The potters herald. [volume] (East Liverpool, Ohio) 1899-1982, 1938-10-27

possible value for his money. In our
industry, so long as the producer pays
his employees wage that will enable
| them to live in decent American
way, he cannot establish prices to
compete with the prices of dishes made
at pauper wages in foreign countries" !"
Questioned as to what he believed
would make for prosperity in the pot
terry business and other industries, Mr..
Wells declared, "The only way to make
prosperity is to make jobs-and the
way to make jobs is to buy the prod
ucts of those jobs instead of the prod
ucts of similar jobs abroad"
The executive also remarked that
there has been steady improvement
in the quality of ware produced in
American factories and that our fine
grades are equal to the best produced
| by the oldest factories of Europe. In
the medium grade ware and that found
chiefly in chain stores, he declared the
domestic product vastly superior to the
imported.
Proving the value of the "Buy
American" campaign, he said, Cup
until 1887 the American potter never
enjoyed more than two-thirds of his
home market. During the last two
years this percentage has been con-
siderably increased. This has been
largely due, we believe, to the con-
stant efforts Of those behind the "Buy
American" movement to bring to the
American people realization that a
dollar spent for an American dinner
set is dollar spent for American
prosperity, while dollar spent for an
imported set is a dollar spent for
foreign ornaments"
The first fifteen minutes of the pro-
gram was opened with a quotation
from Omar Khayyam,
"For in the market place, on dusk of
day,
watched the potter humping his wet
clay"
A brief history of potting, which
goes back as far as civilization itself
was then given before introducing the
dramatization of the beginning of
East Liverpool as the pottery center
of America.
| The drama opened in 1889 when a
young Englishman, James Bennett,
found white clay in East Liverpool and
started the first American pottery. 1t
wasn't long before others came.
The hardest enemy to be faced by
the Americans was the English trade
mark. No one would believe ware
made in America could be good. Even
after Jim Foster took samples of his
ware to London and won in competi-
tion with the finest English china the
attitude Of the Americans did not
change.
In an effort to clear their ware
houses, the manufacturers placed the
English lion on the bottom of their
pottery, and sold it.
When things were very black, the
town raised $4,000 to back a pottery
in order that the townspeople might
have work. Homer Laughlin, form
er potter turned importer, was chosen
to head the new plant which opened in
1878.
His first years were failures, but he
had faith in the clay, the formula and
the art Of the American workmen.
Taking his ware to the 1876 Philadel-
phia Centennial, he became involved in
friendly wager with an English pot
terry exhibitor. He was willing to back
his poorest piece against the English
mems best. Impartial judges from
America and England unanimously
chose his blue line pitcher over the
ivory pitcher of his foreign advisory.
After that Homer Laughlin insisted
that an eagle displace the lion on his
ware.
The drama shifted to the White
House where, even through President
Teddy Roosevelt, foreign ware was
being used. When President Wilson
was elected, it was found that Ameri-
can china was superior to that made
abroad and the products of Walter
Scott Lenox were installed, 100 pieces.
The broadcast, at this point, was
switched to the Homer Laughlin
plant.
In addition to Mr.. Lutz, Columbia
sent Cecil Carmichael, special feature
and public advance director and Ed
Hamel, supervising engineer, both of
station WKRC, Cincinnati, to the
scene. The amplifer was connected
with the East Liverpool exchange of
the telephone company which relayed
the program to the networks master
control board in New York
The first comment on the broadcast
was received from First Vice President
E. l.. Wheatley, vacationing on the
coast. The wire stated, "Program and
reception coming good here in Oak
land. Wishing all concerned success
from broadcast"