Evening Republican, Volume 18, Number 193, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 17 August 1914 — HOME TRADE BOOSTS [ARTICLE]

HOME TRADE BOOSTS

Prosperity at Boom

ANY persons believe that the word “reciprocity" has merely a political IWMI significance. ****** But it means one of toe greatest principles. AH civilization,!* founded on it Were it not for this great principle there would be no government, no society, no cities and towns. We would have merely anarchy. IN PLAIN WORDS, “RECIPROCITY” MEANS THAT IF YOU EXPECT SOMEBODY TO DO SOMETHING FOR YOU, THEN YOU MUST DO SOMETHING IN RETURN. Let us lay aside the political significance of the word and discuss this great principle as it applies to our own individual and communistic interests: We have a prosperous community. We have a town which we are proud to call our own. We have various business establishments, good, well-kept stores, stocked with merchandise; we have various facilities for marketing the produce raised by the farmers who are a great and important part of our community. Were it not for the farmers we would not have all of these faellitiee for doing business. It Is possible that there would bo no groat necessity for • town of thiaslze and Importance. On. the other hand, were it not tor the town the farmers would not be enabled to market their crops with such facility and their prosperity would be considerably curtailed. Now here is where the reciprocity comes in and affects our local conditions and our prosperity. , THE STOREKEEPERS HELP THE FARMERS AND THE FARMERS HELP THE STOREKEEPERS. Simplest thing in the world. Each does something for the other and both are benefited. The town is benefited and the agricultural district is benefited. We have good schools, places of entertainment and our town is a general headquarters and meeting place for all interests. Every one of us has a certain place in the community'and helps to make up a desirable place where we can have Interchanges of ideas and commodities. What if some great monopoly should swoop down and buy up everything the farmers raise, cattle and sheep and crops of all kinds, ship the wholo lot direct to the city and thereby deprive our local merchants of the opportunity of handling the same; to utterly ignore the local interests? Business would suffer. Many of our concerns would find it necessary to close np shop and go out of business. If this same policy were to be continued We would soon be without the necessity of having any town at all. Of course, this is rather a far-fetched Illustration, because there is no possibility of anything of the kind happening. BUT THERE IS DANGER FROM ANOTHER SOURCE. What if the farmers should all send their money to the mail order houses instead of buying their goods from our local storekeepers? Many of them do—too many of them. IF THIS POLICY OF SENDING MONEY AWAY TO THE BIG CITIES INSTEAD OF BUYING FROM THE LOCAL MERCHANTS KEEPS UP AND CONTINUES, WE SHALL EXPERIENCE CONDITIONS WHICrf WILL BE FAR FROM PROSPEROUS. Reciprocity Is what we need, right here at home. The storekeepers must deal fairly with the farmers and the farmers must deal fairly with the storekeepers, otherwise our system of business will be thrown out of Its philo-, sophlcal orbit. Keep the money at home. Buy what you need from the local storekeepers. Don’t help the big mall order houses to profit at the expense of our local merchants. Help the men who are helping to build up the community, helping to Increase the value of your pfoperty by making a bigger and a better town where every facility for doing business is supplied for the benefit of the farmers—and the rest of us. We must do for others if we expect others to do for us. We cannot evade the responsibilities of reciprocity, nor should we attempt to do so. Every dollar sent away to the big mail order houses restricts our opportunities for local advancement. EVERY DOLLAR SO DIVERTED FROM LOCAL TRADE MEANS SO MUCH TAKEN FROM OUR TAXES, WHICH GO TO SUPPORT THE COMMUNITY. We can all do as well at home In the buying of goods as we can by sending our money to the mail order houses. We can do better, when wo come to consider valnes and everything. And reciprocity is the thing that builds up communities. THINK IT OVER THE NEXT TIME TkERE’S SOMETHING TO BE BOUGHT.