INTRODUCTION, Y 
We have a trade-abuse committee, which deals directly with all cases of unfair busi- 
ness methods, such as unjustifiable cancellation of orders, deduction of excessive 
discounts, salesmen defaults, and other commercial evils. 
We have at present in course of preparation a plan for the cooperative purchasing 
of general supplies, which will eventually lead to a considerable reduction in cost to 
members of the association. 
Many manufacturers belong to both the National Cotton Garment 
Manufacturers’ Association and the Cotton Garment Manufacturers 
of New York (Inc.) 
No efforts have been made to form a trade combination or trust 
in this industry. Probably it would be impossible to form a trust, 
for the reason that the business of manufacturing muslin underwear 
can be conducted on very little capital. The small manufacturer 
may dispense with a cutting machine; he can paniay sewing 
machines on monthly installments; he can buy cloth and trimmings 
in small quantities, ‘and by imitating the styles of other manufac- 
turers he incurs no expense for designing. If he makes underwear 
to sell on contract to jobbers, his ne expenses are small. There 
is probably no other manufacturing line in which anyone can do 
more business on so little capital. Many factories starting with very 
small capital have developed into large enterprises. The above- 
mentioned brief of the National Cotton Garment Manufacturers’ 
Association says: 
It does not take any capital worth considering for anyone to set himself up in busi- 
ness as a manufacturer of this kind of underwear. He need have but a few sewing 
machines, some muslin, and some embroidery. With the help of a few seamstresses, 
he can at once set to work and enter the competitive field. As a matter of fact, the 
competition in our trade is intensely keen, this being primarily due to the fact that 
such a large percentage of the cost of production consists purely of labor. There is 
not the slightest possibility of any on or trust in this line. 
No statistics are available to show the amount of muslin under- 
wear imported into the United States, because, in the statistics of 
imports, wearing apparel is not separately classified as to outer 
apparel and ay The muslin underwear imported annually 
is, however, estimated by customhouse appraisers in New York Cit 
at about $300,000 in value, and nearly all of it is hand role 
while Pragtieally none thus embellished is made in factories in the 
United States. Much of the imported lingerie is made by hand, 
while none is made by hand in factories in the United States. There 
is, therefore, almost no foreign competition in the United States 
with the establishments considered in this report. 
WOMEN’S CLOTHING INDUSTRY. 
The Bureau of the Census has published no separate statistics in 
regard to the muslin underwear industry, but it published sta- 
tistics for the women’s clothing industry, which classification includes 
a great variety of clothing for women, girls, and children, such as 
suits, dresses, skirts, shirt waists, jackets, cloaks, capes, wrappers, 
kimonos, dressing sacques, underwear, belts, dress shields, infants’ 
clothing, and similar articles. 
The manufacture of women’s clothing is one of the important 
industries of the country. In 1909 it ranked fifteenth in value of 
product and eleventh in number of wage earners.’ 
1 Tariff schedules: Hearings before the Committee on Ways and Means, 1913, p. 3940, 
2 Thirteenth Census, Manufactures, Vol. VIII, p. 45.