Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1915-02-04
KEEP YOUR MONEY IN YOUR
OWN COMMUNITY.

lars at home and thereby helping your
local communities to prosper.
In unrestricted terms I have char
acterized the folly Of helping big cor
porations to profit at the expense of
your local merchants. l have tried to
show you the criminality, against your
self, your townspeople and your de-
scendants, of scorning the prosperity
Of your own communities and deliber-
ately working against the interests of
your own towns by sending your funds
to the city.
/ have depicted the foolishness of
buying from mail order houses when
you can obtain just as good or better
merchandise from your own local mer-
chants and I have exposed the meth
DDS in vogue in at least one mail order
concern.
These articles have been addressed
to those Of you who live in the smaller
communities and in the country
where you are compelled to rely on
individual honesty among yourselves
rather than on the pledges OF men
who do business with brass bands
and pages of newspaper advertising.
Experience is the greatest and the
best teacher and my experience has
taught me that it is preferable to
transact business with man person
ally known, rather than with an I'M
defnable concern without identity ex-
cept as a corporation. In the big cities
we are compelled to deal wholly with
the latter, while in the smaller cities
and towns you can meet the former
face to face and do your business d.
rect
In buying and selling there is no
dealer or merchant that does not know
that the crooked deals come home to
roost-therefore it is the better part
Of discretion, as well as simple hon
esty, to give full value to a customer.
The dealer in the small town cannot
hide behind a corporate name or con-
ceal himself in private Office from
the customer who has been fooled.
He must face the music IN case he
transgresses, and he realizes that he
must satisfy his customers or he will
lose them.
Honesty is bred in small commu-
mites and is fostered, while in large
cities it is only too often lost sight of
because of the immunity that comes
with not meeting the customer in per-
son Clerks and other employees
must bear the burden Of reproach and
censure while the man higher up"
never hears of such things. Excuses
are all readymade and framed to
meet all contingencies by the heads
of mail order houses and in case of
complaint from a customer the cor
respondent as a rule merely indicates
a certain form letter.
But in your own home town your
merchant meets you face to face and
he is always on the job. He can al
ways be found at his place of business
and in case Of a complaint he is right
there to see that you are satisfied
before you leave his store. He wants
to please you and he will try, sincere
ly, to please you. He wants to hold
your custom.
Now isn't this much better way to
deal than to send your money away
to the city? Isn't it much better to
deal with a man in your own commu-
nifty, and pay him your money, rather
than to send it away to the big mail
order house in the city, where it is
oflrr Iilyo fhNT1 mr.
of other orders? Isn't it better to
deal at home and keep the cash in cir
culation in your own community, than
to send the dollars away where you
or your neighbors will never see them
again?
Dollars will breed dollars Money
in your community will create pros
perity for yourself and your friends.
Keep the cash at home and business
will be better all round.
Some of you will say: There are
so many things that must SEM away
for"
In such case, why not let your own
dealer send for them for you? He is
in business. He can get wholesale
prices where you must pay retail. That
is why he is in business. He must
make a profit in order to pay his rent
and support his family He must make
a profit in order to be able to carry
the things you require on his shelves
and counters.
If you need something that he does
not carry in stock, just ask him to
send to the city for it. He viii do so
gladly. He will obtain a discount off
the retail price and this will afford
him a small profit for his labor. You
pay to him the same price that you
would pay to the city merchant or
manufacturer.
Why not let him do this for you?
| He is responsible He will do the
| business in a satisfactory manner and
| probably give better service and more
| satisfactory treatment-probably a
/ better value for you.
Live and let live is the motto that
makes the world go around smoothly
and peacefully in so far as we mortals
| are concerned. Let your local mer-
| chant live, by giving him the oppor-
/ tunity to make a dollar now and then,
and you will be much better pleased
| with yourself as we'll as much more
| satisfied with some of your purchases.
Your local merchant is loyal-he
and your local newspaper. Both &C.
cupy places that you cannot fill by
/ any service through a mail order
| house.
Think how you will miss them if
you lose them. OF course they are
| so patient and so apparent that you
forget about them. You accept them
as a matter of course. but, M good
mess. how you will miss them if Won