The Liberal democrat. [volume] (Liberal, Kan.) 1911-1924, 1920-02-05
GIGANTIC ADVERTISING
CAMPAIGN is LAUNCHED
II. w. Magruder Elected President of
Organization Perfected at
Garden City.

"The Great Southwest Associa-
tion," the preliminary steps of or
ganization having been under way
for some time, was formally launched
at a meeting at Garden City last
Monday.
Several hundred delegates from
the twenty-five counties comprising
the territory affected, were present
and the meeting was one of the most
enthusiastic ever held in the terri
tory.
~ Among the speakers were Judge
tWm. Easton, Hutchinson of Garden
City, C. G.. Wilson of Meade, Chester
Leasure of Hutchinson, F. M. Myers
and Phil Johnson, representing the
Santa Fe and Rock Island railroads,
Fred Byers of Liberal, L. j. Petit
john of Dodge City, as well as rep
resentatives of the Southwestern Ad-
vertising Company and the Rankin
Advertising Company.
The meeting was held in the Star
theatre building and the room was
comfortably filled with crowd which
was intensely interested in every
word spoken.
Arriving in Garden City the dele
gates were taken to the rooms of the
Garden City Industrial Club where
they were registered, given a suitable
badge and a banquet ticket About
the time all had been labelled the
Garden City Band struck up lively
piece in front of the theatre and the
delegates wended their way to the
scene of activity.
The morning program was largely
one of talk, but it was good talk,
about good country and how to tell
the folks back east how good it real
ly was and if possible induce some of
them to come and be neighbors with
us.
Then the roll was called and the
representatives of the different
-L titles responded with the amount
raised toward the fund. A few
counties did not send delegates, but
those who came reported almost
without exception that the quota
from their county would be raised.
A remarkable feature of the meet
ing was that there was not a ques-
tion raised as to the practicability of
the plan. Everyone agreed not only
that the proposition could be put
thru, but that it should be. All were
alive to the advantages of the move
ment to the territory and pledged
their best efforts to make it sue
cess.
After dinner there were some more
good talks and the business of the
meeting was taken up. The first was
the report of the Committee on Con-
stitution and Bylaws. The report
of this committee took considerable
time, but there were but few changes
to be made in the document.
The plan of the organization is
somewhat out of the ordinary. A
county organization is perfected in
each county, the president of which
is the governor of that county. The
governors of all the counties form
the working organization and have
charge of all the business. They Sc
lect the secretary, name the meeting
\ places, select the headquarters and
have charge of the funds. They also
place the advertising contracts after
placing their approval upon the copy.
The plan is to raise fund of $685.
10000 to be spent in national ad-
vertising campaign along different
lines than any yet tried, the object
of which is to acquaint the people
of the east with the possibilities of
the southwest where land is cheap,
conditions good for making money
and where social and educational ad-
vantages are available at the same
time.
Each county in the organization is
required to contribute to the adver-
tising fund upon the basis of the
bank deposits of the county The
share of Seward county is something
like 1900, the greater part of which
was raised the last of the week thru
the contributions of Liberal business
men.
When the fund is raised an adver-
tising agency will be employed to
.yconduct the campaign. This COM
I pany will prepare the advertising,
place it in different periodicals over
the country, prepare booklets and