The Grangeville globe. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho) 1907-1922, 1915-01-07
HOW HE MOVED THE TOWN.


The injustice of mail order patronage
Is such an old story that the chron-
telling of any phase Of 1t must be new
and unique to attract attention, says
the Kimberly Call. While the fault is
not always with the buyer, many times
1t is and for this reason we print a
little human interest confession, which
Is worth reading for it's story alone.
1t applies to the farmer, but may as
we'll be applied to the small town man
who pulls his livelihood from a COM
munity and gives the community no
benefit of his residence there. The
story is in the form of letter, writ
ten by one Hans Garbus, farmer in
Iowa, to the editor of an eastern pa
per:
Twenty years ago 1 began my
farm career. i had an old team and
$50. Our furniture was mostly hand
made-chairs, cupboard and lounge
made from dry goods boxes. neatly COW
cred with ten cent cretonne by my girl
wife. We rented eighty acres. Be-
ing a boy of good habits, 1 got all
needed machinery and groceries of our
home merchants on credit until fall
crops were sold. The first year was
| wet season and l did not make
/
each one on date of promise and ex-
planned conditions, paying as much as
possible, and they all carried the bal
ance over another year. They contin-
| ued to accommodate me until / was
able to buy forty-acre piece of my
| own.
sAs soon as / owned these few acres
the mail order houses began sending
me catalogues, and gradually 1 began
sending my loose change to them, let
ting my accounts stand in my home
| town, where / had gotten accommoda-
tion when / needed it.
/ 1--WE had then one of the thriftiest
little villages in the state-good line
of business In all branches, merchants
who were willing to help an honest
fellow over a bad year, and town full
of people who came twice a week to
trade and visit. Our little country
town supported library, high school.
| band, ball team, and we had big cele-
brations every year. A farm near a
live town soon doubles In value.
sold my forty acres at big advance
and bought an eighty. gradually adding
to 1t until I had two hundred acres of
the best land in Iowa. l then felt no
need of asking favors, and found II
easy to patronize the mail order agents
that came almost weekly to pur door.
1 regret to say that l was the first in
the country to make up a neighborhood
bill and send it to mail order house
Though we got bit once in while, we
got in the habit Of sending away fol
stuff
Gradually our merchants lessenec
their stock of goods-for lack of pa
| IlU has n
that when we needed bolt quickly fol
machinery, or clothing for ourselves ant
family, or even when we needed medi-
cines for sickness or death, we had Il
send away for 1t, which wasn't pleas
, ant One by one our merchants movet
, to places where they were appreciated
, and men of less energy moved IN. Grad
, uaHy our town has gone down; oul
, business houses are tacky in appear
. ance a number are empty. our schools
, churches and walks are going down
! We have no band, no library, nor bal
team There is no business done II
the town, and therefore no taxes t,
! keep things up. Hotel Is closed 70
: lack of travel Go down to the depo
! when the freight pulls in and you SCI
the sequel in mail order packages.
, mine years ago my farm was WORT
r s195 an acre; today I'd have har,
matter to sell it at $167 an acre. I
a is too far from a live town'-so ever!
! farmer has said that wants to buy
He wants a place near schools an
churches where his children can hav
! advantages. / have awakened to tn
fact that in helping to pull down tn
town It has cost me $500 in nine years
:, Like lots OF other people. didn't fig
ure far enough ahead"