Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1918-03-29
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We have heard the phrase 'pitiful publicity There
is such . thing as pitiful publicity. and two notable ex
amples Of it are given in the address Of Mr.. Brinton Al
the Nonpartisan meeting at Fargo on the United stores
and in the prospectus which store organizers are in.
structed to use in their addresses to farmers when dis.
cusstnE the stores enterprise. The prospectus HAS been
published in full in The Herald. and in order that a fair
impression OF the BrtntonE address might be gained oy
readers who wish to be informed, several columns of that
lamentable effort have also been given. And, on the
basis Of those two precious productions. it is submitted
that the term "pitiful publicity" is advisedly used.
The farmers who meet to hear the subject of the
United Stores discussed attend presumably for the pur-
pose of gaining Information concerning the business in
which they are invited to place their money. The canned
speech is Informative. it is true, but it is noteworthy for
what it withholds rather than for what it states.
The solicitor informs his prospective victims that he
is not there to sell them stock, the inference being that
the sale Of stock is a very reprehensible" thing. but mere
ly to collect from them 500 each. That is the sole con-
nection Of the farmer with the United Stores. except as
an ordinary purchaser Of goods, il the store happens to
have the sort, OF goods. that he wants. ~
There is given a harangue on the profits made by
merchants, and a dissertation on the advantages Of CO.
operative buying. 1t is not explained that in this stores
scheme there is lacking the most important element Of
cooperation, namely, of common ownership and control.
The farmer WINS no share in the business of the United
Stores company. He has no voice in it's management. He
cannot say where or when wholesale dcpots are to be es.
tablished. what sort of goods they are to handle, or who
is to manage them. He has nothing to do with the bus
mess. He has paid his hundred dollars, and that ends it.
The Fargo address was announced as an address on
the United Stores. The reader can see just what it was.
1t was a TRADE against a few newspa pers and a few news
paper men: In all the long harangue not ten minutes
was devoted to the stores enterprise itself, and absolute
~ no information was given as to how the stores were to
benefit anyone. OF course, if those in the audience had
sgatheredsfor the purpose Of listening to attacks on indi-
viduals, they were. probably we'll satisfied. Il they were
looking for information or argument to justify the stores
enterprise they went away as uninforn,ed as they came.
In all this there is nothing new. The stores enter
prise, which the patent prospectus Identifies as a part Of
the Sonrartissn league. and under the control OF Town
ley, is doomed and featured in the manner that charac-
terizes the entire league propaganda. No league speaker
ever undertakes 10 show in any consistent argument any
justification for the program which he advocates. Bitter
and meaningless attacks on individuals are made to do
duty for argument, and there is an utter absence of ev-
erythins in the nature of logic about the who'e PROPOSE
ton. 90