Page:American Journal of Sociology Volume 9.djvu/180

166 soon killed my trade, and I had to close out my union line at a loss. That cured me."

Another merchant, located in the central part of the city, gave this testimony: "I hear little demand for union-label goods. Again, sometimes we remove old labels and put them on new garments to satisfy a union purchaser. Union-label goods cost more than others of same quality, and of course union men like to buy what they can get the cheapest. Women buy a great deal of clothing for the family, and they never ask for the label."

Another merchant was more pronounced in his views of the label. He said: "The union label is a fake. It does not stand for sanitary conditions, as claimed. It goes on poor and cheap goods and makes them cost more. I pay seventy-five cents a dozen more for union-label overalls than for non-union, but sell them at the same price, forty cents each. They are poorly made, are scant by actual comparison, and should cost seventy-five cents a dozen less than non-union goods. Two customers came into my store recently, one for an overcoat, one for a suit of clothes. Both wanted union-label goods. I argued the point with them and convinced them that they were making a mistake. Both bought non-union goods. Some time ago a customer wanted a certain kind of hat. I showed him a one-dollar non-union hat. He asked for the union label. I gave him a union-label hat, price one dollar and a half. 'Why is this?' he asked. I said: 'You support the union; it's good pay, short hours, etc., and you must pay more for your hat, of course.' ' Give me a non-union hat,' he said."

These interviews are given because they are strictly representative of the attitude of all the clothing merchants seen. Merchants, as a rule, are hostile to the label in the clothing industry. This is easy to understand. They want no questions raised as to the source of their supply. They do not want to be limited to a few manufacturers, but are anxious to be perfectly free to play one manufacturer against another. Cut-throat competition of other merchants makes a small margin of advantage a vitally important thing. Again, when their expectations of