The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1896-04-23

ERliStS IN the cause.
/ The busiest office in all Wichita yes
| terday was that of the Galveston Ex-
wick block.
Three men and three girls were as
busy as nailers folding and wrapping
| packages of papers which are being dis
| tributed with all the speed facilities Of
| the postoffice department and express
companies 10 500 towns and cities in
Kansas, Nebraska, Colorado and Okla
| homa.
One man was kept busy weighing the
| packages, ascertaining the cost Of their
delivery, addressing and checking them
off and every train that went out car
RED almost a wagon load Of them.
These papers are put UP in punches
and bundles corresponding to the poula-
ton Of the cities they are sent to and
| they contain an exceedingly clear and
| logical discussion of the entire situation
of the west with reference TO the trans
| portation of its vast products to tide
water. In fact the article written furn-
| ishes full and thorough solution Of the
] burdensome freight rates OF the mid
die west and particularly central Kan
sas and Oklahoma One of the articles
! in the literature being sent out is that
which was published in the Eagle Tues
| day morning and which has been pro-
nounced the ablest article ever written
| on the subjects discussed. 1t gives the
whole case in a nutshell and so easy 10
comprehend that no man can fail to
| understand what it means.
These documents are sent to business
men who will distribute them where
they will do the most good. They are
all prepared so that they can be hung
up in the leading stores of the city to
/ which they are sent in places where the
attention Of the people will be attracted
sufficiently towards them to take one
and read and study its contents.
There is no doubt but what the cir
culation Of these documents will awak-
en- great interest among the people who
are oppressed 10y a long and expensive
haul to market with their cropS-a haul
which compells the farmers TO go into
partnership with the railroads and
give them more than half what they
produce TO carry it to the markets. The
article in the Eagle Tuesday aroused
such interest in the matter and the
proposition was made so plainly to
their advantage that a great many peo-
pie called TO subscribe to the elevator
stock before the certificates were print
ed
In speaking with Mr.. Imboden Of
Galveston, the agent Of the company in
this city, a great many truths were
learned concerning the commercial rela-
tons of the west with the port of Gal
weston, that should be impressed upon
the public mind. Competition, as every
school boy knows, is the life of trade.
Without competition trade would sink
into stagnation. Competition is what
the west needs. It will raise prices and
lower freight rates and hence give more
to the producer for his toll. Now, prac-
tically, there is but one port in the
south and that is the port of New Or
leans and Kansas can reach that only
through Kansas City where every Kan
sas farmer not only has to pay tribute
but is deprived of the advantages OF
competition. To be sure Galveston is a
competitive port TO New Orleans in one
sense of the word but owing to the
lack of certain facilities 1t is nothing
as yet, like rival Why? Simply be-
cause Kansas City Is still the only COM
mercial exit, with exit facilities, from the
producing regions of Kansas and other
western grain growing territories. Be
fore Galveston can hope TO compete
with New Orleans as gulf ports il must
first compete with 1t in the field where
the products are grown, hence the de-
termination TO build an elevator at
Wichita in competition with Kansas