The Canon City record with which is consolidated the Canon City cannon., 1920-02-05
Town Like Corporation.

Town Like Corporation.
There is just one thing. ordinarily.
that kills a town in the first place and
that is lack OF money. A town is
just Ike a corporation and the money
possessed by its Inhabitants is its cap
ltal. II this capital is depleted the
town will fail just as the corporation.
whose capital is depleted through poor
management or other causes, fails.
And just as the corporation which has
once failed cun seldom retrieve its lost
fortunes. the town which has failed
cannot often come back"
The capital Of a community is de-
pl-ted when its money is spent away
from home in a way tina, brings no
return benefit to the community. IL
takes no great amount of thought TO
he able to realize that the town. like
the individual. cannot last long IL il
il paying ont more money than II
takes In. That does not mean that a
prosperous town Is one In which the
people do not spend any money. On
the contrary. a prosperous town is
one in which the people do spend mon;
ey but IL is one In which they spend
tn. money at home. As long as the
money is spent at home, the town
gains by having IL kept in cIrculs ton.
but when IL is spent away from horne,
either by being sent to the mail order
houses or by shopping trips To other
cities. the towns capital is impaired
TO that extent and II enough money is
spent away from home in that way
the town collsp~es and virtually goes
into bankruptcy just as does the cor
poration which disSipstes its capital.
The people of 8 community are apt
Ia overlook the fact that they are
stockholders Ia their town and that
their fortunes are bound up with those
OF the community as whole. They
do not realize that II their town fails
they will fail with 1t. They-or many
OF them at least-send their money
away 10 the man order houses in the
great cities, without realizing that they
are impsiring the capital Of their own
corporation and that II enough Of them
pursue that course they will force their
corporation into certain bankruptcy.
Merchants Not Only Ones Hurt.
Many customers OF mail order
say tlaN are uitIeT no
obligation to trade with their home
merchants and this may be true. They
overlook that fact that the business
men OF town do much for their COM
munity and are entitled. in return for
what they do. TO the support of the
people in the community. but leaving
this out of consideration. they over
look the fact that they are bringing
about their own downfall when they
drain their town OF its muney-its
capital.
The home merchant will not be the
only one that win he hur1 when the
town goes hruke." The merchant
can reduce his stock and cut down his
expenses and get along some way or
he can sell out and move TO some 9th
er town which has not been SO blind
TO its own welfare. Ii is the great
body of the people of the community
including all those who have sent their
money away TO other cities instead OF
spending 1t at home. that suffers most
when the hard times come.
The time for all the people to pull
together for live town is while the
town Is still live and not after 1t is
dead. for when n town dies il is q
long time dead-if not forever.