The Forrest City times., 1907-07-12
COMMERCIAL CLUBS
CAN BE MADE IMPORTANT FAC
 TORS IN TOWN BUILDING.
BEST FIELD FOR THEIR WORK
Their Efforts Should Be Put Forth to Keep the Dollars in the Home Toun-Protecting eusi-
 ness interests.

During the past few years there haS been more than ordinary activity in the organization of so-called conner cial clubs. business mems leagues and similar associations in the agricultural sections of the country. Some had mushroom growth. and like some flow. CTS. bloomed and blossomed, withered and decayed in an hour Others strug- gled along indifferently and succeeded in spending much of the people money without assisting the town 10 greatness. while very few succeeded in doing things that were of benefit to the community.
 There is little use in trying to make suit of clothes for a man out of pattern of cloth that has only suffi- cient goods for childs suit. There is little use in trying to build up great town in locality where there is not the material to sustain it, and where there are only resources for the support of hamlet. Towns of i'm portance exist only where there are certain natural advantages, resources that can be utilized in manufacturing. territory sufficiently large to command extensive trade, or some other favor able condition. In the west manufac turing must by the economy of things be confined to such lines as can be advantageously produced In manufac turing there are many factors. There must be considered the cost of fuel, the raw material. the labor and highly important are the transportation facil. ities.
 One of the noticeable things about commercial clubs is the optimistic tendencies of their members. Business men of q strictly agricultural town will form an association. Perhaps the leaders are interested in the real es- tate business. They want the town to acres of land worthless unless for d factory site. Meetings are held plans are made for the bringing in of some manufacturing plant that per haps may give employment to half a dozen or a dozen hands. Correspond ''ANV ID oAOi l1u "liu q NitN ol EtlliiS some outsider interested. The right man. apparently, makes his appear ance. He wants bonus of few thousand dollars. His proposition is seriously considered. The subscription paper is passed around, the amount secured, and the real estate man sells his factory" site at a good price. The factory is started. It runs about a year and there is vacant factory building for rent, or for ~ale How many towns in the southwest have had this experience?
 Even had the enterprise been sue cess, 1t remains that there Is a field more productive of good for the town that the club" overlooked. Say that a factory be started in a small town. It may give employment to a dozen men. The pay roll amounts to $50 a day The output of the concern may reach a total of from s25 900 to s35, 900 year
 Every little helps" and all other things in harmony this adds to the importance of the place But let us do little estimating" Suppose that there Is about the town a territory of 150 square miles. Suppose that each square mile represents four families farmers ia lies. This would make 500 families who should do their trad ing in the town. The reports of the bureau of statistics of the United States department of labor and com hot ho penditure of the farmer each year for all the supplies he requires in the way of agricultural machinery, carriages.
 wagons, clothing. and food is s627 Careful estimates of the amount of the farmers trade that goes to the mail | order house and is in other WAYS di- verted from his home town. shows that 1t is more than 25 per cent of all he spends. Thus We find that from the territory of the town there is annually diverted in trade the nice sum of more than s79,000. This amount goes from the town. ceases to be a factor in it's upbuiiding. IL means that every day | the town loses about s132 in trade.
 Now would it not be much better if the commercial club took up the mat. ter of devising means of protecting the business interests of the enterprises in the mercantile lines already estab- lshed than to bring in new enter prise of uncertain success2 Is not the trade cf the farmers and the people of the town equally as beneficial as the wages paid to the few men that the factory might employ? Does not s79,- GOO in trade more than equal the out put and the general accruing to the wealth of the town by the factory?
 It Is evident that there is wide field for commercial club effort in the keeping in the town the dollars that are earned and devising means of pro. tecting trade.