| Show D t r f Ai o nii o i e i- i iKa K-a K i ir L I i a at t ta i 5 j g y j r When Town Your own or City Fails to Function Properly Just Drop the he Head of the Field RAF bR iE Work s Division r of ot the Chamber of Commerce of off the United States Mates a Line I l I By William Williom Atherton Du Da pu pay x I sewing c ini machine machine- hi hiA A slips ip a i its b baud band or L 3 v or our gas meter runs the bill up to ur tim times s that of last month or your youri i Ca to gallops wh where re 3 you rou ou would ke it to glide you have but to go gothe mn the corn corner ro to get et an expert vho rho tinkers a bit shrivels up your I jest est pocket collection on of dollar bills nd d sends you away perhaps sadder glut hitting on 00 all your cylinders rs i 1 ut it whoever you are and wherever Iut on live you h have ve got one piece of ofa a that plays an important art in your existence a stupendously sly ar it r i i r I. I y I 0 Ir c 1 q 7 li liI y I k 11 fr f. c. c t ij FI I h ti tiR 4 f s R r Sy Q r r important pi piece c of machinery and maybe you rou have hav never thought of whether it is operating properly or not and if it isn't you Jon have no idea where to get a repairman You llave have got a town or a city Maybe i you yon liveright live liver r right in in the middle of it or maybe you vou ou live out in the country and just come in once in awhile But you yon use that town or city as a place to do your our shopping or to obtain your amusement or an education or earn earna a a. a livelihood I I Well is your to town v working right or is is it bumping along g. g on a flat tire Y Ys Is s it giving yop you the maximum of service or does it fail you in half the prays Rays ays it might serve you yon 1 Is it pulling pull- pull ting ing b its load economically or does its Carburetor waste your gas gas and its bearings grind for lack of intelligent oiling filing Y Here Here is a man who maintains a ervice station for ailing cities Here is s a man who c can can n be called in to look over ver your t town a and d see that all essential parts are present who may listen listen to the hum of f the engine of your your ur industries and see whether or not nott it t is working right who may examine the enamel of its surface that is necessary for its personal appearance who may tell you you of the existence of this or that new appliance which may maybe maylie lie be attached to it to keep it abreast of f the times f- f The name of this man is Colvin Bown B. B rown own and he h has s devoted some hirty years o of an a active tive life to nosing nosing osing the ailments of communities l rand and prescribing the treatment that will twill vill put nut them on their feet He is in charge of the field work o of the of commerce of the United I f tates is paid by that organization land fond pd hi his hig business is t to travel l from one Community community to another lead e each ch community to a a proper un understanding ef f what it needs needs' and to point the way Jo 10 o the acquisition of whatever it jacks asks acks He lIe works always always' through the theoval local oval chamber of commerce gives gives' it ithe t he best that is in him and shows itOW it Vow Jiow OW to make the rep repair r. r So great is the Uie need of his service that he lie goes about from place to place place all allver z Aver ver the United States all the time as busy as a d doctor in influenza time Your garage garase mans mans' man said air Mr r. r Brown of finding out has haa developed the capacity ig I li i ih h f. f a L i fr n ti y J j Yf A J N h h Q ti l i rift Li fin Wr Ss q 7 4 r t f Cf k nj n. n f k Z n 1 I y Y Z S N h 3 a. a i 9 S. S l h kh F 3 p y sKit af bl I I Ii i SV 4 i l J t y i lJ I FI I t I I I LI i Ay e t AZ 4 40 II hN is s. s it I I t v. v f rd sC 4 I Il LIi n l r lri h Y LArNi X I 4 h atE k IA y r NI 4 1 R I 1 I M 9 hII u l I bi r rS S 11 1 1 4 I ju juI I j r v yai I I dl Colvin B. B Dro Brown n who for thirty years has has prescribed pre pre- scribed for rick sick communities y I RI what is the matter with a disabled auto auto- automobile automobile auto automobile mobile and repairing it through the fact of ofa ofa ofa a long experience with many automobiles Now since a a municipality is Ls s a machine through which the community transacts its business the same principle of understanding understand understand- ing and nd improving its operation holds Municipalities Municipalities Municipalities Mu Mu- however are somewhat isolated one from the other and for a long time there was no agency which had experience which led to the study of great numbers of them Within the last decade however an organization has come In into to being which does have the experience of studying many communities In all parts of the country That organization is the chamber of commerce commerce commerce com com- merce of the United States operates operates operates oper oper- ates as a clearing house for information for all the cities and towns that are bound together In it ft Before this clearing house was created there were many hundreds of towns and cities throughout the country which had established chambers of commerce all of which were working In an endeavor to further the interests of their respective communities These chambers of commerce commerce commerce com com- merce were usually wide awake and progressive progressive progressive pro pro- institutions They were made up of forward looking men and were very likely to try experiments for tor the betterment betterment betterment better better- ment of these communities Many of these experiments would fall fail but occasionally one would be demonstrated as a great suc suc- cess When an experiment proved a given Idea to be wrong there was no way in n which that lesson was likely meely to reach other communities When Then an an experiment was as tried and shown to be right the results were Just as likely to remain unknown to others When however we established a clearing house for information as between all these communities we began to compile compile com com- pile great quantities of information as to Just what Ideas had been shown by experience experience experience ex ex- to be right and just what ideas had been shown by this sa same e experience to be unworkable I Here Is an example A decade and a I half ago chambers of commerce throughout the United States were largely busy upon I Ithe the idea of getting factories established in their communities The method then followed followed followed fol fol- fol- fol I lowed of accomplishing this result was that of offering free factory sites and of offering bonuses for the establishment of factories Experience proved however that It was was the speculators and not the competent manufacturers manufacturers man man- who availed themselves of these offer Industries so established were likely likely like like- ly to fail and stand as a discouragement nt to others They hurt the communities that had attempted to establish them The scheme was shown by experience to be wrong and has been abandoned Tho The communities communities com com- which have succeeded in gathering gathering gathering gather gather- ing industrial plants unto themselves It has likewise been shown by e experience are those that have established favorable facilities facilities facil facil- such as those of adequate transportation transportation transportation tation and terminals and have appealed fide industrials as proper communities communities com com- to J bona In which to locate The first problem of a chamber of commerce commerce commerce com com- merce he went on and in fact tact the universal universal universal uni uni- versal problem wherever a a chamber may be located Is that of establishing and maintaining maIntaining maintaining main maIn- membership This Is a problem which of course had be been n worked upon by every chamber In existence Naturally experience inthe In fn Inthe there was a a a. great mass of the broad field of the nation and the advisability ad ad- of classifying and ancI studying that experience was obvious As the study pro- pro I r gressed it was found of co course that certain cerI I tain ideas had failed h hero here re there there and everywhere everywhere everywhere every- every where arld and that seemed quite ger generally to tend toward success The task became that of sifting out out the unsuccessful ideas and showing all an over the world how and why they would not work and of sifting o out t the successful sc schemes emes and making th them m available available avail avail- able to whoever wanted to use them From this mass of experience we eventually eventually even even- evolved a plan of maintaining membershIp membership membership mem mem- which we have laid down and had tried and proven all aU over the country by chambers of commerce We Vc now think think that that we wo can tell teU any community how to build buildup up upend and end maintain the membership of its cham cham- ber berThe The method that that has proved successful is called the continuous solicitation plan It Is coming Into general use everywhere as is a substitute for the membership drive plan which used to be regarded as the best method of procedure It has been shown that the membership drive which was based upon the development of much enthusiasm enthusiasm enthusiasm at a given time could not be be sustained sus s sus sustained s- s and w was wis s likely f to be followed by byr byro- byro re reactions actions which were were to the detriment of an organization Under the continuous solicitation plan a committee is appointed of say ten members members mem members mem mem- bers of the chamber Each of these members members mem members mem- mem bers Is pledged to devote two hours a month to this work until he has brought ten new new members Into the organization He is not allowed to go out hit or or miss in his solicitation solicitation tation of members but Is given by the secretary secretary sec sec secretary a definite list of desirable prospects whom he is to solicit The way is prepared prepared prepared pre pre- pared for him by proper introductions Interviewing In IntervIewIng Interviewing In- In these prospects as the representative representative representative of the chamber of commerce for two two I hours each month each month he is very sure to stead stead- steadily steadily ily Hy add to the membership of the tion When he has assured the number of members that is allotted to him his name is posted at headquarters as a blue star I m man man n a member who has done his bit in inthis inthis inthis this respect and he is not ag again In called caned I upon for such service His Isis posting in this way is a reward for competent service which brings him the respect of of his as assocIates associates associates as- as I Next to this membership problem I asked what is the most important thing to know In the proper conduct of a chamber chamber cham cham- b ber r. r of commerce Aside from maintaining Its membership which can be e accomplished through h this continuous solicitation n plan said sald Mr Brown Drown there is is' is the necessity of laying down sensible a program of work and Sticking sUcking sticking stick sUck I ing to that program In the first place the chamber itself should be organized on t 1 the basis of great simplicity It should have a competent paid secretary course a stenographer quarters stationery MaIntainIng Maintaining Maintaining Main MaIn- these Is the primary expense expense It should figure out the cost of maintaining such an organization and should make malce up for tor itself an annual budget This will show It tho the amount of money It Is s necessary fo foit foit it to rais raise If It needs a year for instance It may set itself the task of getting getting getting get get- ting members at 20 e each ch or it may find that it Is Is better to get members at 50 each No chamber should raise more money than is nee needed ed for Its actual operation because If it d does es it is a greater burden upon t the e busIness men of the community community community com com- than should be be and anti unnecessary funds are likely to lead to waste Its proper function of course Is merely to maintain the funds for Its own operation rk I I I I t 1 With V th tHe the b basis basis ls thus thus laid fora for r a chamber of comm commerce commet-ce tb the problem which h next faces it is the selection of the tasks tasks' which it must undertake le I hold that In any arty community community community com com- In the United States a group of 01 its leading business men when called together can immediately put their fingers upon the three or fo four r chief needs of the community Those needs may may be Improved school facilities facilities facilities facil facil- better railroad transportation better streets better bettel housing for its working people people people peo peo- municipal l laws Vh Whatever they are the progressive business men are likely to tobe tobe tobe be aware of them When the needs are known and laid out before such a group o of business m men n It Is possible to measure one one against the other and decide which is the most urgent which should be first attacked and solved When it has finally been determined which is th primary need of a given community com community com com- then the meeting of that need should become becom the first project of Its chamber chamber chamber cham cham- ber ber- berof of commerce A chamber of commerce is fundamentally i y a project organization and its primary business Is to determine the needs o of the community and upon upon those needs build projects ts which it proceeds to work out for tor the benefit of ot the c community When the chamber has determined upon a project the prope procedure is then to ap appoInt appoint appoint ap- ap point a ti project committee which is to take talce cha charge ge of that particular piece of worland work worl and with the chamber back of it drive it through to out and make It a real real- ity Mr Brown Drown holds that the fundamental problems of any community based u any are upon on four things things production labor tion morale Its prosperity of course i is I dependent t. t upon production Production In turn turl is is' is dependent largely upon labor and andIs andIs andis Is made possible by facilities for tation By morale he means the spirit that permeates the people and gives it the will to succeed Fort Scott Kan Iran is an excellent example exam exam- pl of a a community which m made de itself over anew because Its chamber of commerce thought intelligently and acted vigorously y I Half a dozen years ago there were two years when the wheat around Fort Scott did not come ome to harvest and as wheat was the only product of the community the town was left flat Even the merchants closed their stores stores stores' and moved away The chamber of commerce decided that the community needed more diversity of production It studied the situation and decided that the dairy industry would fit logically into its scheme The farmers owned only scrub cattle but bul despite this the chamber went down to Kansas City City nd induced the he big biff milk users to establish three shipping stations in the Fort Scott terri terrI- tory These farmers were much surprised d to to find that th they r could get cash money for that that milk v. v which had formerly play played d only I the part of or swill S for the hogs r f Then th the chamber of of commerce tol its Us I second step It organized an e excursion and took tool forty 0 of its most progressive f farmers I to that part of Wisconsin where the dairy dIry Industry is most highly developed It showed them just what first-class first dairy farms and first first class class dairy cattle were and how v such an enterprise is properly operated It was was an an eye ope eye opener er But this chamber of commerce did not stop here It raised |
