The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1912-02-23
IMPORTANT
TO PRESERVE
The Home Trade Of the
Country Town - These
Towns Retain Those
Things That Make
America Great.

writing to the convention of the
Southwestern Lumberman's Assocla-
tion, held recently at Kansas city, he
says:
"I am exceedingly sorry that ! can
rot attend your convention. 1t seems
TO me that the lumbermcn Of this Sec
tion are undertaking work that
should commend them to all good cit
liens
"The preservation NJ the home
trade TO the home town carries with
1T the preservation OF many Of our
American institutions.
/ 1T seems to me that lot OF good
/ things in American life will pass If
the country town passes. And It will
pass just so surely as Capitalization Of
retail mail order business in cities con.
tinues.
| "The American country town, the
town Of from one hundred TO one hum
dred thousand people, preserves better
than the crowded city and better than
the lonely ranch ana Isolated farm life.
the things that make America great.
"TIere In these country towns the
spirit Of neighborliness is the prevail
inc spirit Men come 60 know one an
other and when any two human beings
come to know one another, in the one
who is intelligent ana wise respect al
ways rises for the other. To know
ones fellows always is to sympathize
with them Neighborliness spells fra
lternlty.
"The American country town with
Its broad circle of friendships, with its
close homoly simple relations between
men. with it's spirit Of cooperation and
with its economic status that permits
the creation Of no indeccntiy rich and
Iro abjectly poor the American cuun-
ltiy town. Il seems to me- is the most
hopeful OF our American institutions.
ITO destroy that town, furnishing
the market for the farmer and giving
steady employment to labor. means a
reorganization of our commercial, So
olal and industrial lfe that Will be
revolutionary-and more a matter OF
doubtful value.
= "Thc mail order house therefore be-
comes menace tu this country. the
mail G.. .er house unrestricted will lull
our smaller towns. creating great
cities with their terrible contrasts OF
life, with their cruel social relations,
|. with their inevitable caste feeling that
come from the presence Of strangers
, who are rich and poor living side by
side.
0 Friendship, neighhorliness. fraterni.
e ItN or whatever you viii call that spirit
of comradery that comes wncn men
L now one another We'll Is the cement
that holds together this union OF tho
o States. 1t Is not created in great
cities.
;, "Grcat cities give much in aims. but
little i'm Justice Only as we know each
t other well can we treat each other just
Us; and the city Is a wilderness Of care
: less strangers whose instincts Of hu-
manlty are daily becoming moro and
:, moro blunted 10 suffering, because In
the nature Of things suffering in cities
= must be impcrsonal II Is not the suf.
}, Iferlng of friends and neighlors and
lSith and kin as II is I'm the smaller
!. towns. So the mail orcer house crush
= ing out our towns is drying mp the
}, milk of human Kindness in our hearts
"And that brings MS back to first
:, principles; II we who live In these
!, small towns In America cannot see that
our duty to our county lies first of all
o IN our duty TO our neigabors, then we
: are blind indeed to the basis of rea
patriotism, for after all patriotism Is
r Ionly neighborly kindness, Patriotism
Us not IN cheering for the flag; II Is not
}
tiona tears at hearing "The Star
>, spanged Banner;" patriotism is just
g ,cld-fashioned human duty.
"ro sacrifice our neighbor-the mar
:, who helps the town with its taxes
y with It's public business, with It's
myriad activities for neighborly right.
!, leousness-to sacrifice that man and his
e business for the mere sake Of saving
n dollar on the purchase of a hundred
: dollars worth of goods is Just as un.
patriotic as it Is TO spit at the flag.
}, For the flag If 1t means anythinc
means the golden rule; the flag means
y friendly burden bearing; II means mu
}, tual help in trouble; It means stand,
irg together against common foes
{ "The motto Of the mail order hous,
u us tNtlN llltlll A'A lAllliHfAl Nllu Allt utNl
take the hindermost-and you bet tn,
t devil will.
"That spirit never fails to work; and
!, the weak man, the unprotected man
the man alone-the man on the farm
Il the end Of the fact. when his farm
\ market is gone, when mis- town Is gone
y when the spirit Of sefishness and gree
70 has left this country cold and hard ant
mean and neghborless-the farmer vii
lie the hindermost.
"a 80 l am glad to lnow that this as
n sociatlon is taking up this works
A cheerless, thankless but necessary anC
# patriotic task-and pushing II TO a sue
!. cessful conclusion. You have my hear
N test sympathy ana may cali upor
: mo whenever l can help. p."-Nationa
|. Glass Budget,