St. Tammany farmer., 1908-07-18
IS TIME TO AWAKE
NECESSITY SHOWN FOR INTELLl-
GENT COOPERATION.
APPEAL TO GENERAL PUBLIC
Op-to-Date Farmer Points Out What
Could Be Done II AgricuIturists
and the Local Press Pulled
Together.

II Is question whether the average
retailer places sufficient importance
upon the necessity for cooperating
with the editor Of his local paper. The
latter is in position to mould the
sentiment Of his readers to a degree
which makes his assistance on any
matter in which the community is in
terested, very important.
There are of course instances where
local newspapers are operated in such
manner as to be of lfttYe benefit to
the community. in which they are pub
lished, but these are decidedly the
exception and as the Up-to-date Farm
er says:
Your home paper should receive
your earnest attention. 1t may be
that your home paper is not run to
suit you. 1t is possible that it pays
much more attention to what it con-
slders the best interests of the adver-
tisers than to those of the farmers.
There is nothing at all strange about
that. You probably pay 81 a year
subscription. The average country
paper does not have more than 1000 cir
culation, and at least one-half of these
are exchanges, deadheads and compli-
mentary. The $500 which the aver
age country editor receives does not
much more than pay for the blank pa
per and postage. The editor of such
country paper, therefore, must rely
almost altogether upon his advertis-
ing and job work for his support.
rs it any wonder that he pays lit
tie attention to the desires or the de-
mands Of the farmer?
TT is true that the merchant of
the country town depends upon the
farmers for his business, but country
merchants, until lately, have not
studied the economics of country life
and have not realized their entire de-
pendence upon the prosperity Of the
farming community of interests In
every neighborhood which is directly
opposed to the Capitalization of busi-
ness in few large cities has not ap-
pealed to these people.
''The country merchant has taken
his ideas from the merchant who sold
him his goods; the country banker
has usually supposed that his inter-
ests were identified with those of the
banking centers of the world; the
country lawyer has taken his political
views from the attorneys of corpora
tions, and the country editor has had
his work cut out for him by the edi
af HofI nI
controlled by people who were at the
head of special interests.
These special interests people have
tried and have, until recently, made
us all believe that the interests of all
classes were identical and that few
people who had specialized in the
study of finance and politics were to
be looked to as the leaders of public
opinion.
"Since the panic of 1898 it has SLOW
ly dawned upon the general public
that the teachings Of these self-ap-
pointed leaders were not altogether
perfect in their logic, and that what
was good for the Standard Oil monop-
oily or the steel trust might not be
for the best interests of the farmer
or the merchant.
Corporation lawyers from the city
represent us in congress and In the
United States senate, and corporation
lawyers have framed most of our
state laws. It Is time for farmers
and for those who depend upon them
for support to learn that the interests
of the speculative classes are not
those of the producer or the consum-
er, and Of the honest exchanger of
wealth. The editor of the home paper
should study these questions from the
standpoint Of the producer and con-
sumer and not from that Of the spec
ulator. The producer. should then
support the paper so that it will not
be necessary for it to take advertising
from any but legitimate firms that are
looking out for the interests of farm
ers and producers. The interests Of
the merchant in a country town de-
pend upon the prosperity of the farm
er, and the paper that teaches con-
.ro1led marketing deserves the sup
port of merchants and much bet
ter support than they now get from
| farmers"