The Birmingham age-herald., 1921-08-03
For Good of
 the Community

.O it first. Fame will follow. We 1 knew very little of U. s. Grant until he Kicked" us No one had to tell us who he was or.whether he was good fighter after that. Even in the heart of Africa where mans legs are the only tele- graphic, postal and transportation sys- tenn, knowledge of what has transpired travels fast and far
 A few months ago the Wholesale Mer- chants and Manufacturers association of the Chamber of Commerce was formed. Eighty of the leading wholesalers of the district joined. They held out attractions So the out-of-town merchant The latter has been coming regularly ever since in growing numbers not only to trade with Chem but to mingle with them as friends
 The visitors have learned that the Bir- pmlngham wholesaler IS a gentleman as Ewell as a business man; that he wants to Edo we'll by the retailer all the time so that he will continue to enjoy the continuous trade of the retailer to the profit and satisfaction of both.
 The annual report of the Chamber of Commerce was recently published It went abroad to the various chambers of l commerce and libraries of the country. |aSeveral chambers of commerce in other cities have already written to find out all about the organization of the Birming- ham wholesalers, account of which was in the chamber report.
 Syracuse, N Y., chamber was one of these. Hard-fisted business men of the k east sense the wisdom of this Birmingham organization and they want to copy after us So, it may be repeated, do it well and the world will soon find out about it. Com- mendation will be automatic.
 Big merchants and shippers of coun- try have always been it's mainstays. They are this because they are the largest in- vestors in their community therefore the 1 biggest winners or the heaviest losers ac- cording as their community fares
 Independent Holland and Belgium would not have arisen but flor the fat burghers of Rotterdam, Rheims and Lisle, whose coffers emptied themselves to the stadtholder William in his obstinate stand against the tyranny of the greatest power then on earth. But the gold and silver of these merchants, whose ships piled the five seas before England knew what the seas were, poured into the lap of William, and Alva and his successors were routed
 For while we contented ourselves here in Birmingham with talking about freight rates that were discriminatory. Then few of the sturdy and earnest wholesalers like M. F. Northington, Sam Earle, Murray Brown, B. Wilkinson and others determined that the way to get the rates was to organize and go out for them in businesslike manner.
 The Birmingham Freight Traffic Bureau arose It began with 60 members. ! It now has 260 This organization carries no chip on its shoulder The canny whole salers operating it are men of the world and they know that mere complaining gets one nowhere. The policy of the traf- fife bureau has been first to make out "a convincing case by show of the facts. Then presentation of the facts is made. |Oftener than not the grievance has been adjusted without going further
 Birmingham wholesalers stood behind the development of the Warrior. When others doubted, they did'not. Before we had docks brother bank facilities Murray Brown and the Earles had shipments of goods brought up the river.