OCR Text |
Show Country Editor Brings Business To Home Town By JOHN E. STEMPEL Professor of Journalism Indiana University. "Sure," said Ed Thrasher, the druggist in Jonesville, population . 1,800, "this is a live town nice bank, nice stores." "I suppose the bank held up pretty well during the depression?" I asked as I selected the cigar I had dropped in buy. "We almost lost it," replied Ed. "Would have, too, if Bill Jenks hadn't got out and raised the money to open it again." Bill Jenks was my reason for coming com-ing to Jonesville. I didn't know him, but I wanted to meet this editor edi-tor whose paper recently had won an award for public service. I recalled re-called as I drove into Jonesville over a fine highway that the highway was there because he had assailed the old road with its dangerous turn into town repeatedly until the local folks massed before the state highway high-way commission and demanded action. ac-tion. "Business been pretty good here?" I asked Ed. "We used to complain some," Ed replied, "until one day Bill asked a bunch of us what kind of drummer we liked to buy from. We got to thinking about it, and agreed he had to have what we wanted, he ought to smile a little and he ought to be neat, even il his clothes wasn't exactly ex-actly for afternoon tea. Bill just asked us how some of the women folk liked buying from us when we looked so sour and didn't have pep enough to keep our stores clean. Merchant's Club Next. "We took the hint. Then some one mentioned a merchant's club, and Bill printed a piece about what a club like that could mean. Next week we had a set of officers from him to print, and we've been working work-ing together since. Next week is our Fall Prevue. All the farm folks will be in town. We fixed up to park the cars yes, that's Bill's idea, too and to entertain 'em with music in the park." "How long have you had the park?" "Oh, a couple of years. Bill told in the paper one day about the new park at Midville and another time he mentioned how unsightly the creek was. We got the land donated and got it fixed up, and now the farmers like to rest there when they're in town shopping and a lot of them come in for the band concerts." con-certs." "Town band?" . "Not exactly. Mostly it's a high school band. We've got a nice school, too. We used to hear the principal talk about how crowded the old school was, but we didn't pay much attention to him until Bill started writing pieces about it. Then we got a new building, and Bill showed us how we could use it not only to educate kids but for all kinds of meetings. It's brought us a lot closer together, and it's brought a lot of our neighbors from the country into town for basketball games and school plays and farm meetings. They kinda feel as though they belong here now. Sure, they read about these things in The Courier Cou-rier and come to town." And the Farmers. "How are the farmers doing?" "Pretty good. They were kinda stand-offish toward the county agent for a long time, but Bill kept telling tell-ing about how nice it would be to spend less time raising what they were and raising it better. Then these 4-H clubs he helped organize sort of taught the dads and moms something, too." "How are taxes?" "Kinda high, but nothing to what they were for a spell. We weren't paying much attention to the town reports printed regular in the Courier Cou-rier until Bill asked one day why it ought to take $250 worth of coal to heat the town hall. Then Bill asked some more questions. Now we're getting our money's worth for our taxes, and the town hall itself is all cleaned up, just like our stores." Just then a lad came in, and Ed looked as though he would like to go. I said good-by, and he remarked: re-marked: "7. generally ain't in a hurry to go to lunch when George gets back, but I read in the Courier this morning that old Aunt Liz is pretty sick no, she ain't my aunt, but she has been good to a lot of us for 70 years and I thought I would drop by to see if I could help her out any." Meeting Bill Jenks. And I went on down the street to meet Bill Jenks, who for 15 years has been chronicling the births and deaths, the comings and goings, the good fortune and ill of Jonesville, and who has helped the farmers have more leisure and made them better acquainted with town .folks, brought good highways, and encouraged encour-aged safe use of those highways, and now is working on a program to guard the health and keeping his eye on the light rate and government govern-ment expenditures. Show me a live town, and I'll find a live newspaper and a live editor. Jonesville is one of them, and Bill Jenks is on his toes. He's but one of 10.000 whose weekly newspapers are helping make their towns better places to live. |