APPENDIX. 411 



in whicli cans of choice dessert crackers, covered with glass, are 

 shown to the best advantage by tipping them forward, lo that a 

 person entering the store can hardly fail to see them, and, at the 

 same time they are accessible for weighing out as wanted. 



Every inch of the room " down-stairs " is utilized for storage 

 of surplus stock, empty packages, etc., including the sugar-cutting 

 machine, the only thing about the place which I thought inferior 

 to our American way of doing things. The hard sugar is bought 

 in the usual concave loaves, and cut up by hand into square lumps 

 for the table ; but our American "cut loaf," which is now being 

 exported in liberal quantities to the English market, will soon cure 

 them of doing business in that way. 



Messrs. Leverett & Erye do business for cash over the counter 

 or one week's credit, credit customers being furnished with a book 

 for convenience sake, and called upon each day at their resi- 

 dences by a clerk, who takes and delivers their orders. Every 

 Monday he brings back with him the amount of the previous 

 week's account, or no more orders are filled. Deliveries are made 

 mostly with small hand-carts, although horses and wagons are 

 used to some extent. Mr. Leverett attends principally to the 

 buying, and Mr. Frye to the selling and executive part of the 

 business, visiting all the different stores daily and taking a weekly 

 statement of business done from each one. Stock is taken every 

 six months, and a thorough system of book-keeping shows the 

 result of the business of each store, and also the aggregate busi- 

 ness of the firm. It is difficult to find efficient superintendents, 

 but they are paid by an interest in the profits, and where results 

 are not satisfactory a change is made. A catalogue and price list 

 is issued uniform at all their different stores, and based upon the 

 same scale of prices as charged at the civil service co-operative 

 stores. Messrs. Leverett & Frye have no difficulty in competing 

 with these societies, although many small grocers who do not 

 apply the same principles feel the competition seriously. These 

 principles are : Buying and selling for ready money, or very close 

 to it, local convenience of stores, free collection of orders, and de- 

 livery of goods. They estimate their gross profit at 14 to 15 per 

 cent. 



