Western Carolina Democrat and French Broad hustler. [volume] (Hendersonville, N.C.) 1913-1915, 1915-03-11

Industries Must be Established Be-
fore Substantial Growth lis Assured;
Cooperation o Necessity.
Editor, Democrat:
I am glad to see from your editorf-
al denominated, "Hendersonville'S
Need" that you at least are alive to a
condition that must be patent to every
one who thinks about the matter at
all, viz; that along our present line of
progress we have very nearly If not
altogether reached our limit.
More Substantial Attractions Needed.
We cannot get many more summer
visitors than we have had in the past
two or three years without more adj
vertising and more attractions; es-
especially "a one" hotels, golf links
and many miles of hard-surfaced roads
for automobiling, as we'll as other
amusements, plenty of good water, an
efficient sewage system, and an Off
cial health record that is above need
of explanation.
Tourist Business Slim DEPENDENCE.
And all these things cost money that
we have not got and cannot get FROM
our present sole business of entertain
ing summer visitors. Our income
from the summer season of entertain
ment is not more than e~nough-indeed
scarcely enough-to finance our living
expenses for the year. We have moth
ing left wherewith to advertise our
business or increase it's efficiency.
Develop New Business or Stand Still
AS a city we are somewhat unique
in having no rich men or men of mod
crate wealth with vision and enter
prise. Such as we have would seem
to be content to live off the unearned
Increment from real estate or to do.
the same business they did twenty
years ago. We have no one with
money to foster new enterprises or
to invest money for the general good.
Therefore, Mr.. Editor, you r right,
we must either develop some other
business or be content to stand still.
But. MI. Editor, we have gone too far
TO stand still. Our bonds for streets,
roads and water, our obligation to
Fassifern, ETC., must be paid and our
present source of revenue will not
yield enough to pay these outstanding
obligations, without considering any
new ones.
The Tax Problem.
If we are wise we will now focus
our efforts on getting new industries
here. But how? The first and fun
6amental requirement is to make our
tax rate honest. 1t is not honest now
All real property, at least, should. be
assessed at two thirds or three fourths
of its real value, which real value
should be set by a competent and eff
cient county or city assessor and not
by the owner. The valuation assessed
on some of the property in this
ty is a scandal. Because of this our
rate is high and yet does not pro-
duce a third of what it ought to bring
in. And factories are not going to 10
cate where the tax rate is high. That
we have to be dishonest, because other
counties are dishonest, to keep from
ore than u just share to
the state may be true, but we must
the disability somehow. Dis
honesty in the State breeds dishonesty
in the individual as we'll as vice versa
and so we go from bad to worse. The
which would have relieved
us from this bad condition failed to
approve itself to our intelligent pro.
letariat and therefore we suffer.
Four Other Necessities.
Though important, the tax problem
is not the chief problem in getting
factories here. Besides a low tax rate
other things are needed; % Good
labor; (2) cheap power; 60 adequate
shipping facilities; (4) and very often
a little local capital. The first We
have though it can be improved by a
better school system throughout the
county. The second We ought to have
if our community rights in water pow
er had been adequately protected by
our governors, and still have to some
The third we must better by
concerted action and it a be done.
The fourth is the real crux. We musf
try to import some wealthy and pro-
gressive, ~enterprising, live men here
Unless labor. power, and shipping Ia
are very good-better than we
have in. HendersonyiTe, at least-the
only hope Of a creative industry hero
is an individual around whom It may
be built up.H is this result that ] had
hoped the advertising OF our very real
as a residential section
produce. That some day a
wealthy, energetic, live man would
come here and so like our climate.
scenery and people that he would de-
eide to make this his home-not for
his declining years but for his ener-
getic active years and so would start
some sort of creative industry. !
Cooperative Spirit Needed.
We must go on hoping and be ready |
to take advantage of every opportun-
ity offered. We have lost some oppOr=
tunities in the past which we might
have got and if we had secured them i,
We would be a city more than double
our size to day with a large pay roll.
but we lost them because we were !
not pulling together. And we are not
together now. There is some
thing radically wrong with Chris
1t is up t othe pastors of this