The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1914-05-28
LOCAL RELIANT
A BENEFACTOR
A Good Citizen and a Friend
In Heed.
HONEST MEN GIVEN CREDIT.

chant Is WfrnouC &heSSion 4Inel N0Fn-
munity's Most Prominent Factor.
Aids Farmer by Buying From Him.
HCopyrighted. 1914, by Thomas J. suIlwan.1
I would rather be right than~presi-
dent is the principle followed by many
retail merchants.
There us no right without a parallel
duty, no liberty without the supremacy
of the law, no high destiny. without
earnest perseverance no greatness
without self. denial.
AS a dispenser of important services
in any town meme compares with the
retail merchant.
Perhaps the first benefit of impor-
lance is the endless accommodations
which he extends his customers. His
books show that where misfortune
sickness or loss Of occupation over
takes his customers he is frequently
obliged toscarry themfer many months.
t4Orest%Men Get Credit.
The man who has not established a
reputation for unreliability or dishon-
esty is reasonably sure of securing
credit for thetaskfng. And the extern
sion of credit lis equivalent to making
loans without interest. And whe would
ask oraexPect any such favor Of any
onesbats a naerchantaor very close and
dearSfrfend?
The local town to be a desirable
place ito live in mast haEesp police and
fire protection, it must have bridges,
impro7red streets, water, sewers and
good schools. To secure these neces-
sary improvements and to maintain
them takes mnst4 be levied. The local
merchimt pays a large share of the
taxes
Among other things, the local mer-
chant ss continually forced to contrib
ute toRall manner OF charitable enter
prises, llboth public and private He is
the local benefactor, inasmuch as he is
the employer Of labor. Numerous
young rhen and women find empley-
ment In his store, and as the result Of
his iRweytmeRt Eand efforts Smany@6ol
lars, find their way to che pocket of the
doctor, the dentist, the editor, the
drugSfsbl and the banker, an 4ef which
contributors to stire9 social and financial
prosperity 8ofsthe community.
Ftaftlr,tnythe Community.
He aaidss tie farmer bysbuying from
him hissrrafiucts to- the extent Of his
needs; thus 1ncreasiag the profits Of
sthetfarnaers
He 9haksfs hOw7l his, faith.ia the com-
naunity5 Iyy inxestfsg his capital there.
consequently isstntenests centerthere:
upon 'hgal, i'm n measure, depends the
social, ereIi gions, = educational and com
TnerciafE eNasteasce OF the town, and he
lisg everswflling to- do hisspart
Ethisabeingp true, why lis, hegneten-
titled to }the same amount OF consid-
eratiOnt that exacted by. theafarmer,
the wage learner and the other factors
of the community that, are, always cry
ing for flair treatment" and "the right
to lveT'
Destroying Local Markets.
All he asks Is that whichis Eightfully
hiS-the OPPORTUNITY to display his
goods andscompare prices with those
shown in the misrepresented picture
albums" OF the catalogue houses be-
fore you sendsy our money away from
home to bay something of the, same
quality which he can sell just. as.cheap-
ly as does the bigscity naeEchaHtsprince.
Take away from the. community one
OF the mest important elements of
prosperity, the medium OF, exchange,
and the effect is inevitable weaken
ing oftthe organism. And thattis pre-
ciselyi what the great mail order re-
tail houses, are deing. Theys are bleed
ing the local communities They. are
destroying local markets, weakening
local credits, reducing the volume of
deposits In small $lecal banks, starving
Out$local business men who are con-
suners of farm 4products rs we'll as
dealers, driving to the large cities
thousands of consumers whe can no
llonget find employment : in small
towns, and the men who are aiding
them ms their 9werlc of destruction will
soon pay the penalty in the shrinkage
of sthe.values ofstheir property. as we'll
as sin. the less OF, their markets.
A Gigantic Monopoly.
That9theemanagers Of these. gigantic
enterprises understand what they are
loingsis amply demonstrated by re-
mark 5recentfy made by one of them
numberain, Chicago, He said, Give us
a few more years and we will nake
eTeryfcity& ontsitle of, Chicago "a town.
every town, asivillage, every village a
hamlet, and every hamlet we win
wipe OF the face OF the earth"
What will the eustemersso the mail
order houses do then, poor things?
They Will ahaveSgiEen aid, and comfort
to Che enemy that his destroyed their
prosperity. They viii have assisted in
building ups gigantic monopoly. Sc
dueed by$ pretty; picture books, they
Will have in their innocence starved
out. their own best customers. De-
serted villages will then mark the
places where prosperous communities
formerly thrived, and the population
of the country will be divided between
the farms and the large cities. The
prospect is. net aapleasant one toscen-