Western Carolina Democrat and French Broad hustler. [volume] (Hendersonville, N.C.) 1913-1915, 1914-12-17
HOW EVERY PERSON CAN HELP
BUILD AND IMPROVE HIS LIFE.
That Which Most Strongly Champions
His Cause is Entitled to His
Heartiest Support.

HeartieSt Support.
The following from the American
Press with reference to the duty of
the people toward their local neWspa-
per, wnicn ever stands ready to cham
pion the cause ~of the masses, is
worthy of the consideration of all
people who hope to improve local con-
ditions:
The American Press receives day
by day the announcements of suspen-
sions of papers in every part of the
country, and the details accompanying
such announcements lead to the con-
giction that one factor is primarily at
fault with those papers that have
given up the ghost" That factor is
the subscription price of 81.
The papers charging this price for
years subscription are, of course,
greatly in the minority. That is only
natural, for but few papers can exist
at that rate, and those that do are
merely dragging themselves along.
The subscription price of 81 is doubly
wrong, because the mistake in asking
it is made in the beginning What
reason is there to believe that sub
scribers will not be willing to pay at
least $1.50 for their paper? What
reason have some publishers to sus-
pect that the community in which they
are settled or about to settle will not
gladly show an enterprising spirit and
materially assist an enterprising pa
per as it should be assisted? Amer
lean fair mindedness will surely not
fail the publisher who has made up
his mind to serve the community well
through his paper. There is no doubt
in the mind of any one who has an in
sight into the matter that the country
PAPER is the great champion of the
rights of the country community.
Not alone does it fight the battles of
its own immediate community, but it
expresses in greater measure than
any metropolitan paper the true senti-
ment of the American people.
But further than this, the country
paper is accepted practically as
E,ember of every family. The pub
Usher knows the conditions that pre-
vail in every home. He is called upon
in this matter and in that; he is call
ed upon for his opinion in all matters
that engage the communicate this
aside from his duty as a newspaper
man to provide his readers with news
of the neighborhood and of the county.
State and nation. This service alone
entities him to the most generous pa
tronage, advertising as well as sub
scription, at the hands of the COM
But there are other consider
ptions to be taken into account by the
publisher which make a higher SUBJ
scription absolutely imperative. Fore
r1ost among these are the increased
cost of almost every commodity that
enters into our homes or, in short.
the increased cost of living. Food
prices have gone up; raw materials
are higher. In fact, wherever we turn
we find that we must pay more than
we did formerly, except when we buy
our newspapers.
''The grocer, the clothing merchant,
the hardware merchant, the druggist
and others-all of them raise their
rrices when the market demands it
hut the newspaper goes on at the
same rate, high cost of living or no
high cost of living. Why is this? Is
not the publisher entitled to raise the
price of his wares in the same man
ner that every other merchant raises
his? Most assuredly he is.
'tAt the subscription price of $3.50 a
year the weekly newspaper, read at
least by two persons in every family,
costs the reader a little over cent.
For this sum the reader is informed
of what is going on in his immediate !
he is put in touch with
the affairs of the State and nation;
Le is instructed, amused and enter
tanned As we have said once before,
the reader profits, and the advertiser
profits. But where is the profit that
belongs to the man who fs- producing
the newspapers? The solution is
that, besides making and maintaining !
strict advertising rates, every publish
er should make subscription rates that |
will pay for the: cost Of his paper.
The price of $3.50 should be accepted
as a minimum. Every wide awake |
will gladly pay this for a |
good home paper"
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