The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1906-04-13
letters 10 the Consumers.

What shall il profit YOU if in saw
ing s25. so, 500 $500 on the one
hand you injure yourself so,
800. 500 or $1,000 on the other?
We are writing 10 you at this
time TO say that we believe every
dollar you save by buying goods
away from home costs you two.
III you are a farmer. did YOU
ever stop TO inquire what makes
your land valuable? 1t is not the
land itself nor YOU: that's GER
tain.
Suppose your land. with all its
great natural fertility, and your
splendid methods of cultivation,
were located in the middle Of
Texas, with no other cultivated
ground and no railroads within
hundreds Of miles of it.
II wouldn't be worth much,
would it?
The sole reason your land IS Of
more than nominal value is be-
cause a community has grown up
around it.
If you acquired your land years
ago when the neighbOrhoOd in
which you live was sparsely set
tied. you have had the pleasure
of watching it grow in value as
the community has gown and
prospered
First came the neighboring
farms. then the towns, finally
the railroads, which the towns
brought near TO your land, all
contributing TO yours and the
general prosperity.
Ii must be clear 10 you in the
light of history. that your inter-
'ests can continue TO grow and
prosper only if the entire COM
munity in which you live shall
continue TO grow and prosper
Y If your community goes BACK :
ward, you 20 backward: if its
growth and prosperity are retard-
ed. the growth and prosperity OF
your community for the sake of
tempory personal gain IN the
measure of pennies?
The greatest menace TO this
country is admitted TO be the
centralization of wealth, which
carries with it under our present
economic system, the tendency
to build 10 tremendous proper
tons a few chosen communities,
have done in a single year TO has
ten forward this tendency, IN
stead of resisting as it might
have been expected of you:
In the year 1905, out of the
money earned in your cOmmum-
ties. and belonging to the COM
.merce and industry of your COM
unities. YOU contributed to two
: mail order houses alone. located
in the city of Chicago. the stu
pendous sum of $50. 600. 600.
Think of this for a moment.
: and then consider that it Is only
: the beginning; that dozens OF
? other concerns of the same kind
/ CLEANED from the farms and the
small communities of the land a
golden harvest of a size which
only can be guessed at.
Startling. when you try to
, realize it all at once, isn't 1t!
Contrast this tremendous ac-
!. emulation of your money in a
! few hands for the benefit of con-
Z Germs in which you have no inter-
est located in communities Tor
whose prosperity you derive only
remote benefits. with the COM
mercial conditions in your own
community.
The two institutions which alb
. sorbed eighty millions of your
money in one year, alt hough the
; largest.of their kind in tho world
: still are reaching their hands for
: more. One already has expended
not less than $1,000, 900 for an I'M
! mense new building, and the
! other has bought the site for an
additional structure which Will
! cost as much
If the business Of these two
: giants shows the same percent
age of increase during the pres
ent year 1906 will be over one
1 hundred millions of dollars
Will you give it to them?
For the time we leave the
...h xrnt. - Rpfai or :