The Daily Missoulian. [volume] (Missoula, Mont.) 1904-1961, 1913-02-10
GOOD WORK

Editor Missoulian-I have no apollo
gies to offer for the following article.
l have some timidity about getting in
to print, but here goes.
o the past three years I have been
a member Of the Missoula Chamber
of Commerce and have attended every
meeting when it has been practically
possible for me to do so. l have OBJ
served, critically, the things that ave
came before the chamber for consider
alton and have taken note of the
action taken on these things. Fur
Their I have heard and carefully con-
sidered the many complaints made to
me by good citizens Of the city and
read with much interest some articles
that have appeared in the papers in
timating what the chamber Of com
merce should do.
In the first place am going to adj
nit that the chamber may have made
some mistakes. However, that may
be, l am going to say tina on the
whole l have been pleased, indeed, at
the earnestness, the desire and efforts
put forth by the few men who have
had the responsibility and the work
to do.
There are about 800 contributing
members of the chamber of commerce.
At the annual meetings to elect an
executive committee there are from 80
to 40 in attendance. Full publicity
is always given Of these meetings in
advance. The men who bear the bulk
of the cost each year also have the
bulk Of the work to do. Each week
once, twice, three times they are
called away from their business to at
tend to the public business.
The consider beet sugar factories.
canning factories, creameries, things
to be manufactured from the great
clay beds near Missoula. Manufacture
les to manufacture up wood products
and paper mills. They consider the
farming products and marketing the
same. They consider railroads, in fact,
every industry of every kind.
In starting n kind of business it
matters not of what nature there must
exist those conditions that will oper-
ate to make that business a success.
1t is the business of this faithful body
of men to first make a thorough in
vestigation and When they discover
certain conditions existing that would
make it impossible for a certain in
dustry to be a financial success. Then
the task of trying to change those
conditions. To flaunt these unfortu-
nate conditions before the world in
many cases would operate to defeat
he very object sought. SO they must
QpttJn down RI 7lrptJ1I CNCtanD2t1C
work.. AS an Illustration, cooperative
creameries were under consideration
10 years ago there were three cream
cries operating in the great state of
Montana. Six years ago there were
33 and today there are three cooper
alive creameries. $50 far as can be
determined whereas there should be
800. Why? Because the laws, or the
lack of a law in this state made it
possible for n enterprlsing resource
full INSCRIPTIONS individual to go into
any community where there was in
operation a creamery cooperative or
otherwise and pay the dairyman more
for his butter fat than the market
price, and this is just what he pro-,
ceeded to do. until the local plant
was icitSu " SioSe 10 uooioJ dltSA
which the dairyman Would accept the
regular price of less. That is not all.
he could also go into sections Of the
country n buy up old so-called but
ter, ship it to Montana n take it
through a process called renovation
and sell it for a first-c1ass product.
This is not all, he could sell a pack
age of butter containing IA ounces Of
butter and two ounces of paper for
one pound of butter; and that is not
all, he could put any creamery out of
business in this state. At Stevens
vile the dairymen W their plant and
they refused to be beguiled into the
scheme-but this is the rare excep-
ton.
What must be done? We must
take our medicine until our legislators
pass a law that will make impossible
such a condition. If they will do it
this winter within five years there
will be 500 healthy, profitable cream
cries In operation in Montana. Not
this identical condition c%onfronts ev-
cry industry that might be established
in and around Missoula. but always
something.
These men are working hard, work.
ing faithfully. working intelligently 10
remove these handicaps. They will