The Brownsville daily herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1897-1910, 1908-09-22
TUESDAY. SEPTEMBER %. 1908
BROWNS NLLE'S OPPORTU-
WTTY

A certain prominent canal and de-
Velopment promoter of the valley,
who is located on the Sam Fordyce
branch of the Brownsville road, re-
Gently urged that better telegraph
service was needed between Browns
vile and Corpus Christi, and at his
suggestion the Lower Rio Grande
ValleyCommercial club sent a request
to the superintendent of the Western
Union Telegraph company that such
improvement be made as would give
this place direct telegraph communi-
cation with the latter place, the reas-
on for asking such service being duly
set forth. The result was somewhat
curt refusal from the superintendent
of the said telegraph company,
coupled with a sarcastic comment to
the effect that Brownsville could not
expect to have direct telegraph COM
munication with every place in Tex
as.
The sarcasm and curtness of the
refusal do not hurt the feelings of
Brownsville. Although the citizens
of this place originally gave the sum
of twenty thousand dollars as a bon
US to induce that company to build
its line to this place, they had not eX-
pected any favors in return. Most
people know what to expect from a
monopoly.
The incident, however, may serve
a good purpose for Brownsville. IL
It only opens the eyes of our business
men to a great opportunity which
they are actually neglecting.
Why did the canal promoter re-
feTred to wish direct communication
with Corpus Christi? Because he
was accustomed to order certain sup
plies from that place, and the fact
that kilograms from points ON the
Brownsville line to Corpus Christi
must go around by way of Galveston
and San Antonio causes such delay
in delivery of kilograms that his
orders for supplies from Corpus
Christi are sometimes delayed
twenty-four hours on account of it.
The point need hardly be pointed
out to the business man who has eyes
and brains to back them. He must
ask himself Immediately:
Why should people in this section
have to order supplies from Corpus
Christi?
The answer is plain: Because
Brownsville does not supply the de-
mand, either has not the goods re-
quired, or does not let the buyer
know that she has them.
If Brownsville supply houses do
not keep the goods that are required
by such enterprises as that which
to
why not? There is not only one can
al enterprise in this valley, but near,
ly two dozen of them. There is nof
only one mill in course of construc-
ton here, but several, and more are
projected. The demand for material
of various kinds is practically unlim-
tied Why cannot anything required
for either kind of work that could
be supplied by Corpus Christi house
be supplied by Brownsville house?
So far as The Herald can see, there
is no reason why Brownsville houses
cannot meet such demands as well
as those of any other town.
1t appears to The Herald that per-
haps the merchants of Brownsville
have been lacking in enterprise, and
are letting trade that is naturally
tributary to Brownsville go to other
places. 1t is not in a spirit of critic
ism that this observation is offered,
but in the hope that the business
men of this community may be
prompted to endeavor to supply the
wants of the fast developing territory
in this valley and hold the trade
which should be theirs by right.
Why are the people OF so many of
the small towns up the road buying
their supplies from other towns at
greater distance than Brownsville?
A certain wholesale grocery merch-
ant in Corpus Christi a few months
ago told the editor of The Herald
that he was getting the greater part
of his trade from the territory along
the Brownsville road in the valley.
1t is high time for our business
houses to wake up to the great op-
portunity which they are letting go
in not cultivating trade relations
with the new people who are locating
in the valley by soliciting their
patronage, and also by find
ing out what they want and seeing
that they get it. There should be
large wholesale houses here that
would send out sales agents regular
ly to visit the trade and solicit or
ders. throughout the valley and, in