The Marshall republican., 1908-08-28
WRONGS TO FIGHT
EFFORTS TO PREVENT MONEY
LEAVING HOME COMMUNITIES.
SYSTEM BAD
Many Concerns In Small Towns I'm
peverlshed for the Benefit Of the
Few In Business In Larger
Cities.

hesOc1et10ns nave Tor some years beeu
working devising means Of preventing
the growth Of the mail order business.
Various plans have been projected.
Nearly oil that have been tried have
met with failure. The catalogue Vs.
TEN OF business continues to advance.
Some small houses have dropped out
OF sight, but the big ones are grow
ing bigger.
The mail order problem Is a trouble.
some one. One Of the reasons why Il
10 - Is because OF the methods that
the houses pursue. their wide adver.
Using, and the presentation OF their
side q the question by the hundreds
and thousands Of farm. religious. So
ciety, fashion and mail order papers
thse 60 TO the homes OF the masses.
an1 which are mainly supported by
the advertising Of the mail order con
csrno. Each locality has It's peculiar
local conditions. Merchants in some
towns, and these towns are many. are
not the aggressive and e%nterprising
class that are capable Of competing
with the mail order concerns. The
ak iCuitulai Nidsbtb aIV dilohb INV
most intelligent, are readers and think.
ers. but there are channels along
which their thoughts iow. Close study
demonstrates that as Q general rule
farmers labor under the impression
| that q low estimate 10 placed upon
them by the people Of the towns. The
| city folk dress better, the children OF
| the merchants move IN different
| class from the children OF the farmer,
and even the merchants wives per-
hsps dress a little more extensively
than do the wives Of the farmers. All
these things have their reflection In
business matters. Then, owing to the
impressions that are the result Of con.
tinual reading Of the advertisements
Of the catalogue houses. the farmer
Is led to believe that he unnecessarily
pays higher prices for what goods he
requires when he purchases them Of
the home merchant than he should.
He believes that he 10 made . victim
and that the profits that 30 to the
merchant should not be % great.
II 10 evident that the farmers educs.
Il tlou 1ibu8 NNouonltt ttuNb u hVtNtttNNs
He hes to . great extent developed .
warped idea Of business and CONNER
cial values. II the catalogue house
proposition be ameliorated II Is EVIL.
dent that the consumers OF every class
be made to realize that they are In
error. In fact. . course Of education
along right lines is necessary. II Is
not good business policy for the pa.
pers that draw support from mail or
der concerns to combat a business or
publish anything that Is likely to In.
lure the income from advertising.
Thus little help can be expected from
the papers that have their columns
filled with mall order advertising.
Then there remains only the country
press as the medium through which
the people may be enlightened. But
here Is another problem. The aver
& country editor Is not by training
equipped to carry on an intelligent
campaign. He ia likely to injure the
cause by creating %prejudices. by his
too blunt attacks on the catalogue
house system, and on their patrons.
Amy effort that he may make is looked
upon by the farmer As emanating from
the business interests Of the town, and
published solely with q selfish mo
tive. Thus are excellent arguments
d~eadened, and shafts that should be
effective. act az a boomerang.
II has been the inclination OF the
merchants associations to discuss the
mail order house behind closed doors,
In his small knowledge OF association
work the farmer Is most likely to
think that when business men OF 9
town organize II IL for the purpose
OF raising prices and working against
the interests of the farmers In gen
ersl. The way the associations have
been conducted In many towns almost
justified this belief on the part Of tht
farmer. II must be understood By
the merchants that any matter thai
affects the interests OF merchants ant
farmers and laborers alike should bs
discussed openly. There is no reason
why a lecturer on business econom,
should caution his hearers that onl,
merchants should be present to heal
him. II his proposition will not stant
the criticisms Of all whom II shoult
interest, Il Is Q poor one.
Farmers and laborers . have thel
own organizations. These are all o
the protective class. II 10 the ain
of the average farmers organization
To combat the Vaccinations OF tn
y trusts that dictate to them the price
thai they shall receive for their prod
ucts. II 10 the object Of the laborers
associations to combat the inclination
Of the ~cspitalistic classes to lowe
wages, and raise prices Of commod
tiss. On close investigation 1t will
!, be found that the farmer who Is tn
most active worker against the trusts
: ana the laborer who cries loudes
agsisst Tie oppression Of the emplo,
srs, ere tAs ones who by their shoI
sighted policy givs the very system
that they complain about the greater
y .. The avtla NJ tradA and cou