The Devils Lake world and inter-ocean. (Devils Lake, N.D.) 1915-1920, 1919-01-29
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LEN|S.;...D'|S|!|C(;OS- )
SED / BY Mann
PRESIDENT OF N. ID. RETAILERS
ASSOCIATION SPEAKS BEFORE
RECORD CROWD.
(Grand Forks Herald.)

(Grand Forks Herald.)
Before one of the largest groups
that has ever gathered at banquet
in the assembly hall of the CONNER
cial club rooms, F. P. Mann, of Devils
Lake, president Of the North Dakota
Retail Merchants association, spoke
to business men of the city and dele
cations from the surrounding towns
on "Modem Merchandising from the
Viewpoint Of the. President of the
North Dakota Retail Merchants AS
sociation."
In the course of his address. Mr..
Mann declared that practically all of
the trouble Of the merchants of the
state was there because of their own
neglect, and that it lies in their power
to improve them by waking up to the
situation. The point of his address
was summed up in a letter which he
read from Ex-Governor E. Y. Sarles,
now a dealer in Hillsboro, in which
the former state official said that al
though his company had been burned
out, dried out, and beaten out, that
they stayed in the business just to see
what would happen next.
He reviewed the debates organized
by the University of North Dakota
last year, when they offered prizes in
a statewide school contest on the
question of whether or not the mail
order houses were detrimental to the
best interests of the state. When the
mail order began to flood the state
with literature, the Retail Merchants
association began an active campaign
to offset it, he said, and reviewed the
work done by them iii this manner.
The campaign, issst0 be kept mp. he
said, advising them that the only. way
to fight the houses was to use their
own methods, one of the main ones
being advertising, he declared. He
told of the organization of the COM
munity clubs, which were somewhat
like local branches of the Merchants
association in that they all were to
work for the betterment of their town.
His plan of Organization was especial
ly interesting, which he described
somewhat as follows: One hundred
towns throughout the state were pick
ed as experin1eatss in these three
meetings were held each quarter,
making 1900 meetings in year. The,
meetings consisted at first of pro-
grams outlined by the association
which sent out speakers and enter
tainment troops to form = basis of the
meetings. ..+.~".... =.
Since, after survey, he concluded
that 80 per cent Of the business men
of the state did not believe in adver--
tising. another plan was conceived,
that Of sending advance men over
the state to talk to the merchants
personally about putting on cam
paigns and sales of various kinds. :.
He spoke of meeting Of the Bos-
ton Chamber of Commerce which he
attended, at which the success Of
shippers organization was noted. This
organization was formed to take care.
of the markets for the producers of
that district, for, he said, the market
ing problems there, are much the
same as in North Dakota. At the
conclusion Of the addresses the chair
man Of the Boston meeting asked him.
to tell about the work of the farmers
in this state. In spite Of the many
stories of the Socialistic character
which has prevailed every other state,
through the antics of the league, he
stuck up for North Dakota, he said,
and told of the war work done by the
farmers here, saying that while the
farmers were headed in their league
by men about whom he was doubt
full, that the farmers had come to a
point where they had: to organize into
some society. ,-,:.
Probably one of the most interest
ing facts brought out in the entire
address of Mr.. Mann, was his discus
sion of the Community clubs and the
prospects for this year. Out of the
100 town in which the programs have
been planned, he said that he hopes
to have rs organized. He gave the
merchants. many new ideas, and that
they thought highly of them was evil
dent from the fact that they held him
to the room until ten minutes before
train time; at 10:30, forcing him to
answer questions to problems that
them individually or
collectively, although he concluded his
address shortly after o'clock.
this city, Jim, a resident of Indiana,