The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1928-05-18


town adieu The company behind the
Red Owl was a Minneapolis concern
and one of the best known with about
1875 stores in various parts OF the
country. The Ely branch could not
make a go of it as the management
felt that it was impossible to run
cash store in a thirty day town. Ely
loses nothing by the removal. We
have stores enough, and too many, for
the population.
Let us moralize just little on the
chain store situation What would
Ely have if We depended on the chain
store and the catalogue house? Would
we have base ball, Fourth of July or
holiday celebrations? Would we have
hotels, for our hotels are supported by
travelling statesmen in a large measure
and these do not sell to chain stores,
all their goods being bought by buy
erS located in some centralized place
usually New York? We probably
would have no churches as the
churches depend in a large measure
on the business men for their support.
We probably also would have no news
papers as the chain store uses a hand
bill printed on the outside and does
not believe in local purchases except
by the patron.
Some might say this is a selfish
view to take on the part of the news
paper. Sure, we admit it is selfish but
it is self preservation. The chain
store invests nothing in town except
a little rent It's manager is usually
brought from the outside. Ten thou
sand dollars will furnish the store
with a stock of goods from cellar TO
garnet. The newspaper has an invest
ment of from $4,000 to $4,000 in the
smaller places and more in the larger
towns The paper furnishes employ
ment to men who also pay taxes, keep
up local institutions and are good citl-
zenS. The paper is always boosting
local affairs and spends hundreds OF
dollars yearly for worthy objects. The
local business man does the same. He
has his goods on. the shelf and If he
can't sell them he is broke. The over
head in a business place, taxes, insur-
ance, labor, interest, goes on day and
night whether goods are sold or work
done The man who has a steady
wage, knows exactly where he is at.
The merchant or printer has to wait
for someone to buy something and
then ten chances to one he has to put
it on the book while the peddler-De
it pruneS or printing-the cat house
and the chain store get the cash.
At that, the chain store has come to
stay in many cities. Should they
come to Ely it is hoped that they will
not crowd out the local merchant who
has furnished more than his share in
the upbuilding of the city in both time
and money for the church, the school,
the city, the county and the state and
other activities for the welfare of the
people therein.
What is news? One man says news
is police court doings. Another has it
that news is gossip about your neigh
bor Another wants everything men
toned with a rotten complex An
other thinks that divorce cases and
the occurrences leading to it are news
Some want everything printed while
others only banker for news of the
better kind that concerns them or
their family. One reader will pick up
the paper and see if his or her name
is therein. If it is, it is fine paper
If it is not, the thing is not worth a
d-n. The Miner has made it a prac-
tice of keeping out of the police court.
Not because we think it is not news
but because of the heartaches left in
its wake among parents, sisters or
brothers. We would much rather
print something to build up instead
of tearing down, be it character or
everything, its bad enough as it is,
Why the comment?
I'm men whom men condemn as ill,
I find so much of goodness STILL
In men whom men pronounce divine,
I find so much of sin and rot
I hesitate to draw the line,
Between the two, where God has
not.
You who judge so harshly,
Are you sure the stumbling stone
That tripped the feet of others,
Might not have bruised your own.
What a fine and noble act this was?
Out in Los Angeles an aged engineer
stood in the presence of coroner'S
jury and accepted full responsibility
for the tragic collapse of the St
Francis dam. Don't blame anyone
else" pleaded the 72-year-old engi-
neer. Whatever fault there was in
this job, put it on me. If there were
any errors in judgment-and it's hu-
man to make mistakes error was
mine" From time since Adam ano
Eve in the Garden of Eden, the alibi
overtime. To see someone with back.
bone enough to assume the blame puts
to shame the pesSimistic utterance!
of the holier- than-thou and prove:
that the human race is getting better
Under the head of Funeral Notices
a Duluth daily has been running thu
following advertisement: Rent a car
drive it yourself. Heated, closed Sc
dams" Rather ambiguous, to say thu
least, and not very attractive from ;