Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1915-11-17


the new Elks block Tuesday evening
was attended by about go of the
business men Of the city and num-
Der of visitors from the neighboring
towns. The meeting was addressed for
a number Of prominent speakers and
was declared by those present to be
the finest event of the kind ever held
| in Watervills.
After the good things Of the ban
quet had been disposed of all present
arose and sang two verses of America.
President Patterson then acting as
ttoastmaster spoke as follows:
Presidents Address
Business itself is very simple. Business
| is nothing more than supplying one an
others wants. On the average, the bust
ness man has just as high ideals and ius.
as much brains as the lawyer, the doctor
| the educator. or the professional uplifter
| and reformer. Nearly all the great re-
| formers were business men: and the rea-
| son why they were great reformers was
| that they were men with big hearts and
| big intellects. The Chamber Of Com
merce is an uplifting organization, a sort
| of reform club. and the importance and
worth of the work il undertakes to do in
| the community is a true measure of the
| public spirit Of the business men who are
| its members.
! The ideals of the business men have
! changed in the last % years; the ideal
/ today is one Of accomplishment. the
! building of an institution rather than
mere accumulation as a means to an end
/ In the modern spirit Of business. dollars
! are mere means of an end: they are not
the end. and the man who seeks the dol
! lar in the fear of want is a failure and
/ is soon left by the wayside in conpeti-
ton with the realization of higher ideals.
| The community has its burdens as well
| as the individual business: and the indi-
vidual business must contribute to them
hence the reason for such an organiza-
| ton as this Chamber of Commerce
| The following matters have been sub
mitted to this organization for consider
alton:
| u The establishment in the City han
| of complete filing system for vital sta
tistics charity statistics. housing statis-
| tics, together with periodical reports of
the work Of each city department.
| (2) The establishment of a NUM-
cipal purchasing department and eff
cheney tests of all municipal en-
ployees.
! go A non partisan investigation of
the valuation and equalization of tax
able property. SO that the tax rate
may be reduced if possible and the
burden Of taxation Iightened for bust
ness and manufacturing concerns.
"a Well equipped Fairgrounds one
to be equipped at a time TO meet tho
local needs. At least one Of them
should be lighted SO il can be used
evenings.
| 60 The installation of a modern
health department with paid officer
in charge all the time, assisted by
visiting nurse, at a cost of from $500
to $4,000 per year.
| go Night and vocational schools
and agricultural demonstration gar
| dens started
| 10 A Prosperity Council of Is or
more members TO represent citizens in
carrying matters Of public interest be-
fore the city government and slim
ulating community interests generally.
In Other Localities
| President Patterson then introduced
Kenneth McNichol Of Boston, who put
his hearers in a good humor by some
| fine stories. In the last five years
there has come big awakening and
desire to get together for the public
good" said Mr.. McNichol. The thing
| to consider is what have you got TO
| advertise in other words to sell.
| Mr. McNichcl then went ahead to
| point out a few things that had been
done in other towns. He spoke of va
rious cities and what made them ia
NOUS and then he declared "a COM
munity in which everyone is working
for the good OF everyone in the place
is the ideal community. Think always
OF how rich is the average man in the
town. by that is meant not in money
! but in pleasure and what they get out
Of life. / have often dreamed of liv-
ing in a city where every man thinks
| of every other man before he thinks
Of himself. If We could have such
town everything needed would come 10
it" He then said: 4 would suggest
as a first step that you as a commit
tee get every man. woman and child
in the city TO believe that this is the
greatest city in the world.
Work in Maine
DR.. Leon S. Merrill. dean of the ag-
ricultural college at Orono. was next
introduced. DR. Merrill then defined the
various steps that are being taken
in the extension service. He declared
| that the university was trying not on
~ to spread the truth but to put il
to work and was interested only in
increasing the profits of the men on
the farm not interested in any partic-
ular crop. Development in agriculture
is what is needed now. Many econom-
ic truths are now loafng on the Job
like the spraying Of potatoes and of
apple trees, and it is necessary for the
extension work to put these truths TO
work.
There are 10 counties now being COW
cred by the county men and three spe
cialists. This is being supported by the
State and federal governments and by
the general education board in New York.
Work is only taken on when the people
of the county want it. A Chamber of
Commerce will only exert itself to assist