Newspaper Page Text
io n
TIEARST’S SUNDAY AMERICAN, ATLANTA, GA„ SUNDAY, JULY 27, 1913.
WHAT ATLANTA MANUFACTURERS AND JOBBERS ARE DOING
Abuse of Jobbers Draws Logical
Reply That All Who Market
Goods Are Producers.
How Straphanger’s
Nickel Is Divided
Conductor and Motorman (Jot $.008; Bondhold
ers $.007; Plaintiffs, $.002.
OPPORTUNITIES
hoar much abttso nowsday*
rflroetod against the middleman,"
any* W. M. Burke, of H. H. Whit
comb & Burke Co., Atlanta’* fare-
moat grooory broker*.
“Atlanta'* prosperity la largely due
to tta pre-eminence aa a jobbing cen
ter—4t might be caJled a <ity of mid
dlemen—and it aeeme to me that oom<*
reply Should be forthcoming to theae
critic*.
"We hear fulmlnartlon* to the ef
fect that the producer fret a the amaTl ,
end of every bargain, while the job
ber and the retailer get the blgg'-si
share of the proflta or nearly every
thing sold to-day.
'In my opinion, comm leal on men
and retailer* are. In moat coses, Just
as Important aa the man who pro
duce*. considering the present aoop*
of business. The middleman per
form* a function for modem eociety,
end an Indispensable fffnotlon. I have
been using the word 'producer' In
tKe popular sense. I think It can be
proved that all of us are ‘producer* '
“Now, our firm *tands In the posi
tion of middleman, and In the strictest
sense. We do not touch the original
producer on the one side or the ac
tual consumer on the other. To make
it clear, we handle lard, tinned ments
and canned goods, among a quantity
of other things. Yet we do not deal
with the man who gTew the fruits,
the hogs or the cattle from which
these product* came. We get these
things from the Chicago packers
whom we represent and from facto
rise. Take lard, for example. It 4 *
quite likely that some broker or buyer
stand* between farmer and packer, to
that, passing from farmer to hog
buyer, from hog buyer to packer, and
from packer to u*. we are the fourth
to handle our good*.
“We do not sell to retailers, in any
rase. So wholesaler and retailer
stand between us and the consumer,
hive men. then, stand between the
farmer who bred the hog and the
housewife who buys a pall of silver
leaf lard.
All Have Real Uee.
"This makes our position clear.
Now, I think the existence of every
one of these men can be justified.
First, the mah who buys up live stock.
Unless he is In business on an excep
tionally large scale, no farmer can
ship a solid carlot of hogs, and it Is
evident It would not pay him to ship
less to the Chicago stockyards. The
buyer who gives him a fair price for
his-hogs, payi cash down and hauls
them away, then, performs a useful
service for the farmer. The buyer
serves the packer also, for without
him the packer must employ buyer*
of his own to scour the country for
hogs, make them up in carlots and
attend to all the details of getting
them to the Chicago market.
“Now. neither the farmer nor the
hog buyer can make lsrd either well
or economically. I think the exist
ence of the packer la justified so
plainly as to need no argument.
“But the packer can not profitably
maintain a selling department large
enough to deal direct with the con
sumer—Imagine Swift & Co. filling
mall orders for single palls of lard*
Nor can the packer afford to deal
with the hundreds of thousands of
retailers all over the country—that
would be almost as bad. For the
same reasons the packer can not deal
direct with the wholesale grocer—
that would necessitate Installing, for
one thing, a credit bureau of national
scope and maintaining a gigantic
force of salesmen. Proflta are too
narrow for such methods.
Serve Both Parties.
"Here we are Justified—in effect,
we act as agent* for Swift. & Co., io
mention only one concern. We serve
the packer well In marketing his
goods, and vre serve the wholesaler in
being able to flit his order for any
reasonable quantity of Swift’s prod
ucts ‘instanter.'
“The wholesaler, having intimate
acquaintance with the retail trade,
with his salesmen on the road, and
Where does the nickel go that you
give to the street car conductor?
Ever find out?
According to statistics compiled by
the Census Bureau of the Unite!
States, a large part of the passenger's
fare goes to labor.
Of the whole fare. 32.1 per cent,
or 1.60B cents, is disposed of in this
way. Conductors get the largest
share of this amount, with motormen,
road and track men and car and mo
tor repairers following In the order
named. Fully 60 per cent of that
part of the fare which goes to labor
is received by conductors and motor-
men.
The supply mem come next. They
get 19.3 per cent of the nickel, or .965
of a cent. Things that are paid for
under this head include fuel, wire,
rail*, ballast, stationery, printing and
general publicity. Next come the
company’s creditors. They share the
fare to the extent of 14.8 per cent, or
.74 of a cent. Under this head come
men or corporations from which mon
ey has been borrowed on bond or
mortgage, on short-term notes or oth
er collateral.
The landlord’s claim to the nickel
dropped in the box amounts to 11.2
per cent, or .56 of a cent. Unless this
claim Is paid the companies may be
dispossessed of pieces of roads, ter
minals or of trackage right* and fa
cilities.
The Btate, county and the city also
share In the income of the various
companies, and consequently the tax
collector comes in for 4.6 per cent
of the fare, or .23 of a cent. Prompt
payment of thl* charge is necessary
to prevent the infliction of penalties
or extra fees and interests. Claims
for injuries to body, soul or spirit,
and to property (including horses,
cows, dogs), take care of 4.2 per cent
of the fare, or .21 of a cent.
After the average company treas
urer has paid out for mlscellapeous
expenses another slice of the fare
Amounting to 1.5 per cent, or .075 of
a cent, he makes provision for "rainy”
days. For tills 3.2 per cent of the
nickel Is put in the secret drawer to
take care of emergencies. Only .16
of a cent of each fare is used In this
way, however.
Executives of various kinds receive
2 9 per cent of the cost of a ride for
their share, there necessarily being
many of them in systems that boast
of any size at all. Their share totals
only .145 of a cent, but It helps to
reduce returns to the stockholders
Last, but not least, come the stock
holders. To them, for ,the use of
(heir money, goes only 6.2 per cent of
the fare. In actual payment It repre
sents .31 of a cent If these stock
holders could be paid what savings
banks would pay them If the par
value of the shares had been depos
ited in 4 per cent savings banks in
stead of being Invested In electric
railways, they would get 19.5 per cent
of the nickel. But that can’t be done,
and the stockholders must be con
tent with their 6.2 per cent.
•'This,” the bulletin adds, “may ac
count for the disheartening state of
affairs shown in the following fig
ures Miles of electric railways built
in 1902-7, 12,154; miles built in 1907-
12, 5.295; decrease, 6,859 miles, or
56.4 per cent."
II It GREATER
More From the Selling Force Will
Become Partners in Future
Than in Past
‘Bungalow Beds’ an |X22? rS
Atlanta Innovation f '' sut_wemr>
Iron Bed Factory Has Products Human Race
Wants From the Cradle to the Grave.
New Furs Cheaper,
Undyed Pelts Cause
Fashion Favors Pieces Made From
Skins Left Just as Taken
From the Animals.
At no previous time have buyer*
been able to procure such attractive
fur sets at reasonable prices. This la
due to the number of styles that man
ufacturers have brought out for all
classes of trade, and to the extensive
use of undyed pelts, by which many
new effects were added to the lines.
Silver kit fox Is prominent this
season, as well as the Imitation, coney
kit fox, which costs about half the
price of the genuine. Natural kit
fox is quite n- v, and is one of
the most popular of the inexpensive
furs shown for fall.
Variety Is the keynote in the styles
of both scurfs and muffs. The new
est muffs have the outline of an elon
gated pillow. Some are twenty Inches
long, and the width of an ordinary
muff. While the majority have square
edges, some are rtmnded In front to
give a heart-shaped outline. Ruffe,
ties, collarettes and small crossover
pieces are the smaller neckpieces sub
stituted for the heavier ones.
New Firm Displays
Holiday Goods Line
Fielding-Behrend Co. Opens Branch
x House In Atlanta, With Two ,
Salesmen In Charge.
Newcomer* to Atlanta are Harry J.
Sternberg and George S. Anderson,
who will represent In Southern terri
tory the Fielding-Behrend Stationery
Company of New York. •
A branehhouse has been opened in
Atlanta, at No. 8 Peachtree street.
Mr. Sternberg later will travel South
Carolina, Florida, Alabama, Missis
sippi. Louisian*, and Georgia, while
Mr. Anderson will have for hi* terri
tory Virginia, North Carolina, Ken
tucky and Tennessee.
The firm deals In holiday lines, in
cluding calendars, brass and metal
novelties, box papers, leather goods,
desk sets, albums, artificial flowers,
mirrors, purser, cut glass, chtna, toilet
goods and silver plate goods.
The lines represent the product of
nine manufacturers. Both the sales
men In Atlanta are well known In
Southern territory.
because he assembles everything the
retail grocer wants, gives it to him
promptly on demand, and extends
proper credit for It—performs a use
ful service. If we, on the one hand,
had to maintain such an organiza
tion ot sell our special lines, we would
have to take the wholesaler's profit to
pay for the service. If the retailer,
on the other hand, had to go to a
dozen different places to get his stock,
he would lose, in time, labor and ex
pense, enough to eat up his profit.
"The wholesaler, then. Is necessary.
And, I take it, there can be no argu-
. merit necessary to prove the need of
the retailer.
. “All this might be gone into much
more deeply. But it Is easy to prove
that everyone who assists In the
economical marketing of any product
hs a producer. In the old days the
farmer raised his hogs, slaughtered
them, made lard himself and sold It
himself at the grocery, or perhaps
even direct to families. He then was
THE producer. But now that he has
delegated seven-eighths of this work
to others, are they not also producers?
And the producer need* no apology
for his existence."
Whether salesmen any longer have
the opportunity of making big money
as salesmen Is frequently discussed.
There are many who say that per
sonality is a larger factor than ever,
and that this, together with the
science of salesmanship, will always
maintain the value of selling power
A prominent manufacturer said the
other day that a salesman had to be
better posted along scientific lines to
day than ever before. He must study
his customers’ competition and be ex
pert in retail merchandising, as well
as a keen reader of character.
He must have the knack and Judg
ment of knowing what his trade
wants, and must aid hi* customers in
making selections. He must be a close
student of his own lin<*s. and be able
to point out superiorities and infe
riorities. He must also have personal
magnetism and the power of making
friends.
Must Control Temper.
Besides these, absolute control over
Ms temper and actions'- is necessary.
Disagreeable scenes often come up,
and the salesman of to-day must
either he clever enough to smooth
them over or else school himself in
making as graceful an exit as possi
ble. A clever salesman will never
quarrel with a customer or a pros
pective one.
It make* a had name for his house,
and besides it does not pay, because
he knows that the day may come
when he will sell that man a bill of
goods.
‘With such qualifications,” remark
ed the manufacturer, "the modem ex
pert salesman will command more
money than ever, because personality
and unusual efficiency are necessary
In all line* of business. More sales
men in the future will probably be
come partners, because the type of
man successful In the selling field
embodies qualifications and executive
< haracteristics that have not been
thought necessary In the past.
Neglect New Firms.
"Old-time salesmen rarely open a
new account, but go on, season after
season, evidently without knowing
that new merchants are constantly
starting in business. There are plen
ty of such men puttering along Just
where they were fifteen years ago
simply taking orders from the custo
mers they have ' without trying for
new one^.
"In the same houses men have been
made partners who entered long aft
er the order takers started. Order
takers would never be anything else
anywhere. They never get ahead. It
is the salesman with plenty of energy
and a desire to get ahead that can
rise to a partnership. To men of this
caliber selling goods offers greater op
portunities than ever in all lines of
business."
BUTTERFLIES TRIM HATS.
Butterflies are the newest trim
mings for fall millinery. These are
made in very natural effects of vel
vet edges, with metallic dust to give
the brilliant color effects, and also of
feathers cleverly pasted to show' the
soft spots on the wings. Two, three,
or four butterflies in one cluster fit
straight up on the hat, and every
movement sets them fluttering in life,
like fashion.
SIDELIGHTS ON SELLING-
Cravats of crepe de chine are much
in vogue for wear with shirt blouses,
and tn© new Jabots are shown made
In black and white, and color combi
nations.
The demand for slippers for home
wear is greater than ever before. A
firm in Lynn has started Its run on
slippers for the holiday trade a month
earlier than usual.
The Pierrot ruff, a small neckpiece,
is very popular for fall. This comes
in marabou, with shirred crepe de
chine and satin ribbon bows, in all
colors. Marabou and ostrich sets
are in good demand in natural col
ors and fancy combination shadings.
Yield of 10,000,000 Bales Ex
pected, Which Is Short of De
mand, Says Authority.
Jute costs much more now than
it did two weeks ago. according to
the Fulton Bag and Cotton Mills,
among the largest ’ users of buriap in
the United States.
Ben Elsas, of this company, says
that a jute crop of about 10,000,000
bales, certainly no more, Is expected
from India this year.
"Trade authorities assert that this
is something less than enough to go
around,” says Mr. Elsas.
The South uses large quantities of
burlaps, particularly in sacking cot
ton seed meal and oil cake.
Estimates of the Indian crop vary.
Some Bearish Figures.
One prominent Calcutta house,
which i6 interested in twelve burlap
mills, estimates a record breaking
yield, placing the crop at 10,300,000
bales, while other authorities believe
that the yield will be much smaller
than expected, and not over 9,500,000
bales. The British Government’s pre
liminary estimate Indicated an in
crease of about 6 per cent over last
year, but from private sources the
information has come to hand that the
crop has been badly injured, and the
output will be of poor quality, with
the total production not above last
year, which amounted to 10,000,000
bales.
Cables asking whether the estimate
of 10,200,000 bales was likely to prove
correct brought replies to the effect
that the concern giving this estimate
was “bearish” on the market, as the
new csop gives every indication of be
ing below the 10.000,000-bale mark.
On the other hand the last authorities
are reported in other quarters as de
cidedly bullish on crop conditions.
New crop jute has advanced to
£28 10s a ton, and is reported as very
firm at the higher price level.
Calcutta Burlaps Up.
Calcutta burlap prices are reported
to have advanced several points, with
the market strong, although there Is
not much forward business being put
through.
Buyers have been watching the crop
estimates, and until they have a bet
ter idea of the situation, are not like
ly to start in covering ahead. Im
porters are also holding back on for
ward contracts, pending further de
velopments. Prices are stronger than
they w'ere.
Cables from Dundee report slight
advances in that market, with manu
facturers firmer in their price ideas,
especially when It comes to a ques
tion of forward contracts.
$100,000,000 Goods
Wait on New Tariff
No Such Wealth Ever Held In New
York Before—Sugar Worth
$12,000,000.
Southern Railway Company has
sold to bankers $1,750,000 5 per
cent equipment trust notes to pro
vide for additional cars.
* • •
Virginla-Carolina Chemical Com
pany directors will consider the com.
mon dividend at the annual meeting.
From the cradle to the grave, and
one-third of the time betw r een, the At.
lanta Metal Bed Company claims to
take care of members of the human
race, which perhaps is as ambitious a
project as any Atlanta factory un
dertakes.
Cribs and doll beds make provision
for the youngsters. Then there are
"bungalow beds” for girls and boys,
beds of many descriptions for adults,
and. to complete the list, casket
stands for use during the rites over
the dead.
"Bungalow beds” are worth a para
graph in themselves, for they are
Unique. No other manufacturers as
yet have introduced them. The “bun
galow’ bed” is single width, and about
half the height of the regular size—
in other words, its head is about
thirty inches high. These have proven
particularly popular at schools and
colleges* and their introduction in
such Institutions has built up a de
mand from students who want the
same kind of furniture for their
homes.
Make Hit at Show.
These made a hit at the High Point,
N. C., furniture show, where the At
lanta products were exhibited. So did
the doll beds. Of course, there are
doll beds of all kinds, but these are
bronz, white enamel, or oxidized, and
come complete wdth springs, mat
tresses and two pillow's—perfect
miniatures of “sure-enough” expen
sive beds.
There are few metal bed factories
in the South. The reason, according
to L. C. Moeckel, manager of the At
lanta plant, is the scarcity of skilled
metal workers and finishers. The At
lanta factory has trained green men.
under the direction of foremen and
superintendents from Northern fac- ■
tories.
Manufacture begins with the as- j
sembling of the material—angle iron ;
from the Pittsburg steel district, j
round iron from the Atlanta Steel j
Works, and tubing from the National
Tubing Company. The materials are
fastened on frames, held in just the
position the pattern of the bed de
mands. Molds cover each' joint, and
into these molds is poured molten
iron. The beds thus are held to
gether by chilled iron castings. When
the rough bits incident to casting
have been chipped off, the beds are
ready for finishing.
But there is another kind of metal
bed, the "chill-less” bed. In this proc
ess the tubing is bored with holes
one-thirty-second of an inch smaller
than the rods. The rods are tapered
at the ends and -driven into the holes.
This does away with the little knob
like castings and makes a higher-
priced and more sightly piece of fur
niture.
The work of applying the enamel is
elaborate. First, a "priming coat” of
white is applied and baked several
hours at a temperature of 150 de
grees. Then follow three coats of
enamel, with a similar baking for
each.
Bronze Blown On.
The most ingenious machine in the
factory is the Vernis-Martln machine,
which bronzes beds, or, In fact, w’ould
bronze anything put into it, from a
derby hat to a piano. The bed frames
are coated with “size”—a sticky sub
stance. Then they are put in a cham
ber, into which the blast from a pow
erful blower fan is directed. The
bronze pow’der is fed in by teaspoon
fuls, and the strong blast drives the
powder against the sticky substance,
covering the surfaces more thorough
ly, more evenly, more quickly and
more economically than the work ever
could be accomplished by hand. Two
men, with this machine, bronze 35
beds in two hours, where formerly,
by hand, it took two men ten hours to
do the same amount of work. Later
the bronze beds are lacquered, so that
the bronze is. in effect, held between
two sheets of glass and can not tar
nish.
Another ingenious machine is the
one which bends two-inch steel tubing
into the shape of a "U,” the operation
taking only a few seconds. This is a
patent of the Atlanta factory, and
many of these machines have been
sold to other manufacturers.
Steel cables grasp the ends of the
tubing and bend it at two places
around a grooved wheel as easily as a
man could fashion a hairpin from a
piece of fine wire. All previous ma
chines have bent one curve at a time,
necessitating a double operation for
each piece of tubing, and in most in
stances the insertion of a plug or sand
filler to prevent crushing the tube.
All Other Textile Manufacturers In
Germany Report Better Busi
ness Than In 1912.
The decreased demand for silks
consequent upon the vogue of tight-
fitting skirts has been responsible for
a reduction in the divdends paid by
foreign silk weaving concerns. In a
generally good year for textiles, the
silk mills had earnings below those
of the previous year.
Balance sheets so far issued for
German textile companies reflect a
marked improvement. The average
rate of dividends paid this year by 123
representative textile undertakings,
having an aggregate capital of $60,-
000,000, works out at 8.4 per cent,
against 6.9 per cent paid in 1912.
The increase Is the more satisfac
tory’ in view of the fart that in many
cases large amounts have been put
aside to strengthen the reserves,
which last year were largely drawn
upon to provide dividends or make up
for losses.
The worsted spinning companies
show a slight falling off, the average
dividend of twenty stock companies
being 7.8 per cent, as against 8.1 per
cent last year. In other branches of
the woolen industry fifteen represen
tative concerns paid an average divi
dend of 11 per cent, against 10.7 per
cent in 1912.
The average dividend of the silk
mills, which was 8.6 per cent in 1912.
fell off as a result of the changed
styles to 5.8 per cent.
DOMESTIC OLIVE CROP.
It is estimated by the California
Olive Producers’ Association that that
State will produce this year 1,125,00a
gallons of pickled olives and 1,000,000
gallons of oil, which will be a record
output.
Write for our latest Catalogue. The leading merchants are adding
the 5c and JOc departments. Why not one for your town?
McCLURE 10c CO., 47-49 S.Broad SI.
Give Your “DIMES” a Chance
DIXIE PICKLE AND PRESERVING CO.
Manufacturers of
Pur* Apple and Distilled Vinegar, Catsup, Pickles, Mustard, Pepper
Sauce, Sauer Kraut, Jelly, Etc.
CANNED GOODS
364 te 378 Marietta Street, Atlanta, Ga.
NEW YORK, July 26.—More than
1100,000,000 worth of merchandise is
stored in the bonded warehouses ot
Greater New York. Never on the
face of the globe has there ever be
fore been such an aggregation of
everything that the soil yields and
human industry produces.
The fifty-six great bonded ware
houses are gorged almost to bursting
with rilks, teas, coffee, spices, oils,
rugs, carpets, toys, textile fabrics.
Jute, hemp, wool, chemicals—with
everything in which the merchants
of the world trade.
More than 200,000 tons of sugar,
worth over $12,000,000. are in bond.
The New York Stock Company alone
has 80.000 bags of coffee; its ware
houses. with a capacity of 81,000.000
cubic feet, are filled.
V0LLMER MANUFACTURING COMPANY
Moore Building
ATLANTA, GEORGIA
MAKERS OF FINE JEWELRY
Special Designs in Platinum
Engravers Diamond Setters Watchmakers
Specialists in Jewelry Repairing
Buy Your
SCHOOL SUPPLIES
OF THE MANUFACTURER
and get better goods at the
same price or the same goods
for less.
We manufacture Tablets
and School Stationery in our
own factory—the only one of
its kind in the South.
Get our new 500-page cat
alog and buy by mail. We
ship mail orders in 24 hours
from their receipt.
MONTAG BROTHERS
Manufacturers— Importers
10-12-14-16-18-20 Nelson SL ATLANTA
TO OUT-OF-TOWN MERCHANTS:
How would you like to hear the brainiest folks in the mer
chandising business talk about the Big Questions that concern
every storekeeper in the country?
How would you like to rub elbows for a few days with
Four Thousand other merchants who are all keen for more
and better merchandising?
How would you like to seethe way some other successful
merchant runs things that pester you, how he handles the
knotty points, how he succeeds where others fall down?
How would you like to spend a few happy days resting
up and getting the needed change of scene while using part of
the time gathering up inspiration that will freshen and bright
en your business fora whole year?
If these things sound good to you, here’s what do: Make
your plans N3 vV to coma to the
SOUTHERN MERCHANTS’ CONVENTION
ATLANTA, AUGUST 4 TO 15
No investment you can make will bring you bigger returns physically, mentally, or where you carry your coin than this
trip. Don’t give it the go-by. You’ll be sorry if you do.