Evening star., 1933-10-24
The Retail Code.

The retail code under the NJ R. A.
has presented tremendous difficulties.
II the program is to work successfully
the country over it is clear that prices
of commodities must go up, wages and
employment must be increased, and at
the same time the wings Of all protlteers
must be clipped. The effort has been
in working out the retail code to pro-
vide for an orderly and managed price
increase, with bar on prof1teering. At
the same time the effort has been made
to strike hard at unfair practices OF
retailers-practices which have been far
too prevalent in the pat and which
have enabled large and unscrupulous
concerns to wipe out Of existence their
smaller competitors.
The loud protests of the farmers OF
the country-and Of consumers in the
urban centers also-against rising prices
have increased in volume in recent
weeks The farmers have attacked the
N. r. A. on the ground that it was
forcing up prices of all the commodities
which they must purchase to a far
greater extent than anything the Gov
ernment has been able to do to put up
the prices of the crops and products
the farmers have to sell The con-
sumers in industrial centers have charg-
ed that prices of the goods they must
49,, H. yiPtyl hoy -,
have wages and employment.
The retail code now amended and
approved by President Roosevelt seeks
to appease the farmers and the people
living in small communities. The cost
plus ten per cent provision originally
devised and demanded by retailers,
under which retailers were to sell goods
by ten per cent, to cover all the costs
Of marketing the goods and to allow
profit, has gone out Of the code. In
its place has been written q provision
against selling below cost plus the
wages Of the labor employed in selling.
This Is regarded as q distinct advan-
tage to the farmers. In addition, the
President has exempted from the opera
ton Of the retail code and also from
the provisions Of the general re-em-
ployment code all the retailers in small
towns, communities Of less than $500
population, who employ not more than
five persons. This means that the re-
tailers in the rural sections may con-
tinue to do business as usual. A third
step, and one designed particularly to
prevent unfair competition against the
small storekeeper. was the banning OF
the so-called loss leader" a practice
by which retailers have advertised for
sale far below cost one article so as to
bring in trade. They have sought
to make up In the prices charged
for other goods more than their losses
on the article sold below cost. And q
fourth step has been to order the i'm
mediate creation Of a governmental
agency to study price increases and the
establishment OF local boards to deal
with complaints Of prohteerhg.
The danger may exist that some
establishments in small communities
employing as many as six or seven
persons may lop OF an employe or two
in order to avoid coming within the
provisions of the new retail code. But
the shopkeeper who takes such action
will be the exception rather than the
rule and probably there are compare
lively few whose business would permit
them to take such a course. Presum-
ably they have cut their employees to
the lowest limit before this.
It is quite clear that prices must rise
with the cost of Unemployment. But
the N. R. A. proposes to see that
profiteering does not creep in and that
price rises are legitimate under all the
circumstances. In that way it is pro-
posed to protect the consuming public,
both In rural and urban sections. That
is what the President has promised in
signing this retail code, which affects
more than 100000 retailers. The ban
on sale of goods below cost. while it
may appear to work hardship to con-
sumers, Is a protection for retailers
Who in competition with huge
-fN