LOOKING F O R W A R D
By FR A N K C. P E T R IN E , President and Publisher
AUTOMATIC
A CODE OF ETHICS FOR INDUSTRY
Any industry grows and prospers in the same
ratio as it is capable of winning and holding public
good will. These war times have projected the
coin machine industry in public print to a greater
extent than had happened in a matter of years
before. This publicity will affect the public good
will.
I do not look upon ALL such publicity as desir
able— not so much because some of the publicity
is of a critical nature, but because much of the
publicity is extremely erroneous.
But the important thing about the entire sub
ject of publicity given to our industry is the fact
that more and more writers for the public press
are arising to extoll the satisfying amusement
features of many types of coin-operated machines,
and the additional fact that such amusement is
available at one’s FREE WILL at so economical
a cost.
More of this type of publicity will be showered
upon the coin machine industry, and its extent
and frequency will depend on one big point. And
that is, the conduct of the members of our in
dustry.
Summed up, “conduct” is the manifestation of
a CODE OF ETHICS—a decalogue of “do’s’’ and
“don’ts” which the responsible members of the
industry set up for themselves. The era of “devil-
may-care” is slowly, though progressively, pass
ing out of the picture—thanks to the fine work
of a number of associations.
The industry merits friends. The general public
is friendly and appreciative. Fair treatment of
the public, which is truly the final court of appeal,
will encourage and increase the favorable type of
publicity for our industry.
Any new effort, the psychologists say, wears a
new groove in the brain. And the grooves that
lead to the heights are not made between nine
and five o’clock. They are burned in by midnight
oil.
DISCRIMINATORY VENDOR TAXES RULED OUT
In the past several months there were a number
of taxing laws or ordinances introduced, and in
some cases passed, by various cities and states.
However, wherever the operators presented their
case against the injustice of these taxes, they
won out— either by the dropping of the tax mea
sure by the taxing committees, or were later de
clared unconstitutional and therefore dropped.
For example, a certain large city passed an
ordinance imposing a license of $1 per machine
on vending candies and other merchandise selling
up to five cents, and $2 per machine vending items
over five cents, per year. Cigarette venders were
excluded.
Obviously such a rate of taxation would be in
jurious, and in relation to other methods of sell
ing the same type of merchandise, the tax on
vending machines would be discriminatory.
On this ground, a group of candy, nut, gum,
and soft-drink vending machine operators got
together and worked to have the proposed tax
set aside. They were unable to stem the tide, and
the taxing bill was passed and the governor of
the State refused to veto the bill. After the bill
was signed, the operators took their case to the
Circuit Court. There it was ruled unconstitu
tional. The reason being a technical one— the fact
that the governor had not signed the bill before
its effective date. The controversy then went up
before the State’s court of appeals.
Precedents Established Against Discrimination
LEADERSHIP
There is one dominating reason why 99 out of
100 average men in business never become leaders.
That is their unwillingness to pay the price of
responsibility. By the price of responsibility is
meant—hard driving, continual work, the courage
to make decisions, to stand the gaff, the scourg
ing honesty of never fooling yourself about your
self.
*5
However, there is more substantial ground
upon which to appeal such unfair and unreason
able tax legislation on merchandise vendors.
Automatic Age has printed the results of several
court orders ruling out vendor taxes. Many court
orders have established the premise that a tax
must not be discriminatory. On these precedents,
operators of vending machines can and should
AUTOMATIC AGE
© International Arcade Museum
AGE
(Continued on page 38)
February, 1942
http://www.arcade-museum.com/