Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1918-12-25


FELLOW men, but for our own calm ant
serious reflection, and in the hope
OF bettcring conditions.
Dispatches from New York tell us
That children are starving to death
dying in the school rooms in the
! poorer sections Of the great metropo,
lis, In the homes Of the noted East
Side--dying of al-nutritiop, which
in these cases Is nothing but star
! ration
And why?
Food may be scarcc-there is no
doubling the fact that the ordinary
iood supply of tho. country is great
~ reduced, but there is no reason
for starvation in any quarter in
America--no good reason at least.
The reason for these fearful condi-
tions Is found in
Greed!
Avaricc!
Supreme selfishness.
Children starve to death because
the things essential to their nourish-
mcnt--their lives even-are denied
them through the excessively high
prices asked for food.
Who is to blame?
Every man, every woman, who
demands more than is justified by ac-
tual existing conditions for their pro-
duets, their wares, their labor, is a
direct contributor to these unhealthy
conditions. Every man, woman or
child in our great country who,
rather than curb the appetite or
abandon Il portion Of the pride in
dress, buys articles Of food or cloth
ing that are excessively priced con-
.ributcs-and contributes largely
to the condition Of starvation among
the very poor.
So long rs the general public is
willing to pay the price that greed
and avarice set upon the essentials
Of life, just so long will the very
roor suffer, for what care the
greedy and avaricious how many
poor people starvc so long as money
can be made by squeezing dollars in
illegitimate profits out Of the public?
We Of the great middle class feel
the pinch OF high prices and find it
hard to meet our obligations ana
lrocure the things necessary to com
Portable living. What, then, mus,
tfe condition Of the very poo" I've?
1t is horrible to contemplate.
There must be a change before
=" nditioEs will improve materially.
Who is willing to start back to rea-
SON. in the business world? We all
nave got to make a start somewhere,
some time. Why not now? Every
body realizes that there can be no
quick jump back to old conditions,
which in all probability will never
again prevail; but we know. too,
that present conditions cannot con-
tinue indefinitely. They are un-
unnatural, inflated.
The other day a friend stopped us
and inquired. "Why are prices so
inordinately high?" We replied
that, as a whole, we could not
answer the question, but we felt that
selfishness was largely at the bot
tom Of the whole thing. We arc un-
willing to give up any of the old
time semi-luXuries that had long
since como to be recognized as al
most essentials. We buy things
that we know to be not essential to
our well-heing, although we know
the price We pay Is not justified ex-
along the line from producer to the
one who hands then to the ultimate
consumer. And when we buy that
which is unnecessarily high priced
rather than deny ourselves some
semi-luNury, we contribute our bit
TO such conditions as are reported
specifically from New York, but
which are by no means peculiar to
tho East Side.
Are You willing, as consumer, to
contribute your bit to alternating
these fearful conditions? Buy moth
ing that Is excessively priced. Prices
will drop. And If this policy is
carried out extensively, it will even
.ually correct much Of the existing
high-price evil Demand-necessary
or entirely fictitious---regulate
largely the price Of any given ar
ticle. Stop the demand for any
thing that is not essential, and cut
essentials. that are excessively
priced. to . minimum. Therein at