The billboard (Jan-June 1898)

1 ■to gan& Co BSilt^ PRiNf WM jHBpL,.,, MS ..... .... . ..... - . ., , ■ ■■ ■>.!:» iSAMHU^I^j^eS^ Siiliill Wm^M^stm^cmm SwEBSm .11 ;i»aiaj»ni, linn f gaj.—:—:— '^rt i ag -ie2 J Tte i'grV-.f.y-<-, . ■«•:.-.»!««r«8a-«»Si»w i®^ ^S iP^^P^J •! S^ THE BILLBOARD Vol. X., No. 2. CINCINNATI, FEBRUARY i, 1898. PRICE 10 CENTS PER. YEAR, $1.00 AN EXAMPLE OF WASTE. l-i>r introducing a new article of food, or an improvement on an already known article, there is probably no better method than the distribution of samples from house to house. The sample is usually all that the accompanying printed matter represents it, and it is proof, too, of the generosity and good intentions of the manufacturer. or shoe laces or humming tops, or pop- corn or haud-made-lace-at-five-cents-a- yard," the boy said : "Lady, will you take this ; it's only an advertisement—only an advertisement— only an ad." "Yes, yes;" I interrupted, and closed the door. On examining the parcel, I found it to contain a tin can, the pink booklet and nothing more, save the print on the of paper, ~the"""story of the^making of "Darling Milk." The text assured me that this brand of milk was much purer and better, as well as cheaper, than other brands of condensed milk that I've been using. That may be true; but how much better is it ? With only a tablespoonf ul I might have made a comparison with an- other brand already in the house. If there had been a price given, I would .have known how much cheaper this "Thou sayest such a foolish thing In such a solemn way." There was nothing in the booklet or on the can label that might not have been said by any other manufacturer of condensed milk. There was not one word to prove that "Darling Milk" was sui generis. There were only jumbled together a num- ber of generalities. Here is one para- graph : "If 3'ou have been using a high-grade milk, costing 14,15 or 16 cents a can, buy MFiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiniiiiiiiiiiiaiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiitiiiii'.iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiijiiiiiiiiaiiiiiiiijijMiiitiiiiitiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiitiiiiiiaiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii ►\^«!.-> : '''.V;'i>-' : -.-.- ..' •• JOSEPH REID, President, I. A. of D. W. H. STEINBRENNER, Sec'y-Treas., I. A of D. •••••■■•••••••••■■•■■■•■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■•■■••••lIllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIItltlllllllllliiHiHHJi 1 he average person likes to get some- thing for nothing, if it comes in a legiti- mate way. it gives the receiver of sam- i>!v- a comfortable feeling of consequence. ■r she may, just at the time, be in n ' !'..nl luck," but it is proof that either times are not so bad as they seem, or there is at least one person in the world « Ik. doesn't know it—that he takes pains '" illicit trade of them. !> -nl the sample must be something real, s' inething genuine. It must run parallel "''It the printed matter. Hie other day I answered my door- 1 H to meet a boy with a basket hnlf full '" neat rubber-strapped parcels in 111a- ";•■'•! paper, with a pink .booklet on one : •'■''■ of each. Before I could say : "No, ■'.•n't care to buy matches or stationery, paper. The can was neatly labeled with pale blue paper, printed in darker blue, with border lines of red. There was a medallion child's head wreathed with sev- eral kinds of flowers in several colors. The legend around the medallion was, "Darling Brand Condensed Milk." There were the xtsual directions for use, the manufacturer's name and places of busi- ness. The ends of the can were bright and new, and well soldei id. My first thought was that I had received a sample of milk, and was accordingly thankful. But, without opening, I discovered the empti- ness of the can—and my expectations. Next I consulted the booklet. It was nicely illustrated, and purported to tell, in very fair type, on a very good quality milk'is than the kind I^have] been using. I looked the booklet through to find out some bed-rock facts about the new brand of milk. I failed utterly. The neat little pages assures whoever takes the pains to read them, as I did, that all the cows patronized by this factory are inspected— did not say how often—and known to be properly fed. It states, further, that only a sufficient quantity of the best of sugar is mixed with this milk to preserve it, and all the most improved processes are in practice in the factories where this milk is condensed. AVhen I had read the booklet all through, I was reminded, not to go out and buy, but of two lines of a little poem that somebody addressed to a katy-did. Here thev are : a can of Darling Milk from your grocer at less price; try it. See if 3'ou do not find it superior both in quality and purity to any other brand." How much cheaper, and how much bet- ter, is this "pig in a poke" than the pig already known and approved ? The first of these two questions might have been answered by simply stating the price of "Darling: Milk." The second could have been intelligently inquired into if a small sample had been conve- niently at hand. tn this busy age a housekeeper who has found_a satisfactory article for constant use will not take the trouble of purchasing something else only to prove the truth or falsity of an adver- tiser. The problem from the first has been,