The Logan Republican. [volume] (Logan, Utah) 1902-1924, 1921-09-27
MARK PRICES IN
PLAIN FIGURES
coIe System Disappearing Be-
G4-.o Of Abuses It Ea-
Couraged.
LD,HIORED BY THE LEADERS
Ch-rre to Same Extent Forced by
Iuysrs. Many Insisting on Plain
Origin Of Code sys.
I'm Not Clearly Known.

New lwk. - Among the less notice
Shlp uir'l Important changes that nave
kkpn pace Inv tke business world In
thp lsst few years has been the grad
nui disappearance Of codes IN cOnnec'
Iimi Ui.h price tickets and the mark.
tng al The values Of the merchandise
in plain figures. While many concerns
still stick to pricing their lines in code,
the tr,u.e leaders have very largely
abandoned The practice. Smaller con-
Germs have followed suit to some ex-
tent. but others have been lOath to
pui plain figures ON their goods.
The change from code to figures in
smrl,ir'. prices, according to informn-
zion ~ ned IN this market. has been
for,td 10 some extent by the buyers.
There are many retailers and special
buyers iur The big stores who will not
PnjrnY. - cui,rru which hides Its
prizes behind ~ code. The reason one
Uch bH!vr lave recently for this Is
thar the code does not mean the same
20 All buyers when translated into Ag-
Brrs Nv other words, he asserted that
The use of code Is merely a subter-
fugc by means Of which different buy
ers cin he charged different prices for
the same merchandise without their
Knowing H.
Origin Not Clear.
Just where and by whom the code
system Of marking prices was Origi-
mated appears TO be not clearly known.
The reason why Il was adopted Is also
something OF a puzzle, although plaus-
fble solutions are offered. About the
only thing regarding II that Is at all
definite is that Il came into being
years ago. when II was the custom Of
the manufa cturers and wholesalers to
buifd a kind OF Chinese wall around
their business and station regiment
Of soldiers at every gate. In those
days according TO trade veterans,
commercial spying was a high art,
and more than one man had his palm
crossed with silver for posing as
buyer and thus obtaining price data
Of the competitors OF the merchant
who aired him. In those days any
thing approaching the open-prlce as
soeiations that had their being here
during the war would have been
hooked upon ms madness. for then. Ia
all iDtents and purposes. every mer.
ehant regarded his competitors MS per-
sonal enemies.
Onr ~ the favOrite codes used IN
Ihe egny days, II is said. was the one
bnsed ~ the old motto. "ln God We
rrtEss 'rhiS had the advantage ot
containing but twelve letters. with no
duplicatons In the hrst ten. Thus.
~ cropping the final "st," something
kts this was arrived at:
lNGOD WE TRU
l2345 cTS9O
With This arrangement worked out,
me rest was easy. n man were sell.
ing bronlclOth at S4.50 a yard. on his
prize ticket would appear the more
a. less crydc sign o y Z. Were he
selling an overcoat at SITES, the mark
On the ticket would be G T. n ID. Some
placing the figure under the U and
numbering In sequence to the left In
stead Of TO the right. Thousands OF
codes and variations OF original ones
have since been devised.
Frequently Abused.
While there seems to be little doubt
ihat the code system was adopted orig
anally as a protective measure, 1t was
not long before IL began TO be used for
more Interior purposes. What was
there. somebody evidently argued. TO
prevent the use' Of the code to fool
buyers as to the real price? In its
early days. at least, wholesale busl-
ness was no more conducted on a
strictly one-price basis than was re-
lail selling. Therefore. not only did
code price frequently mean differ
I'm, quotations TO different buyers.
bus Il often meant the minimum ig.
uTe ~ which a yard OF goods or n
garment could be sold. The sales.
men were permitted to get anything
rG~y could above the figure Indicated
by tile code and as they were paid
" comparison with what they sold
Bhey tried to get all the traffic would
Sssr. Thai way OF doing business pre-.
Vailed In one % the biggest wholesale
houses in the country for years. II is
said. and the gentle art OF buying
there was rendered more difficult by
Lbe fact that practically every kind
81 u~vchandise sold by the concern
bad a different code.
Instances like those noted above
BuM been paraIleled many times. ac.
rUrdTng 60 the buyers heretofore men.
TONED, In late years, however, sales,
sien have had less leeway II any at
al in connection with fixing prices
Eccinse OF this the double-price sys,
TEN to different buyers IS worked"
upre Ia the salesrooms than on the
ruad Also, II Is asserted the prac
axe referred to IL now very largely
conned to the garment trades. M
me hands Of a smooth worker, usual
D. a member OF the firm or the so
,nlled general representative, The