The Bemidji daily pioneer. [volume] (Bemidji, Minn.) 1904-1971, 1914-03-05
/: Community Building

- OOAAA1uAAACy 0u41U1uk
In an address before the Farmers
Institute at Fairbault recently J. J.
Ryan said:
The object of these meetings, as I
understand 1T, is to devise ways and
means to better conditions on the
farms and in the country towns. I
feel that I can offer you a few sug-
gestions along this line, as I have
spent about half of. my life, so tar,
on the farm and the other half in vii
lagos and cities. Z am going to sug-
.gest to the men who live on farms
and to the men who live in town that
df you wish and expect to succeed you
must cooperate. Your relations are
such and your interests are so in
terwoven that one cannot succeed or
fail without contributing to the sue
cess OF failure of the other. BY CO.
operation the citizens of this COM
immunity can make it as desirable a
place as there lis in the world to live
in. On the other hand, by pulling
apart, by strife and contention you
can make Ut as lonely a spot as there
Is in the world to live in. Fl
B. The farmers need the business men
and the business: men need the farm
ers. Their interests are mutual and
this county cannot progress or
prosper If there be divided
sentiment. The question should not
arise, "Whc will be the most bene-
Tilted" The whole, object is to per-
feet such confidence that every man
will feel at home and cast his in
fluence with full force for every and
all home enterprises. What business
man or farmer is there who loves his
family, who has regard for his neigh
(bor, who feels the thrill of. public
spirit for the advancement Of his
community, his county and his state,
who can find it in his mind and heart
to decide THAT he will for a moment,
by a single act lend any influence to
discourage or block the generous i'm
pulses of true and unselfish friend
ship.
Governor Joseph w. Folk, of Mis-
souri,, in addressing a body of .citi-
gems in his state, such as we have
here today, said to them, "If a place
is good enoughifo a man to make his
money in, 1t should 1be good enough
for him; to spend it in" There is a
thought that should he taken to the
home of every man in this assem-
blage. It announces a principle that
eyery--man can afford to act upon.
LAS, Governor Kolk says, the business
men have a right to all the business
of the town in which they have their
stores and every good citizen should
help them to get it. Every dollar
that goes out of this community for
anything made, OF that can be bought
here, is just so much taken away
from the place where that money be-
longs, and should be used. Such ex-
,penditure takes away from the pre-,
sent value, and prospective value Of
the farm. .. r. rs g
The farm located a mile or two from
Faribault, or any other good town,
is worth twice as much. as the farm
eight or ten miles distant. If a
farm is close, to church, school and
market, dts value is greatly increas-'
ed. The last United States Census
shows a great decrease in population
in towns the size of nFaribault and
less due to the tact that business in
those towns has been dwarfed be-
cause the money that formerly went
to 1ourish local business is now,
sent to the big cities. If this drain
OF moneyafrom the smaller towns to
the dbig cities continues, many Of
them will disappear entirely. There
is one mail order house in Chicago
that areports3t the sale of $90.00O,O00l
last year.. and q net profit of $780,
900. Gov. Dunn of Illinois, was
instrumental, in having a committee
from their state senate Investigate
labor conditions in the cities Of the
That committee took testi-
monty i'm many parts Of Illinois and
it was proven that q majority OF the
tens of thousands Of girls working
in the large Chicago mail order
houses were receiving IS a week or
less, q wage which it was admitted
would not afford a decent living.
FIFTY years ago the best blood OF the
was spilled to abolish slavery.
the country towns are dwarf
ed and paralized because money that
give Them life Is forwarded
to the big cities to promote white
slavery.
k< Ark NIX kkfkfkk
4 EDITORIAL EXPLOSIONS
~ ~ X ks%
When q man. drags religion into
politics tt e time 20 hang the Good