Clearwater Republican. [volume] (Orofino, Idaho) 1912-1922, 1920-06-18
4SIGHT unseen"
trade IS GAMBL.E
Consumer Takes Long Chance
When He Buys From the
Mail Order House.
GENERALLY IS LOSING GAME
Method of Doing Business ls Very
Different When You Purchase
Goods From Your Home
Merchant.
tCopyright.)

tCopyright,)
When you We're youngster. did yor
ever make trade, sight unseen?'
0f course YOU did. What boy has moi
risked his jackknife or his choicest mar
Bile on such a proposition and how oft
en- has he repented of his rash dee(
/ when he discovered what he got in the
trade! He generally found that the
deal turned out to the advantage OF
the one who made the proposition.
There is little of the gambling In
stinct in the blood of nearly every man
1 woman and child. hut even the hard.
ened gambler likes to get a run for
his money The "sight unseen" prop
osition doesn't appeal to him in the
least. There are thousands of people
however, who would be properly intiig.
nant If they were accused of being
gamblers who every day take a chance
on the greatest gambling game in the
world. And worse than that, they are
risking their money on "sight un.
seen" proposition.
When one of the thousands of per.
| sons who build up and keep up the
great mail order houses of the country
sends his money away to pay for some
article that he has selected from the
mail order catalogue, he is taking a
chance on getting what he expects to
get. The mail order house may be
perfectly honest and still the purchas-
er stands good chance of not get
ting what he expects to get. The mail
order catalogues are filled with pic
lures that catch the eye. The de-
scriptiOns are brief, as they must be
when thousands of articles are to be
described within the confines of one
book. No matter how hard the mail
order house might try to tell the truth.
the whole truth and nothing but the
truth, 1t would be an impossibility.
The buyer is simply taking chance.
Buying "sight. Unseen"
How much more satisfactory it Is
to walk into store in your home town
and ask to see an article which you
may have seen advertised in your
home paper. What would anyone
common sense if you walked into "a
store Mt home and said: II saw a
picture in the paper today of a suit
which liked very much. Please wrap
up one for me. Here's the money!.
The merchant would think that YOU
were crazy, bur that Is exactly what
you do every time you send an order
!. h.,
unseen ant YOU haven't ghost of q
chance of getting your money back II
the article is unsatisfactory when 1t
reaches you.
How different is the proceeding
when you go into the store In your
own home town to buy suit of
clothes, or a stove or yard of ribbon.
You may have seen picture of it in
the merchants advertisement in the
nome paper and you know that. as the
merchant is reliable. you can count on
the goods being rs he represents them
III his advertisement. But does he ask
You TO take his word for everything?
Does he hide the article behind the
counter and tell YOU that YOU can't
even see 1t until yau buy il and pay
over the money fer it? Hardly. II
the article is not already in plain sight
on the counter. the merchant produces
II for your inspection. If il does not
eNaetly suit you. lie has others that
are little different and that he is GLAD
TO have you inspect.
Get Merchants Guarantee.
Then. If it is a suit of clothes yon
are huylns, or piece OF dress goods
or Il pair of socks. you may ask ii tbe
merchant will guarantee that II VIII
Wear as long as an article of that kind
could he expected to wear and he will
tell YOU either that he will guarantee
ii or that he will not. If he tells yo,
that he will guarantee ii you will know
That you will get your money back or
another suit or another pair of socks
IN its place If 1t doesn't wear like if
should. for the merchant. besides be-
ing an honest man in most cases. cam
not afford not to make his word good.
lie Is dependent upon your business
and that of others In his own commu-
atty and he cannot afford to misrepre-
sent his goods.
After having all this opportunity to
see what you are buying, you take your
suit or your stove or whatever ii is
YOU buy home or II is sent home for
YOU without any delivery charges. and
after You get home and take another
look at 1t and decide you don't want
II after all, you send 1t back.
You are not buying something "sight
anseen' when You buy from your home
You don't look at picture
of an article in newspaper. read n
short description of it. go to the post
1fiict and buy money order and send
I To the merchant with the instruc-
ions, Send me suit of clothes''-or
| stove or whatever ii may be-"and
I'll pay your delivery man so cents for
'eliIerinR II TO me-"
There's a world Of difference In the |
wo methods of doing business and it's I
lot hard TO figure out which Is the hesr