Aberdeen herald. [volume] (Aberdeen, Chehalis County, W.T.) 1886-1917, 1908-03-23
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4. No portion of the salaries of
the secretaries or stenOgraphers, or
of the office rent or expenses was
paid by the chamber, all of these eX-
penses being taken care of through a
subscription of Aberdeen business
and professional men, not as members
of the chamber of commerce but as
public spirited citizens. And hea ding
the subscription list was a plain
statement of what was to be done
with the money, in which the amount
of salary to be paid to the secretary
was specifically named, which state
ment was read and agreed to by
every contributor to the fund No
deviation has been made from the ex-
pressed terms of this agreement with
the contributors. and who is there to
say that good value has not in the
main been received for it? Who,
aside from these contributors has the
right to raise question as to the
wisdom with which the fund was
handled?
Results obtained from all of this
effort and expenditure have been
many and good. The legislative ban
quet alone furnished the biggest and
best advertisement received by any
town or locality on this coast in
many years Not only were men of
prominence from every section of the
state given an impression of Aber-
deem and the Grays Harbor country,
which will never leave them while
they live, but much the strongest
gang OF newspaper men that ever to-
gether visited this city or locality
were here, and by them the fame of
Aberdeen was scattered in song,
poetry and prose and by big cartoons
in great newspapers, all over the
country. This advertisement put us
on the map as we never before had
been, and was worth as much to us
all, and then some as it and the en-
tire county division fight cost. The
banquet to the Tacoma business men,
paid for entirely by the local partic-
ipants, was such an instance of open
handed hospitality as is seldom seen,
and did much for the reputation of
this city among a class of men who
DO not forget and whose friendship is
valuable. The publicity department
OF the chamber expended over 1915
for postage alone, during this regime,
sending many thousands of letters
and booklets throughout the United
States and replying to inquiries
which have flowed in. from all drec-
lions and sources. But for the great
and unfortunate financial depression
which fell upon the country six
months ago, results possibly more
tangible than those actually attained
to date would doubtless have been
freely in evidence, in the location of
manufacturing plants here
but the financial skies seem to be
now, and if the work in
augurated by the chamber during the
past year or SO is carried forward by
the new administration. as it should
be, results will accrue from the foun-
dation laid which will demonstrate
its value beyond a question:
While no human work is ever done
so well that when all is finished
faults cannot be found in it's execu-
ton and results, yet, all considered,
it does not seem to the writer that
the late administration of the Alb
erdeen Chamber of Commerce has
much to apologize for. All of it's Of
ficers and committees, with the sole
exception of paid secretary, have
served without salary, emOlument, or
even expense account, and some have
spent hundreds of dollars of their
own money in the work. All have
given much time and conscientious
effort to the cause.
Any lack of visible results from all
Of this is due to conditions, and to
the fact that much of the time. effort
and money expended during the pc
Rod referred to was applied to the
laying of an enduring foundation
which the structure of a
and more evident success
would be impossible. 1t is now up
to the incoming administration of
the chamber to determine whether or
not this foundation is to be used or
it is to be abandoned and |
allowed to go for naught.
EDW. G. FINCH.
Aberdeen. Wash, March is, 1908.