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BUTTS COUNTY PROGRESS VOLUME 33.' MAY ABOLISH RURAL ROUTES Patronage Must Be Kept Up to Standard MAILS BEING WEIGHED Post Office Department May Discontinue Certain Routes That Do Not Meet The Requirements Washington, Jan. 2.—The time is approaching when the rural count is to be made and consid erable apprehension is felt among members of congress that there may be some reduction in the number of rural letter routes. Indeed, it is reported that a decrease in the volume of mail pieces carried on a very large number of these routes jeopar dises their continuance. It is with the view of ascer taining just what volume of bus iness the carriers are now hand ling, as compared with this pe riod a year ago, that the postof fice department is making very careful investigation with the view of ascertaining just what routes will justify continuance and what routes will probably be abandoned. Inspectors’ reports, as far as made, indicate that quite a number of routes are not carrying enough mail to justify the expense of a carrier, and the policy of the postoffice depart ment is to discontinue such routes that do not handle a sufficient volume of mail to indicate the in terest of the people living along. In other words, the department will not try to force a route upon communities which do not take enough interest in the service to ; patronize it. This policy is ap plied throughout the country, but, strange to say, some of the rural communities of the south seem to be less interested in the service than in any other part of the country. At any rate, the postoffice de partment is looking into the mat ter and it can be stated with cer tainty that where a rural route is not patronized it will not be continued. TAKING SHORT COURSE IN ATHENS GOLLEGE . Prof. H. L. Worsham left Monday morning for Athens, # where he will study at the State College of Agriculture during the lext few days. He was accom panied by Masters Ernest Wat kins, Lawrence Fincher, Thomas Hale and Bernard Gaston, mem bers of the Butts county boys corn club, who were awarded prizes for their yields of corn on one acre. The boys will take the entire short course and it is expected that the training they will receive in the Athens insti tutions will be very valuable to them later on. Several hundred boys from over the state are in attendance upon the Agricultural College at this time. What is the Matter With The United States? BY HERBERT N. CASSON “What is the matter with the United States?” As I have been residing in London since the beginning of the war, I have been hear ing this question asked on all sides. I have never heard any satisffactory answer. No one seems to know. Why are the American factories not running night and day? Why are the railroads not opening up new territories and getting ready for the millions of immigrants who have already made up their minds to leave Europe as soon as the war is over? Why are there not fifty American drummers in London right now, trying to sell $200,000,000 worth of American goods in place of the goods that were bought last year from Germany and Austria? Why have advertisers become quitters, just at the time when their advertisements were most needed and most effective in cheering on the business forces of the United States? From the European point of view, the United States is a haven of peace and security and prosperity. It has no troubles that it dare mention to Belgium or Austria or France or Germany or Servia or Great Britain or Russia. Every tenth Briton has enlisted. Every tenth Frenchman is at the front. Every tenth Belgian is dead. What does the United States know of trouble? If I could afford it, I would charter the Mauretania and Lusitania and convey a party of 5,000 American Advertisers to Europe for a trip of education. I would give them a week in London, a week in Paris and a week in Antwerp. I would let them look at the United States from the scene of war. I would give them a look at real trouble. I would let them see trains, ten at a time, five minutes apart, packed with the maimed and the dying. I would let them hear from fragmentary survivors, the incredible story of battle fields 150 miles wide, and armies that are greater than the entire population of Texas. I would let them see graves 100 yards long and full; Belgium, the country that was, nothing now but 12,000 square miles of wreckage. Then, when they began to understand, to some slight extent, the magnitude and awfulness of war, I would say to them: “Now go back and appreciate the United States. Realize your opportunities. Don’t start digging trenches when nobody is firing at you. Don’t fall down when you have not been hit. Don’t be blind to the most glorious chance you have ever had in your life. ; ‘Go back and advertise. Get ready for the most tremendous business boom that any nation ever had. Build your factories bigger. Train more salesmen. Borrow more money. Go ahead, and thank God that you are alive and that your family is alive, and you are living in a land that is at peace, at a time when nearly the whole world is at war.’’ (Reprinted from Associated Advertising for December.) WANTS GRAND JURY TO ACT On Matter Demonstration Work in Butts NO DEFINITE ACTION YET County Commissioner to Follow In&rudtions of The February Grand Jury As to Demonstrator The future of farm demonstra tion work in Butts county will probably depend upon the action of the February grand jury. For the past year Prof. H. L. Worsham, of Culloden, has been employed as Farm Demonstrator in this county, and his year will be out the first of March. He was employed following a recom mendation of February 1914, grand jury. It is the opinion of those who have followed this work closely that a consider able amount of good has been ac- JACKSON, GEORGIA, FRIDAY, JANUARY 8, 1915. complished during the time Mr. Worsham has had charge of this department. Last year the boys torn club had its best year and a creditable county fair was held during the fall. A large number of people de sire the work continued. Ex pressions have not been had from all the people. For this reason Mr. J. 0. Gaston, Commissioner of Roads and Revenues, wishes to have an opinion from the grand jury before he takes any definite action in the matter. . The grand jury will meet on the third Monday in February and until that time it is not known whether Butts county will have the services of a dem onstration agent in 1915. If the farmer could market at any sort of a price all the advice given him, there would be no fi nancial reasons to prevent him from holding his cotton crops for three or four years.—Augusta Chronicle. BANKS WILL HAVE MEETING TO Review Work of The Past Year NEXT TUESDAY IS TIME Expected That Satisfactory Showing Will Be Made —Dividends Will Be Paid By Various Banks Jackson and Butts county banks will have their annual meetings next Tuesday, the 12, at which time the business of the past year will be gone over, offi cers and directors for the next twelve months elected and other business details attended to. It is expected that the several banks will make a good showing to the stockholders, considering the conditions. The stockholders will have their meeting first, elect directors who in turn will choose the officers. The annual RATES ON COTTON REACH RECORD Hard to Get Staple to The European Markets $18.75 FROM SAVANNAH Foreign War Makes It Dif ficult For Exporters to Get Cotton to Countries in The War Zone Savannah, Ga., Jan. 2 —Owing to scarcity of neutral ships and the risks which must be taken in transportating freights the trans- Atlantic rates on freight room from Savannah are now showing at new record high levels. The quotations per bale on cot ton yesterday compared to norm al times, according to a represen tative exporter here were: To Bremen, present rate, $18.75 against $1.75 a bale. To Gothenburg, present rate $11.25 against $3.00. To Rotterdam, present rate $12.50 against $8.75. To Havre, present rate $5.50 against $2.00. Genoa, present rate $5.50 against $2*75. Liverpool and Manchester, present rate $4.35 against $1.75. Barcelona, present rate $5.00 against $3.25. The average price of a bale of cotton now is $35. The freight rate to Bremen is practically half the value of the cotton. Cotton factors here pointed out that the effect of the enormous increase in freight rates was largely responsible for the low prices the staple now is bringing in domestic markets. It would be impossible they said, to pay more than $35 a bale here, meet the high freight charges and sell the cotton at even a modest profit in European mar kets. RURAL ROUTE MAIL NOW REIN 6 COUNTED i For the purpose of finding out the exact number of pieces of mail received and dispatched on the eight rural routes supplied by the Jackson postoffice, a count is being made this month. All the mail of every description receiv ed and dispatched on the routes is being carefuly counted. This is done every now and then, the information being de sired by the head of the depart ment in Washington. The pres ent count, it is reported, will have considerable bearing on the future of the rural free delivery system in this country. Where mail is not heavy enough to jus tify it certain routes will be abol ished, it is said. or semi-annual dividends will be declared at that meeting. Several thousand dollors will be paid out in dividends follow ing the annual meeting. National banks throughout the country have their annual meet ings on the second Tuesday in January. For the sake of con venience the ptate banks will al so have their meeting on that date. The First Farmers Bank has its yearly meeting ‘in July, the time when it began business. NUMBER 2.