St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1888-04-26
BUYING BUSINESS.

midst. The most frequent form this
custom of buying business takes, for
that is what it amounts to, is for the
town to grant freedom from taxes to
any new firm that will bring business
into the place. But often building is
erected and given outright, a certain
amount of stock in the new enterprise
is taken, or, as sometimes occurs, an
actual cash payment is made. To such
an extent has this idea been carried
that it is not an unusual thing to find
business firms negotiating with two or
three communities, awaiting bids and
accepting the location that offers the
greater inducements, that is, the high
est bid. The town that captures the
new industry is considered "enterpris-
ing" 'lively," "wide-awake,o "public-
spirited" etc. Without making any
sweeping assertions, as we can easily
imagine circumstances where extra eff
fort in these directions might wisely
be put forth, we believe that this GUS
tom of buying business is based on un-
businesslike principles and will not as
a rule and often does not prove a wise
and profitable thing. The recent ex-
perience of Massachusetts clown i'm
provement club" with which the wri-
ter happens to be familiar, furnishes
an illustration to the point. We will
let one of the members of the "club''
that bought both business and expert
ence, tell his own story: =f -.-t-s-
Two years ago we were seized with
the business fever. Two gentlemen of
good repute, we'll up in a certain line
of manufactures, struck our town.
They had ample capital, but to test
our affection and desire to build up the
town they proposed that the citizens
build large factory for their use and
also provide power for their business,
for which they would pay per cent
per annum as rent and would take a
five years. lease. The factory was
built by few public-spirited citizens
and in due time it was occupied.
Building enterprises were stimulated
for the time, and houses built to shell
ter the employees of this new industry.
A little more than year passed
away when we were notified that Il
large syndicate had been formed, a
sort of trust for this class of business,
and that our protege had sold out his
stock and machinery to the trust and
had decided to close up and enter the
employ of the syndicate, leaving us in
about the same state of mind, l reck-
on. as was poor Jonah when the sun
made such havoc with his gOurd. Our
factory with power, which cost about
Sc. ZOO. now stands dismantled and
idle, but it also is a constant witness
and reminder of our public spirit. Ad-
vertising has its uses and this expert
ence is not without its cOmpensations
inasmuch as we get our education
at comparatively small cost; $4,000 is
not a large investment considering the
benefits derived.
The country is full of men who are
casting about to see where they can
find communities verdant enough to
shoulder the expense of their business
experiments. Time would fail me to
enumerate the concerns that have ap-
preached us with similar propositions,
but they soon learn that we need but
one lesson.
At recent meeting of our clown
imprO vement club" for that is what
we call ourselves, this question was
discussed ''To what extent can our
people afford to extend aid to tramp
business firms wishing to locate with
us2" The club voted without dissent
that if such firms could not be attract
ed by our first class business facilities,
schools and means of education in
Guiding a first class public library,
good roads, fine scenery, healthful To-
cation, good government and the ben
eft growing out of laws we'll executed :,
and all substantially free to every new
conner, our answer should be, "4ou are
not wanted. You cannot be perma-
nent benefit unless you come as we
came, to make this home, and unless
you are willing to help bear the bur-
dens of society. We want no tramp
firms in our town."
Go where you will the history of the
tramp business firms is the same. They
are on their make, with ears always
open to the cry of the highest bidder.
Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire,
abound in towns where vacant factO-
ries and tenantless houses erected for
trampsfirms can be seen. Within six
miles of where the writer lives is a
town where less than five years ago an
enterprise was started, the citizens
contributing largely to the plant which
was reckoned at $4,000. Today the
plant could not be sold for $4,000.
Moral: Beware of tramp business
firms.
Our correspondent writes vigorously,
as a man is apt to do when telling the
story of losing adventure, but is not
the position assumed a reasonable OneI
Are the men who are hired to move
into a community the best sort of ma
terial on which to build up permanent
institutions . Having paid certain
sum to induce a business firm to re-
move from a place where they have
been aided by the people, simply be-
cause we can afford to pay larger
sum than our neighbOrs, what is to pre-
vent the removal of the business later
on to still another but perhaps more
"public spirited" community, and
when they go what right would we
have to grumble Z Then again is il
not an absolute injustice to the bust
ness enterprises already established to
thus free new Corners from burdens
that they have uncomplainingly car
ried and must continue to carry The
only course left open to them is to join
the great procession of tramp business
firms and advertise for bids. These
are pertinent questions worthy of con