Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]) 1895-1928, 1914-11-04
.GREATER IOWA MEETING
y HElDiN DEBORAH
1 i Beaumont, Field Secretary, Wis.,
N = ted Decorah wednesday and
/ 9 Conferred With Members
| = DecOrah Commercial
80 *a> Club.
BANKER +. j. CURTIN CHARTER
MEMBER OF MOVEMENT
Decorah is the Capitsi or Headquart-
ers of District No. 4, Which
Comprises Winnesiielr
County.

/ Comprises Winnesl,iek
County.
I. J. Beaumont, field secretary Of
the Greater Iowa Association, was in
the city last week. In speaking Of
the Greater Iowa propaganda Mr..
Beaumont said:
| There seems to be a slight mis-
conception f1 the minds of many citi-
zens as to the Greater Iowa Associa-
ton. There is no official connection
between the Greater Iowa Associa-
tion and the State Commission to the
Panama-Pacific international Expo
sition. The latter is state board
appointed by the governor, while the
Greater Iowa Association is a v0lun-
tary association of prominent fowans
who have unselfishly given OF their
time and money to initiate certain
great intensive movements in agffcul-
ture and commerce. The personnel
of the State Commission includes a
number of the charter members of
the Greater Iowa Association because
1t would be impossible to appoint a
board Of prominent men without
drawing largely from the roll of hon
or of the Greater Iowa Association.
THE Greater Iowa Association was
formed to overcome certain cOndi-
| tiOnS in Iowa: namely the actual de-
population Of the rural districts that
Is constantly going on, the fact that
80 per cent of the graduates from
our splendid university must settle
in other states to obtain an adequate
reward for the r abilities and lastly
that this state is the happy hunting
| ground for every landshark in the
country who must obtain four times
what his land is worth to break even.
"The remedies for these conditions
we must borrow from older countries.
Germany successfully overcame these
problems during their regime of Bis
marck. In 1879 Germany's popUla-
tiOn was e1bing fast. Her children
were leaving her and her land was
worth just what Iowa land is worth
today, from $4,000 to $3.50 90 an
acre. Bismarck organized a society
and overcame these conditions by in
tensive farming, by the intensified
production of small factories and by
tremendous specialization in the pro-
fessions and the technical pursuits.
so well did Bismarck succeed that
his motto Germany has room and
work for all her children became
the watchword of the Empire. In
ten years immigration had ceased;
land had advanced in value and the
imperial government was making ar
rangements to take over the activi-
ties and establish bureaus to handle
them.
On the first day of August, 1914.
Germany was the commercial mis-
tress Of the world. Germany's pop-
ulation had increased from forty mil
lions to sixty-fiva millions. Her land
was worth $500 to $1,000 per acre:
with few sellers and many buyers and
her emigration had become immigra-
tion; and all citizens who have had
occasion to patrOnfze drug store
since the war began are keenly aware
that Germany controlled the chemi-
cal market as 1t does the profitable
specialties Of the world.
Iowa Is a good mother and the
Greater Iowa Association hopes to
inculate also the grandmotherly vir-
tues SO that the second generation
may find material reward here in it's
Ihome state as great as other COM
monwealths afford.
when you Lear men talk abou:
|preferring the good old times try
Ito imagine what we would suffer un-
der the good old times we would
be reading by tallOw dips, travelling
by Ox-team instead of motors. riding
on canal boats instead Of PullmaRs.
We would know nothing of any
neighbOrhoOd but our own, and our
sectional, partisan and religious bi-
gOtry would be unspeakable. 1t is
my personal opinion that man who
deliberately prefers the good old
times is either wealthy, and too stin-
gy to put modern plumbing In his
j house for his wife and daughters, or
else Is so lazy that the efficiency OF
today Is too swift for him to grasp
and appreciate
During Greater Iowa week We
will hold thousand meetings all
over the broad bosom of Iowa and
endeavor to spread the gospel of a
Greater State and to secure 10000
members to take up this splendid en-
] deayor to make Iowa raised place
on the map. While the work Is altru-
Iistic at the start, it will be extreme
ly profitable to every citizen when It
progresses to the point where we In
ltensify agriculture, raise the value OF
the land and multiply the factories
and commercial enterprises.
"The work Is being prosecuted
with the fervOr OF religious crusade
and men are giving their money ana
| .,,~,c ~ a. whO have never been D0u0-
fited with public work before"
Mr.. beaumont came here to con-
u,t with Mr.. Baker and the other Of
f,cers Of the Decorah Commercial
Ciuh tn organize this district.
DecOrah has the honor on O9lns
the capital or headquarIers VI M,nns us