Jasper County Democrat, Volume 14, Number 92, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 28 February 1912 — THE MATCH FACTORY SITUATION [ARTICLE]

THE MATCH FACTORY SITUATION

Is Giving Its Adherents a Brea! Goal of Concern. STRAINED BAD FINANCIALLY And Leins In Excess of $4,000 Are Filed Against Building, With Perhaps More to Follow—Commercial Club Has Bond, But— For some time the conviction has been growing upon the most ardent, if ill advised, supporters of the match factory proposition, that perhaps it was nothe’r bunco game in wthich they, as usual, had played the part of the fish. The Commercial Club, it will be remembered, gave the match factory people SIO,OOO in cash, all the unsold doits and all the unplatted ground in the 70 acres of the factory lands. In return they got a contract from the factory people agreeing to erect a building according to plans submitted and to install machinery, and when they had paid out ' SIOO,OOO in wages the company was to have a deed for the five acres of ground on which the factory was located. A surety company bond was put up guaranteeing to build the factory free as we understand it.

It was the understanding at the time that the match factory people hadf no money outside of what was given them here, and with this, it seems, they have gone ahead and erected a large cement block building, but whether it cost the SIO,OOO in cash given them is a debatable question. It was the intention of the match people to put .on another lot sale to secure funds to operate, it is stated, but in view of past experiences here this plan was found to be inadvisable, and so a bond issue was resorted to. All the upplatted land and unsold lots were several afb'nths ago transferred to one O’Shaunnessy of Chicago, whom we are now informed is 'at present a member of the match company. O’Shaunnessy then transferred the land to “The Rensselaer Home Building C 0.,” of which he is the head. Therefore all the Commercial Club has to fall back on is a big cement block building, which is no doubt of eettifiderable value if it can be utilized—but of no value otherwise—-and the bond guaranteeing to turn the same over free of leins. A number of the latter, aggregating about $4,000 in all, have been filed, as follows: J C Gwin & Co $2500.00 Vincent Eisele 7.50 Rensselaer Lumber C 0.... 730.00 Marion I. Adam 5........ 7.50 McHenry-MiMhouse Co ... 700.00 Alex Frye . 35^00 E D Rhoades & Son a . 25.11 Central Rubber Supply Co 543.98 Suit has also been brought in the circuit court against the company on one claim of $l5O by Smith, tfelliner & Co.

The Democrat has purposely avoided any particular mention of these leins or of the poor prospects for anything to come from the proposition, because its views on subsidies and “factory buying” are well known, and those who hold the opposite opinion are always ready to howl “kicker” wnenever a com-mon-sense view is presented. Now, while we have never advised anyone to “buy a lot” or take any stock in the proposition, none of these wiseacres say The Democrat has “knocked” the project. If it is dead it has died because it never had any real vitality, and is simply another illustration that it takes both money and <some natural advantages to operate a successful factory proposition. The Democrat knows Rensselaer to. be one of the best county seat towns in this section of the state. It hag 1 a large territory to draw trade from,, and if our merchants and business mien would devote more attention to the natural' advantages that we have and less to pursuing phantoms, the better it will be 'for our city. The Democrat has demonstrated its own faith

in Rensselaer by investing its earnings in property here. It believes the town will continue to grow and prosper regardless of whether this match factory is ever operated or whether we get another railroad right away quick or not. It takes something more than a factory built by subsidy and something more than railroads to make a good business town. Wijth a more uniformity of public spirit and less local business jealously,.’ a united effort to bring trade and people to our city, we can do much to promote its welfare and build it up substantially. And as this comes about the railroads and factories promotors who are only in tihe business for what they can get out of it. ' Let us not forget that—“lf we cannot on the ocean Sail among the swiftest fleet, Riding on the highest billows, Laughing at the storms we meet,” We can sing the praises of Rensselaer, and can make the most of our natural advantages. By individual and united effort we can make our city bigger and better and induce people to come here to live and bring additional business to our merchants and tradesmen.