Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1917-03-02
Editors Letter Box
Two Sides to 1t
Hallowell, Maine, Feb.

| tereSt the various cartoons ON CON-
munity Interest appearing from time
to time in the X. j. Sometimes have
been amused by their pretences and
sometimes I've been disguised, for the
general trend of these are seeking to
throw the blame for lack of Commun-
ity spirit on the farmer Take the one
| in todays Journal and study it a bit;
at first sight one would say that was
about right and so it is IF it is true to
life; but unfortunately, from the farm
ers point of view, HE is expected to do
| most of the supporting. HE must buy
clothing made in New York from wool
raised on Western ranges or cotton
raised in tine South; HE must buy
farming tools made in Illinois from
| iron mined in the West and wood from
the hard pine groves of the South or
the big fir trees of the West coast: HE
must buy leather and rubber goods
made in factories of other states,
which draw their raw supplies from
the big ranches of the West and South
America and the rubber groves of
Central America Also his furniture
must be bought of the local dealer even
though it is made in Grand Rapids,
Mich, out of lumber far inferior to
our native kinds. His grain that he
buys of the dealer in his own town is
raised on the great praries, and so on
down the list. Now if he buys all these
things as indicated how much of his
| money stays in this community? Just
the profit of the dealer on these sales,
said profit being partially divided, with
the dealers employees, in the form Of
wages; the rest of this money goes out
OF this community just as surely as
! though the farmer had sent his money
to a mail order house. thereby keep
ing in his own pocket the profit that
would otherwise 90 to the dealer The
claim is put forth that the profit of the
dealer and the wages of his help are
spent at home and build up the farm
| erS' market and to a small extent this
is true; but. if we depended on these
alone to build up our cities and towns
the growth would be mighty small
and two or three farmers would flood
the market with their produce. The
/ big increase in size Of cities comes
! mostly from the factories and mills
| built therein, employing many thou
sands to make goods which are rare
| ~ SOiu III lIiC local market Out are
shipped off to other places. When you
come right down to brass tacks these
| factory employees are the hest custom
ers of the native farmer. for while the
average native city dweller thinks
things raised in his own neighbor-
| hood are not quite good enough for
him, the foreigner likes to deal direct
with the producer Take native beef
! for example: Row many of our meat
stores will buy any from farmer, vet
our Greeks and French buy Of our ma
| tive meat peddlers and save themselves
smoney, at the same time getting Just
I as much or more nourishment than
I the native American. who must have
! his fancy cut from some fat steer rails
, ed out in the wild and wooley. Perhaps
too, this is one reason the first class is
saving money, while the other is al
ways hard MP
AS to trying to sell to our stores, the
editor Of the Kennebec Journal has
certainly shown IN the utter useless
ness Of farmer trying to do much
this way. and If YOU try to build up
| private trade your customers expect
YOU to sell to them Mt wholesale prices
| ''iiN VttNii Walt uE Nou1 iIOlltS, IL SOu
ever do get if. "He's farmer, II does
not cost him ANYTHING to live and he's
as we'll off if don't pay him."
| II males 2 man feel fine to go into
grocery store find ont they have on
" q small quantitv of measly fruit or
| produce. imported most likely from
! Foston-trv to sell them nuantitv Of
| fresh good native stuff and get this:
/ well. YOU see. we can't handle much
of that. market is over-stocked but TIL
take so much, Cat less than it would
cost him in Boston, besides paying
freight to help you out If you will
take most Of 1t up in trade"
| Dealers claim we are too law to
grade our goods. but why should we
bother, for any day 7 can go into our
| stores and look over their stock Of
eggs and find them composed Of every
size and shape. dirty to a degree that
would turn mans stomach and all
colors mixed and when I show mine
carefully sorted as to shape and color
and size and absolutely clean. does
the storekeeper say: Good man. TIL
give you five cents dozen more for
those than I've been paying?"
Not on your tintype; you get no more
than Mr. Lazy Man, and what ap-
plies to eggs will apply to any other
product we raise.
Personally, / find it pays me better
to ship to some of the big cities to
good commission house, sort my stuff
good and let our native city trade i'm
port its stale goods from somewhere
else. They seem happier and I'm bring
ing in money from outside our local.
ity and If l find 7 can keep fair
share of that money in my pocket by
buying my supplies direct from some
mail order house, feel I'm doing harm
to no one.
but on the whole, farmers are the
slowest Of mortals to send off for
goods if they can see those goods in
their own town before buying. and
feel that way, to this extent, II know
the local dealer can sell me something
at a fair profit to himself, considering
freight charges and delays then trade
with him and let him know just why
he gets a chance to make that sale.
On the selling end know Of no plan
that appeals to me so much as that
put forth by Commissioner Dillon of
the New York Foods and Markets de-
partment for the farmers of his state.
He would have all farmers in
community, organized as a unit to
bring all their prody1ce m cepfroI