrts to be manufac-
ured by them-although in most cases
little Of II is made In their own plants.
Much of this merchandise bears only !
he name of the mail order house and
is easy to substitute one article for
mother without the customer being
NY the wiser.
The methods Of the home merchant
are different. With the great
development of advertising In recent
ears much OF the merchandise carried
Y the retail merchant is advertised"
oods. These goods are OF familiar ,
rands. the names of which have been
lade famous by the national advertis-
1g Of the makers. This advertising Is {
distinct protection to the buyer for
he latter knows when he goes into HIS
)cal store and asks for an article Of c
his kind that he will get just what he q
SKIS for if the merchant has 1t In
took and that he will be told IL the
rticle Is not In stock. There Is abso- Q
ltely no opportunity for the merchant
, put one over" on him. even IL the
lerchant had the inclination to do so.
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0urphy's Groceries