The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1912-12-05
CONCERNS WHO
Do NOT HELP
IN ANY WAY TO BUILD UP COM.
MUNiTY, BUT PROFIT BY
ITS PROSPERITY
A FAIR AND IMPARTIAL DISCUSSION
OF the Old Controversy Between Re-
tail Merchants and Mail Order
Houses-You Should Read It.

Houses-You Should Read It.
From the Merchants Trade Journal
of Dies MOines, Iowa, we get the fol-
lowing article on the old controversy
between the retail merchant and the
mail order house, and we believe that
1t will pay you to read it:
In this article the Journal springs
something ley on the business world,
and, in fact, not only on the business
world, but the educational world as
we'll. This article goes into the ques-
ton OF economics; it touches every
States; it deals with a subject never
before discussed in public, at least not
along the lines outlined in this article.
Either We are a long, long ways
from being on an economic basis in
this article, or else we have touched q
vital cord in the lives Of the American
people.
In every community, in and around
every town, thousands upon thousands
of dollars, aside from direct taxation,
have been put into improvements Of
many, many kinds. A very, very
large portion OF this money, probably
ninety-nine per cent of it, has been
contributed by the retail merchants.
We do not care at this time to take
any material credit to these merch-
ants. We are more interested just
now in stating facts that they may be
a basis for what follows.
Leading from your town and thous-
ands Of other towns, roads nave been
builded, repaired and improved by
money donated by the business men Of
the town. Usually, when bridges have
been buiided or repaired. it has been
done by the use Of money raised by
public taxation, and yet thousands of
dollars of money have been donated
by business men and gone into build
ing and repairing bridges.
Thousands upon thousands of towns
have held within them, annual and
s%emi-annual sessions of farmers in
stitutes, short courses, corr shows,
and exhibits of different kinds. All
OF this, or nearly all Of it, has been
done at the expense of retail mer-
chants. In some instances farmers
have contributed to a small degree,
but IN investigation will show that
halls have been furnished, we'll known
lecturers engaged and so on, by mer.
chants.
Lecture courses of different kinds,
including the popular lecture course
and lectures on agricultural and stock
subjects, and others, have been pro-
NOTED, and sometimes wholly and en-
tircly paid cor by retail merchants. At
other times the deficit arising from
the conducting of these courses has
been bourne by these same merchants.
Wilson, White, Jones, Thompson
and many other families have met with
misfortune; their horses died; their
houses burned down; disease came
into the family and someone had to
come forward as the big Brother"
and be the good friend; and pay
money into a public subscription fund
and keep these people from becoming
public charges.
Again the retail merchant comes
forward in his generosity and puts up
the money and keeps these people
from becoming public charges on the
community, and thus helps lower the
expense of the community, in this re-
spect. The widow needs attention;
she is out of fuel, out of food, and she
needs clothing; the retail merchant
either puts UP a good share OF the
money with which to buy these things,
or else he supplies them out of his
stock Of goods.
Sometimes there has not been sufic-
lent funds in the school fund with
which to conduct the kind Of a school
that was wanted; a special teacher
was needed, or there was something
needed to be done, and the merchant
has been the large contributor to these
funds. The community needed a rail-
road, possibly 1t had none, possibly it
had one. but 1t wanted another, and
again the merchant carries his share
of the burden, OF more.
The church, the lodge. the commun-
Ny organisation wants to put on an
entertainment. and the merchant IL
the first nan approached for the buy