Laurel outlook., 1947-08-27
MONTANA INDUSTRY
NEEDS DEVELOPMENT
A. T. Peterson Tells Kiwanis
Of Montana POtentialities
And Needed Development

A. T. Peterson of Billings was the
guest speaker at the Wednesday eve
ming meeting of the Laurel Kiwanis
club. In introducing him, ]. w.
Baldwin said that he was past
superintendent of the Billings
schools, had been associated with
the o. p. A. in Helena for two
years during the war and was past
president of Montanans, Inc, the
Montana chamber of commerce, and
was certainly we'll qualified to
speak on the topic of the potential
tiles of industry in Montana.
Peterson in his speech said that
it was the duty of the various com
munity service clubs to mould bet
ter citizens as well as strive for
the betterment of their community,
the state, the nation and the world
as a. whole. With conditions as
chaotic as they are at the present
time, there is a definite challenge
to the citizens to strive to help
Finish the world" from the view
point Oh SLdDlllZdLlOn.
A serious situation exists at the
present time with "too many want
ing something for nothing, too many
not stopping to figure the cost"
We must look to ourselves to keep
America strong, virile and progress
sive and this can not be done if
we follow selfish interests. The
pioneers who founded this country
not ask how they were going
to get something, they went out
and made what they wanted with
what was on hand and consequently
his nation has been founded on
production.
Montana recOurces-agriculture,
minerals, timber and scenery-are
a class alone and not equaled
any other section. Development
# these resources is necessary
md it is up to ourselves to do it.
one year, 40 communities were
listed to show them potential in
.ustries that could be established
nd as a result, % new businesses
yere put into operation. Most of !
hese communities did not realize
he possibilities pointed out to them
nd the stablizing effect a payroll
f as few as 10 men would have '
n the community economy. !
Peterson pointed out that an eff {
ort must be made to establish in i
ustries in the state that could g
lake use of the raw materials that !
re shipped out and then returned
Montana in the form of finish
! goods. With this in mind, in \
uential businesses have been con- S
lcted and as a result there is at
resent the possibility of the estab-
shment of a branch of the Browns L
lie Wooden company in this sec f
on and also a pulp paper plant t
hich the owner said could support
900 families. But in this connec- v
on it was noted that 80 to IS per "
mt of the employment in the state a
by industries employing 10 or so n
nplOyees and it is thus necessary g
establish and keep sound small c.
Isinesses. ii
With regard to further develop
ent of other resources, there are j,
least 38 non-metallic minerals a
lich have hardly been touched; the T
nber industry, conferred in the b
stern portion of the state shows b;
great deal of waste, and the in
enic wonders of the state could til
exploited to such an extent that pl
tourist income of sS0,000,000 per nj
ar could be realized in two years. til
al deposits in the eastern section 81
counting to billions of tons should
developed. Phosphates and fer tn
.zers r being produced, but a pr
portion is being exported to til