The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1907-07-03
ESSENTIAL TO PROSPERITY.
How Town Failed When the News
papers Stopped.

The recent experience in the city Of
Butte in Montana is Of great interest
as showing how vital and all-pervad
inc a part in everyday modern life is
taken by the newspaper.
More than two months ago there
was a strike ordered among the news
paper employees in Butte of such
character as to result in the suspen-
sion Of all the newspapers Of the city.
OF course, the direct and immediate
loss fell first on the newspaper pro-
prietors, who suddenly found them
selves burdened with large, unpro-
ductive capital-not only idle, but alb
solutely incapable Of being converted
into money or anything else. OF
course, also, the striking employees
had again the pleasant experience Of
having "bitten off their own noses, ;"
in the common phrase, but they had
no fixed capital at stake. Most Of
them, probably, simply "tramped" to
other localities.
The curious feature Of the case is
that the general public Of the city in
sist that the real brunt Of the burden
os loss has fallen on the tradesmen Of
the city, who, there as in all modern
a;+;ae u,ara ooo,,ctoroad to ad1,artiSa
their business in the local newspa-
pers. It is their testimony that the
local trade fell off at once quite one
quarter in volume and in very many
cases, probably a majority, the loss
reached to one-half.
Confronted with this absence Of
their accustomed way OF reaching
their patrons they resorted to other
devices of attaining the same end.
The billboards and dead walls all over
the city were covered with posters
more variegated than could have been
Josph's famous coat Dodgers" and
handbills and circulars multiplied in
to hundreds of thousands and were
sent around from house to house, the
circulars perhaps more especially, but
according to the universal testimony
without having any appreciate effect.
The theatres, which had been before
the strike more in the billboard anG
dodger way Of working than any 9TH
er one vocation. multiplied those de-
vices many fold, but their business,
which had dropped off more than half
almost at once, remained at that low
ebb and could not be lifted out Of it.
The job printers who We're called on
20 furnish these devices, vain as they
proved, seem to have been the only
people who derived any profit from
the situation.
No doubt people continued to eat
and drink and wear clothing, but
they seem to have reduced even these
to the lowest terms. There could
have been no feeling of resentment
toward the tradesmen. They were not
the offending parties and cutting
down their trade did not at al! reach
the real offenders.
The whole affair, aside from any
other aspect. appears to be a vivid OBJ
ject lesson illuminating the contro-
versy, somewhat active Of late, as to
the respective worth of different ways
Of advertising, Of reaching the pub
lic'' with information. It all illustraes
how completely the newspaper has
grown into the fabric Of ordinary
town life. The great majority, dwell
ers in towns and cities especially,
have learned to look to newspapers
for news of where they can buy what
they want as spontaneously as for
any other news Of the world, and, as
always, their wants swell or swing in
volume according to what they see
that they can get.
The immense advantage of the
newspaper over any other channel of
Information is two-fold. First, it is
universal as to information and news.
The reader gets in one 81 eet the news
Of the world, the latest happenings in
al walks Of life, in State. church,
business and amusement. as we'll as
the news about what he can buy and
where it can be found. And, second
ly, he does not have 10 go to it. it
cones to him and brings its full bur
Gen of news With it. If he cannot
stop to read it at the moment he can
pocket it and read it when he has
moment or two on the street, in the
car OF after he gets home. He does
not have TO walk about or stand
reading acres of posters about things
he does not want in order to find the
che thing he wants. and in his swift
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