Belington progressive. [volume] (Belington, W. Va.) 1912-1927, 1921-11-03

of the large cllleS.
But the influence of the country
newspaper goes far beyond the com
munitv in which ii is printed. Ma
tional legislators in the halls of con-
gress realize that this influence is a
mower to be reckoned with. That
when the country press speaks in uni
son on any national subject it is but
voicng the sentiments of that mighty
force the people Of the country COM
munities, the people in whose hands,
says Mr.. .Balfour, rests the destiny OF
world civilization.
Fichts for Entire Country.
The country press represents and
fights for those things that are OF
value to the country communities,
realizing that in doing so it is f1ghting
/ for those things that are best for the
nation and for the world. 1t works
| and fights to upbuild the country com
munity, to prevent its falling prey
| to the selfish. greed of the cities. 1t
! champions the business, the social, the
educational, the agricultural, the in
/ QuSCTIdI IHlcItSto VI thV SpbhltJ NNA'
munity not from any selfish angle, but
from the broader viewpoint of ma
tional good.
Some three or four months ago
there was before Congress a bill on
which the press of the country was
divided. The magazines, the big ma
! tional weeklies, the farm press and
the metropolitan daily papers were on
one side and the country newspapers
were on the other side. The passage
of the bill would mean creating an OPP
portunity for a greater Capitalization
of the merchandising of the nation in
a few large cities with a consequent
injury to the small cities and towns,
and to the people Of these cities and
| towns and the farms surrounding
/ them. The country press fought for
the defeat of the bill, and in the end
the members of the committee in
whose hands the fate of the bill rested
listened to the country press because
they realized that the welfare of these
country communities represented the
best interests OF the nation as
whole, and the bill was killed.
During our participation in the
World war the country press stood
stanchly and unselfishly back of the
nation. 1t did nothing to create dis
sension among the people during the
time of emergency, but it did carry to
its readers a continuous message of
patriotism and national unity. In each
community it wiped away much of
fractional lines, and created an atmos-
phere of intense Americanism that
welded the American people together
regardless of place of birth or an
cestry.
Value Not Always Understood.
But the people of the cities do not
always understand the value of the
country press. With the increased de-
mand for war supplies there came
demand for a decrease in the con-
sumption Of the ordinary needs of
peace time. Among the things the
consumption of which must be cut
was paper. A city man was at the
head of the department that regulated
the use of paper, and he felt it ad-
visable to so limit the amount Of pa
per available for the country press as
to seriously cripple all of these pa
pers, and to have entirely closed many
Of them. 1t was the privilege Of the
writer to present the case of the coun-
try press to this man, and 1t did not
take him long to see that the, govern
meht could not afford to in any con-
siderable degree cripple an institution
| that represented so much of national
| good as did these country newspa
| pers.
Country Press Deserves Well.
The country press deserves we'll Of
the people Of the nation and especial
| ly of the people of the country COM
| munities. Individually these papers
| may not be large in size as compared
with the city papers, but quantity is
| not the measure of their value. They
| are worth both directly and Indirect
| ly far more than their subscription
I price. For that price they bring to
| you each week the news of your
1 lIlCuuS dHu ~ lhCSS
! who have left the country home to go
either to the city or to some other
] country home, the country newspaper
| is welcome weekly letter that keeps
them in touch with friends and for
mer associates. To those at home it
carries the news of their friends and
neighbors. 1t records the births and
deaths, the marriages, the comings
and goings of those in whom you are
interested. 1t furnishes the medium
/ Of publicity through which work for a
better and stronger community is
/ ma ntained. 1t voices the consensus
of opinion of the community to the
representatives in the halls of the
state and national legislators. 1t is
the paper of, for and by the people
of the villages, the towns and the
small cities.
No country paper worthy of the
| Of he