Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1904-03-29
|L0oKER.0N in IOWA


Pocahontas, March 29.-At last 1t has
happened. We knew 1t was coming
Have been laughed at because an
old foggy. Have been tempted several
times to speak to mothers and fathers
but didn't. Have been watching for it
in and around the depots but this week
it did happen. This week at the depot
in Cherokee a playing child not under
watchful parents eye, jumped in front
of a moving engine, and had its life
crushed out, this right in sight of the
waiting passengers. But this one in
stance will not make careful the daily
moving army of families travelling over
the country The careless mother will
still allow the five-year- old boy to run
out on the platform to play. while she
sits in the depot gossiping with a new
made acquaintance, and then suddenly
rushes wondering where that child has
got to- There is riding somewhere at
this moment, an interested man, in his
newspaper, while his ten-y year old boy
is sticking his head out of the car win
dow, or is rushing TO the door to get
out on the car platform before the train
stops. How does the writer know so
much? Simply because he sees such
things every day, everywhere.
The growing custom in Iowa of hav-
ing sale day in town, is probably to
become permanent business fixture.
1t gives the farmer who does not have
stock, or implements, or articles of any
kind enough to justify "a regular sale
a chance to bring to town on that day
such things as he wishes to dispose OF,
and to find a cash buyer in someone
who wants and needs just the things
he desires to get rid OF. Again, the
town people as we'll as the storekeepers,
use this occasion to unload MANY
things, and goods that otherwise they
would have to keep for years before
finding purchasers. The writer was in
q town last week where a successful
sale was held. All the stock brought
in was cared for free of expense, ard
the advertised commission for selling
only 2 per cent. made this part of the
sale very satisfactory. One other
favorable feature so far in these sales,
is that when anything is put up for
sale it goes to the highest bidder. There
are no reserves" and no bidding in, >
unless the owner is sharp enough to
have someone do this work, who is
unknown to the crowd. The street
fairs that suddenly became so popular
viii soon be thing of the past The
sale day in town not only is a great
convenience to sellers and buyers, but
1t draws a big crowd to town, which
of course suits the merchants. In some
places the business men of the town
I, y.
clerk, paying for advertising
etc. Others are carried on by
men who make "a business
of getting up such sales, making their
profit in commissions received for SELL
ing. In either case such sale days arc
very satisfactory to seller, to buyer and
to the business men of the town where
they are held.
Some time ago the writer in this col
umn ventured an opinion that The Iowa
farmer would get so cents a bushel for
what corn he raised in 1903, that is, he
would get that price sometime between
November and the following June This
the grain dealers and some others
promptly characterized as newspaper
mans talk, in other words, something
he didn't know much about. Let it be
recorded that the farmers UP in this
part of the state can now sell what
corn they have Ca mighty small crop to
be sure) for So cents per bushel. Not
to ship to Chicago. Oh, no. All it's
worth to today to ship is 81 cents, hut
In Pomeroy, !. w. Mills. manager of the
Northern Grain Company has already
chipr,e1 in fo that placa several sa,.
loads of corn and sold it for 55 cents
per bushel And some farmers near
Manson, who had sales" sold their
crops of 1904 corn for "a cents How
we do enjoy saying Il told you So
R1 nye.z-s|oy