Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1903-09-19
HOLDING THE FARM TRADE.

0UkU1NO NpWi
President Stickney, of the Great
Western, talked lot of sense TO the
Commercial Club of Omaha in his re-
cent address to that body. Among oth-
er things he attempted to impress the
fact SO we'll known and often forgotten
that q town which aspiras to sell pro-
ducing community all its supplies mus
be prepared to buy all its products. He
attributed the prominence of Chicago
to the fact that any conceivable prod
uct in any conceivable qrantity finds
buyer in that city. And / verify be-
iieve," said the speaker. that II some
idiot should ship carloads or trainloads
of black cats some Chicago dealer
would buy them, and some Chicago
bank would loan the money to carry
them, and both would realize proht.
President Stickney was speaking in
large town to large shippers and
wholesalers, but the principle he was
eEdeavoring to teach is very general In
tie town as of the big one and applies
10 the retailer even more than to the
wholesale dealer. A lively retail town
must maintain an active market 1or
produce. The producer buys where he
sells If prices are satisfactory or nearly
squal to those obtainable elsewhere. He
] pends his money where and when he
gets 1t. Liberal grain and live stock
I buyers in a country town give 1t rep
utation and bring trade. A ready mar
ket for butter, eggs and the various
products of the farm attracts the SELL
sr of such products. 1t gets him to
lown as vendor and proper enter
prise on the part of the retail merchant
makes himNin his turn a buyer. That's
Ill there Is to it.
Time was when the local dealers in
country towns controlled the situation.
That was when high interests and
heavy mortgages made credit an inn
perative necessity to the average Iowa
farmer and before campaign of cata-
log house advertising had weakened his
confidence in the home merchant.
Trade was easy then If collections We're
sometimes slow and hard to make.
But that time is gone with the mort
cages. With increased affiuence has
come independence and the faint of ar
rOgance that always attaches to the
man with the money in his hand The
substantial farmer nowadays is not
suppiiant for credit. He demands it as
a tribute to his solvency. He sells in
the highest market and tries to find the
cheapest to, buy in. He must be met
upon this bas1S Any attempt to build
trade upon sentiment will be failure.
The theory that the farmer owes his
trade to his home town is true enough
In the abstract, but 1t does not bring
his trade. The best argument to bring
money out of any mans pocket is an
appeal : to self-interest Sentiment
awakens sympathy, but it fails too
often to bring a check. Business Is
simply another name for competition
and the farmer must be met and con-
WINGED, not cozened.
1t is necessary to go after the farm
er's trade: the merchant who waits will
not win it. The implement man sells
his article in the fed. The mail order
house insisrtently tells him OF its bar
gains. The big markets are open to
him not only for what he has to sell,
but to buy in, and they are insistent in
campaigning for his trade on a busi-s
ness basis. They talk no sentiment,
but show the goods. They are ready
to buy Of him and await his need to sell
to him. This Is what the small town
must do It must talk to him over the
mail routes as the catalog house does,
use the telephone which the mail order
establishment can not. and make him
market where he may sell everything
he raises for the highest cash prices
and buy everything he needs at rea-
Sonsable rates.