Lincoln County leader. [volume] (Toledo, Lincoln County, Or.) 1893-1987, 1916-01-21
SO DOES The OSTRICH

| Wnen QdnSeT threatens JnTuSCS
his head in the sand and be-
lieves himself safe from harm,
because he cannot see the dan
ger.
Picture to yourself this gigan-
tic bird, taller than man, rest
ing in fancied security because
his head is hidden from view, al
though his body can be seen for
miles around.
There are too many of us who
adopt the tactics of the foolish
ostrich. We are told of an i'm
pending danger and think that
we can escape it or avoid it by
refusing to face IL.
We are informed that there
is great danger Of restriction of
our facilities for local trade if
our local business men are not
given better support; that we
may find ourselves deprived of
the opportunities for marketing
our farm produce in our home
town IL our store keepers find
themselves stocked up with
goods, but with no adequate
volume of local Business.
What is more natural than
that this may be the case if we
do not stop sending our money
away from home to the mail or
der houses in the big cities? We
must realize such possibilities
and take steps to prevent them.
If we don't, we will find out, in
Ill probability, that our local
merchant will look for other 10
cations than in our town.
Which is the wisest thing to
do-to look the conditions
squarely in the face and take
the necessary steps to counter
act them or shall we, like the
foolish ostrich, refuse to face
the conditions and decline to
take cognizance of them?
We can permit matters to drift
along until the inevitable occurs,
or we can thirk things over,
carefully and with judgment,
and take the steps necessary to
protect our intnrests-the in
terests of ourselves and those
who will come after us.
Our community is built up as
the result of various interests,
not the least of which is, the
tributary farming population.
Our town was created because
of the various interests that
center here and because this is
a natural point for the distribu-
ton of farm products and mer-
chandise. The sale of the farm
products brings the money for
the buying of the merchandise,
while the merchandise supplies
the necessities of those who
raise the crops.
It therefore follows, naturally,
as one of the unfailing laws of
civilization, that If it were not
for the farmers and others who
produce things for the market,
there would be 10 occasion for
this community, there would be
no necessity for the stores and
shops.
On the other hand, were it not
for the stores that are the med
iums for the marketing of the
crops, there would be a lack of
facilities for marketing and
farming would not be as profit
able as we now find 1t in our
community.
II the business men Of our
town do not afford the requisite
facilities for marketing such
crops as must be handled locally
in order to give full advantage
to the farmers, then the farmers
will find out that they must look
for a market elsewhere or ac-
cept a much smaller profit on
that which they have to sell.
On the other hand, If the
farmers do not do their share
toward the support of the busi-
ness men, by spending their
money locally and keeping 1t in
circulation in our own town, in
stead of sending 1t to the mail
order houses, then the local
storekeepers will find II neces-
sary to restrict their invest
ments in goods for the local
market, thereby resulting in a
diminishing of the facilities for
getting what we need at home.
This is a point we must not
fail to observe. We must look
the condition squarely in the
face and arrive at n conclusion
as to what steps are necessary
to preserve and to maintain the
conditions which make for pros
naritv