by GEORGE MARION

—NEWBURYPORT.

HERE was no 10 percent rebate on my hotel bill when I checked out of the
Garrison Inn in this Massachusetts town. The inn is named for William Lloyd Gar-
rison, the great Abolitionist, who was born here in 1805 and never wasted an inch
of his, weekly Free Press on indecent sales promotion schemes like the now notorious
Newburyport Plan. “Aren’t you operating under the 10 percent across-the-board plan

which is going to reduce prices
_ keeper’ with my tongue in my

cheek and my eye on the statue
ef the Great Liberator in the
Inn’s front yard.

“I’m not in it,” replied my
genial host. “They told me the
plan would make wholesalers
cut their prices, too, but I
didn't see how I could reduce
my prices until prices are cut
on the things I buy. I didn’t

see how a retail price cut was

going to work.

“Now I just got a bill from
one of the biggest backers of
the plan. He was on the radio
program, the nationwide net-
Work that told how the ‘New-
bury Plan’ would save the peo-
ple from inflation and a crash.
I’m not going to tell you his
mame—I have to live here. But
I just got a bill from him.

“My weekly bill from him av-

erages about $12. But this. bill

happens to be for $5.70. Under
the plan—his plan—I ought to
get a 57-cent deduction. Well,
I called him up and he said,
‘No.’ He can’t afford it. He said
the deduction is 10 cents a
bundle—not 10 percent!” :

That’s what the ‘Newburyport
Plan’ appeal to the patriotism
end long-range wisdom of the
town’s leading merchants really
amounts to. Now figure for your-
self just how much of a dent
President Truman’s similar ap-
peal to ‘business’ for voluntary
price-cuts, will make on the me-
chanical hearts of U.S. Steel, the
duPont chemical trust and big

Wall Street moster combinations

ef industry-and-finance like the
J.P. Morgan and _ Rockefeller

« §roups.

FRIDAY, MAY 16, 1947

MUST say I came up here
_ taking for granted the sin-
cerity of the plan. Here were
small-town merchants, I reason- ~
ed, closer to their customers

all over the country and stop inflation?” I asked the inn-

than the merchants of a big
city. They feel the pressure.
They see inflation bringing a
crash and they decide to launch

’an appeal to the self-interest and

Housewives on

(Contimued from front page)
Yet in Vancouver thousands
of workers’ wives and others
are sitting down, figuring the
higher cost of the things they
need, wondering where they can
cut down and what they can
do without.

It is no consolation for them
to read that Revenue Minister
McCann told the House of Com-
mons on May 9 that “most
business enterprises have been
showing substantial profits, and
doing far better than before the
war, and in many cases much
better than during the war
years.” Not when their house-
hold budgets show that they can
no longer fimd the money for
necessities. :

But housewives will not get
anywhere by complaining in
shopping lines. Cabinet members
don’t stand around stores wait-
ing for a special. They might

have a better ‘idea of the pub-

lic temper if they did. Only or-
ganized action by housewives
themselves will stir them from
their complacent confidence in
their policy.

HE buyers’ strikes now under
way will show our members

/

of parliament what is expected
of them. The one-day strike in
Vancouver, Victoria and else-
where on May 2 was most ef-
fective. Shopping lines that day
were thin and there was little
buying throughout the rpovince.

One grocer in Vancouver re-
ported selling only five loaves

of bread that day. Another small

corner grocer said he did $100
less business.

The big stores were almost

empty at the usual heavy shop-.

ping hours. The daily press,

understandably, tried to play -

the protest down, but its ad-
vertisers know better. —
Big business is alarmed and

in its alarm it is resorting to —

the well-worn trick of trying to
divide members of the House-
wives Consumers Association and

all others fighting for price
controls claiming that these or-

ganizations are led by commun-

ists. To big business the house- —

wives are communists, the old
age pensioners are communists,
even the kids protesting against

eight-cent candy bars are com-

munists .too. Pe te aes

The Housewives’ Consumers
Association has answered the
red-baiting attack made _ by

the patriotism of the whole na-
tion. I wanted to check closely
on how much effect they were
having on wholesalers, manu-
facturers and bankers. But I
didn't doubt they were trying.

I was wrong. Not one person
here had any illusions about the
plan. Everyone agreed not a
store in town was actually giv-
ing the rebate, because the most
desirable items are price-fixed.
Actually, they overstated the
case. I found some of the
smallest storekeepers, who can
least afford it, loyally return-
ing 10 percent.

At the Campbell Doughnut
Shop I had coffee and two jelly
doughnuts for breakfast. It came
to 15 cents and they gave me
a penny rebate.

But the big fellows who
launched the scheme are empty-
ing their shelves of what a
dozen informants called ‘junk,’
while the much-ballyhooed cam-
paign to enlist wholesalers and
manufacturers remains just
ballyhoo. What's more, the
townspeople don’t * believe the
plan will bring down prices and
the bulk of the storekeepers
don’t believe it was intended to.
Merchants in neighboring towns

are even harsher—they call it a_

spring sale with publicity cam-
ouflage. ‘
e

NE malicious soul re-

marked that slick merchan-
dising is no novelty in Newbury-
port. He pointed out that the
town was incorporated in 1764
when “merchants, traders, mar-
iners and artificers” found their
interests in conflict with the
wholly farm population of old-
er and larger Newbury. He re-
ferred me to the standard his-
tory of Newburyport, where
merchants were revealed to
have made fortunes importing
clothing and military stores for
the use of the Continental Army.
and fitting out privateers during
the Revoluntionary War.

“One of the sponsors of the
‘Newburyport Plan,’” he said
“likewise sold goods to the gov-
ernment during this war and he

was stuck with huge quantities

of junk when the war ended.
The plan has done wonders for
him, but in 10 days or so the
fuss will be over and the na-
tional and local price picture
will be unchanged.”

I questioned J. Norman Ran-
dall, executive secretary of the
group called Northeast Essex
Development Council—initiators

and promoters of the plan —.

closely. He assured me ‘thi
plan was really an across-the-
board one and that it was work
ing that way in Newburyport.
But you have only to look at —
the ads in the Newburyport
News to see that it’s not SO

The ‘little people’ of Newbury —
port feel they were put on the’
spot by the self-seeking clique
that launched the plan. Town —

taxis in Newburyport are driven

by women and vets. “We didn’t

raise our price all through the
war,” a woman driver told me
“Why should we give back three
cents of our 30 cent fare now?

The barbers said: “We feel —

a cut in prices would be noth-
ing but a cut in our wages.”

But Sears, Roebuck and A and

P. Supermarket from whom theres

‘little people’ must buy are i8-
noring the plan. ;

OQ I asked Randall how he —

hoped to make his whole-
salers, and the other big.» mon —

vpolies, join in price cutting. He =

described a great letter-writine
campaign to put pressure on the
firms that supply retailers and
they in turn were to put pres
sure on the bigger manufac
turers.

“That’s the heart of the plan
he said. But he was becomingly
vague about results.

Since price cutting crusades

ought to begin at home,

‘checked the major manufactur

ers of Newburyport, The Ruth
Shoe Company, employing 900

_ workers, said the Council h

1 ae
,

not asked it to cut prices 2M@

it couldn’t if it were asked
because of the “price of leather.

I repeatedly coupled questions

about the ‘Newburyport Pla?
with questions about President
Truman’s appeal for voluntary
cuts by Big Business. No oné
believed that anything would
come of the ‘voluntary’ 4P
proach. They said high prices
were already hastening unem
ployment and hard times in thé
Newburyport area.

But as a matter of honest T© |
porting, I must say I found 9°
one who believed there was ay
practical prospect of re-imposin&
price controls or otherwise curb-
ing the profit-hogging of bi8
business. That is a prospect
however unwelcome to big pusi-
ness, that can only be created
through forceful campaigning PY

labor and the people themselves ,

the picket line

Thomas Braidwood, president of
Vancouver Board of Trade, in
this resolution:

“We welcome members of all
political parties into our ranks
and we refuse to be divided on
political differences.
woods wild charges are intend-
ed_to confuse and conceal the
real issue—the burning ques-
tion of high prices, On this
issue we women, representing
a wide variety of organizations,

are uniting our ranks.

“We are seeking and receiv-
‘ing the support of a growing

number of public-spirited organ-—
izations. Our battle is a battle.
for the health of our families,

It is a battle for the’ welfare
of eur whole community, for
high prices are ruinous alike to
wage-earners, farmers and small
business men. —

 “Braidwood’s arguments about

shortages and low production are
most unconvincing in view of
the evidence of organized
‘shortages on every hand and
the ruthless drive of the big
manufacturers and wholesalers

for profits. It is against these

evils that we are directing our
energies.

The resolution concluded:

Braid-

“The movement against nighet
prices is really beginning to

yoll, We are confident that the

great majority of the people ca?
be united to roll back prices
and defend our standard of yes

ing.”

Braidwood claimed it Ww
“not to be expected that thé
so-called ‘buyers’ strikes’ Gs
boycotts would have any notic®

able effect on trade,” by this
statement hoping to discouras© *
people from participating in aay

buyers’ strikes this month.
But the growing membershiP”
of the Housewives Consumer?
Association, the number %
branehes of this organization b&
ing formed thorugh the prov”
ince, the phone calls and Pel —
sonal visits to strike headquatt

ers, 339 West Pender Street, 1”
dicate wholehearted support fF
thé buyers’ strikes. Nae
buyer resistance

Organized
can force prices down. So, ™™

\

ie

member your buyers’ strike cak

endar from May 10 to June 10

May 17 to 24, no jams, marm

lade, peanut butter or canned
. fruit. ;

May 24 to June
ing. d

‘PACIFIC TRIBUNE—PAGE

: 4

10, no clothe

Z

_ May 10 to 1%, no butter, lard
or shortening. a