Jasper County Democrat, Volume 13, Number 70, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 10 December 1910 — THIS IS WORSE THAN RENSSELAER. [ARTICLE]

THIS IS WORSE THAN RENSSELAER.

While Rensselaer’s commercial club has not as yet succeeded in buying a factory, it seems better off than the Monticello “boosters club” which has bought two or three—gold bricks. The latter’s auto truck factory for which a big cement block building was constructed more than a year ago, has, for some unadvertised reason, never materialized,--and the Pratt printing plant, whoch was expected to be the best propositi for ’ the town of ’em all, after getting a part of the machinery moved there and placed in the building donated to it, recently went into the hands of a receiver and there's “nothing doing” in that line at present. The following from the Monticello Journal shows that there are “other troubles” to contend with as a result of the attempt of the public-spirited citizens to boom their city, whch, by reason of its natural advantages and railroad facilities, ought to boom without much, pushing. The Journal says: “Suits were commenced yesterday by certain members of the Industrial Association, who had signed notes for the purchase money of the land platted as the Industrial Addition, against other members of the Association who had also signed the same notes but now refuse to„pay them. The sale of lots did not bring in the money expected and now the makers of the notes have to go down in their pockets to dig up.” The Democrat has never been very favorably impressed with the idea of buying industries to boom a town. Everyone must admit that the proposition is wrong from every point of view, and the “industry” looking for big bonuses is generally not worth much to a town when it is landed, for it is nearly always looking out for other victims and will pull up and hike out whenever it can make a little easy money by doing sd. Rensselaer started in the factory buying business two years ago, and while it has not yet secured any “industry,'” its commercial club still has its money and the land it bought. The promotor, of course, got his per cent, on the lot sale and vamoosed, not having made his promise good to find some one to take our money. Those who bought lots in the “Factory Audition” still have them, and are likely to have them for some time to come. Many of these lot purchasers could ill afford to buy, but they thought they were doing a patriotic thing by doing so. So far, however, their investment has only proven that they were patriotic.