Baxter Springs news., 1918-08-30
WE HAVE THE LOGICAL LO-
CATION FOR IRON WORK
ING INDUSTRIES
BUT CAN'T GET A START
Difficulty Experienced in Get
ting Cooperation Here Is Be
ieved by Some to Be Re-
suit of Joplin Prop
aganda

| olHce ~ DeCuHe BeHeIdly hHONH
that the chances for securing the es-
tablishment of q foundry and machine
shop in Baxter Springs had fallen
through Baxter business men and
property owners have been doing a
large amount of thinking and cOnsid-
cradle talking.
This talk in many instances has
been wide Of the mark, particularly
so, we believe, when the secretary of
the Chamber of Commerce is criticised
in the belief that he has not put forth
the proper effort in the matter Of in
teresting capital in coming to the aid
Of the promoters Of the proposed
plant. The Citizen believes that the
secretary has done all he could. He
took the initiative and presented the
proposition in q businesslike way to
the citizens. He pointed out the great
benefits that would accrue to the town
il even q small part of the immense
steel and iron business, now going to
Joplin, were to be stopped here. He
showed the great saving to the mine
operators in having an iron working
plant right at their doors, thereby
saving the long delay and great ex-
pense incurred in trucking these
heavy parts back and forth from the
mining field south and west of Baxter
way over to Joplin and back again.
But he has not been able to get any
where in enlisting the small amount
of capital needed to get the industry
started.
What is the reason? This is the
question on everybody's lips.
Some solution of this mystery sure
| " would be timely because unless
something is done to get some indus
tries started in Baxter, industries that
will employ labor and create a de-
mand for houses, Baxter real estate is
going to take a slump. 1t cannot be
maintained at its present level with
out industries.
A great deal of interest has been
shown from time to time in getting
| big business blocks for Baxter. We
never could see the wisdom in that.
1t mas always appeared to US that as
fast as a town enlarges its industrial
Importance, and as fast as the popu-
llation increases the retail business will
ftake care of itself. You don't have
to offer inducements to get more
stores, they will come as fast as
needed and as fast as the wealth and
buying ability of the community
grows.
But the way to make a community
grow and thrive is to offer lucrative
and steady employment to the wage
Garner.
But to return to the main question.
What is standing in Baxter's way? 1t
is a vital question, and needs prompt
and earnest investigation and thought.
One man, in talking to Citizen re-
porter today, advanced an astound-
ing opinion on the subject.
He declared that Baxter is Joplin
lied. He stated that he had positive
knowledge that the Joplin machine
and foundry men right now are bound
together by a pact that they will not
establish branches of their foundry
and machine shops in Baxter, and
furthermore that they are using their
influence and their money to discOur-
age outside foundry and machine men
from locating in Baxter. So far, this
man says, they have succeeded in
making their propaganda work, de-
spite the fact that the mine operators
are paying the cost in transportation
charges and delays. This man says
that Joplin men use their influence in
Baxter to discourage people from
making investments. y He says that
there are at the present time too many
men living in Baxter whose sympa-
thies are yet with Joplin, and until
this influence is done away with; Bax-
ter is not going to get the immense
amount Of benefit from the mining
field that. is her due.
The Citizen is not prepared to en-
dorse this theory, but IT, has its logic
and it will bear looking into. II we
are JopliDized We want to know it