Louis-René Beaudoin (Deputy Chair of Committees of the Whole)
Liberal
The Acting Speaker (Mr. Beaudoin):
Order.
Subtopic: CONTINUATION OF DEBATE ON ADDRESS IN REPLY
The Acting Speaker (Mr. Beaudoin):
Order.
Mr. Gibson:
What did your house cost?
Mr. Wylie:
If the hon. member wants to make a speech, it is all right with me. If they want to reduce the cost of houses, apparently some of these lumbermen can do it.
Mr. Gibson:
How about oil?
Mr. Wylie:
We talk about price maintenance. It has been mentioned in the speech from the throne. Price maintenance is something we have had for years. Price maintenance may stay with us. I am going to say this, however. If the manufacturers are forced into selling their goods for whatever they can get for them, may the Lord pity the small retailer.
Mr. Sinnott:
That is what the farmers do.
Mr. Wylie:
They are going to be forced out of business. As we know, many proprietors of small stores today are operating on a shoestring.
Mr. Thatcher:
Hear, hear.
Mr. Wylie:
I am glad the hon. member for Moose Jaw (Mr. Thatcher) has said "hear, hear", because he has only three stores.
Four.
Mr. Fleming:
Four shoestrings.
Mr. Wylie:
Apparently the hon. member has four stores. However, may I say this-
Mr. Sinnott:
Rawhide.
Mr. Wylie:
-that anyone who is operating a small business today, especially drygoods and ladies' ready-to-wear-
Oh, oh.
Mr. Knowles:
You had better stick to hardware.
Mr. Wylie:
I know what is going to happen. The chain stores and the large department stores can reduce their prices on those articles. How long are they going to continue to do that?-that is the question. Are they going to reduce prices just long enough to put the small fellows out of business, and then put
their prices up again? That is something we must consider seriously before the bill, or whatever it is-
Oh, oh.
Mr. Wylie:
-is passed.
Mr. Murphy:
"The Thing".