The labor journal. [volume] (Everett, Wash.) 1909-1976, 1911-05-19
Stop! Look !
Listen!
"PATRONIZE HOME INDUSTRY" HAS
DOUBLE MEANING-MERCHA
OWE A DUTY TO THE PEOPLE
WHO MAKE POSSIBLE THEIR sue
CESS.

once woke up in the middle of the night
and saw a burglar crawling through the
window into his room. Reaching under
the pillow for revolver, the "peace
loving Quaker exclaimed: MY friend
| am going to shoot right through the
window where thee is and if thee doesn't
want to get hit thee had better get
out"
SO at some of our business men in the
following brief paragraphs, We are go
ing to shoot right through the window
where thee is, and if thee doesn't want
to get hit, thee had better get out"
We agree you are not in business fol
your health, but to make money. II
you are to conduct a successful business
you must sell goods, lots of them, at a
fair margin of profit And you must
build up home trade. 1t is to the peo-
pie of Everett you look to purchase your
commodities. Not the people OF Seattle
or Tacoma, or Bellingham, but here IN
your own town. Isn't it true that you
are constantly appealing to Everett citi
zens to trade at home," patronage home
industries" etc. You advertise through
local mediums the quality of your goods,
reasonable prices on same, a sure indi-
cation that you know you must cater
to the wants of your own people and it
is their trade you want. That much
goes without argument.
Again. The great bulk of your patron
age must come from working people be-
cause the working people make up the
larger portion of the population. This
is truer OF Everett than of many other
places because ours is pre- eminently an
industrial city.
You pay taxes here, many of you,
You have invested certain amount of
money in your business. You responu
literally to philanthropic and charitable
appeals. You would naturally grow
irritable if not indignant if the working
people sent to Seattle for their groceries,
to Tacoma for their clothing, to Chi
cago or st. Louis for this, that and the
other necessaries of life that were
handled here by you at the same cost
as they could be purchased elsewhere.
Assuming that you are in the retail
business, you are absolutely dependent
upon local patronage. If you don't get
it, you shut up shop. You owe something
to labor.
To what extent do you in your turn
patronize the people that patronize you? ?
You employ local people in your places
of business, you say? So far so good.
How about that cigar you enjoy after
dinner? Was it made here at home by
well-paid labor or by under paid EN-
ployes of the tobacco trust? Who buys
your goods? The local cigar maker OF
the one in Tampa, Florida?
And how about your printing? Dc
you send out of town to get your bill
heads printed, your letaer heads, envel
opes, receipt blanks, order blanks, etc
4 While you We're making out an order
for printing bill to an out-of- tow
firm did you ever stop to think of the
printers you number as your regulai
customers and that if everybody did a,
you We're doing the printers would have
to pack up and leave town?
Don't you have to look at business
from the workingman's angle once in
while? Just as he is necessary to you
success under the profit system, so arr
you necessary to his under the sam'
system. He buys your material com
modities and in turn has a labor com
, modify to SELL He can't sell it if ther
isn't market for his product If yOl
quit buying he quits working and whei
he quits working he quits buying a
well. Each of you must bear a relation
to the others prosperity.
Here is little incident that was re
lated to us the other day by reputabl
party who vouehes for its truth.
Some of you maintain what is know
as merchants patrol to supplement
the work of the regular police force
This patrol maintains a special nigh
watch upon your particular places o
business to protect them against mar
auders and thieves. You sent to Seattl
or some other city and employed gen
tleman named Mcintyre as special pa
trolman. The man may be efficient an
honest, we don't know anything abou
that. Here is the application of tn
principle again. There are several hun
dred men in Everett who pay taxes herr
send their children to school and help I
n maintain YOU, who are individuall
capable of filling that position. See th
u pointf
: You have right to do what yo
please with your own money! Ii ism
morally yours if you don't give vall
> received for it and the mere fact tha
your goods are up to standard does nj
e constitute evalue received"
Live and let live" must be the mot
e of ALL classes of the community al
y civic duty consists among other thinl
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