THE Qy»ET hour
MOTOR-MANiA
The other day by actual count
twenty-nine hundred autos went
cast on Euclid Avenue, in Cleve
land, Ohio, in twelve hours.
Probably $0,000,000, would lie a
moderate estimate of the money
which they represented. About
10000 are owned by residents her*
What is true of this one city, is
proportionately true thruout the
land. The estimated average is a
car for every onehundred and six
ty families in the Cnited States.
Tin' mushroomlike growth of the
automobile manufacturing plants
and agencies with the inevitable
overproduction and keen competi
tion; the fad for discarding the
last years machine for this years
“model”; the enormous capital
tied up—over $1,000,000,000, are
bound to lower prices, placing
motor cars within the reach
most of those beyond that circle
wish they had one. Let us defin
initely face the facts.
Commercialism with its attend
ant prosperity and luxury is the
characteirstic symptom of the age
and its most patent and potent
symptom is the automobile.
Now inasmuch as our lire as a
whole is necessarily affected and
influenced by our lives in every
part, this growing motormania
cannot long fail to produce an ef
fect, beneficial or detrimental up
on our social, intellectual and spir
itual life as a nation.
t
In fact it is not difficult to
find evidence of this even at this
comparatively early stage of the
game.
Admitting that the auto has ar
rived; and that it has come to
.stay; and that its grip upon the
nation is so firm that it has be
come a mighty factor in moulding
national character and thus de
termining the trend of future e
vents, what meaning may we reac
in all this for the future?
If prosperity is the God of our
times, and the motorcar is his pro
phet, let us listen to some of its
prognostications, if happily we
may be able to avert the evil and
ensure the good.
A few concrete cases will serve
to set out in bold relief some of
the more important phases of this
mania for motion.
Motormania diminishes church
attendance.
I have an acquaintance, a profes
sional man, who, a year ago was
a good Methodist, today he is
merely a good automobilist. Dur
ing six or seven months of
the year, on pleasant Sundays, i
stead of going with his family to
their church, he devotes the early
part of the day to overhauling his
big touring car, and the rest of it
to speeding thru the countryside
his wife and three children with
him.
1 refrain from moralizing upon
the influence of this course, not
only upon the parents’ spiritual
lives, Imt upon the whole spiritua
point of view and prospects .of th
little “coming people,’’ deprived
at a critical time, of the influen
ces so essential to developement
along higher lines. The simple
fact—and it is but typical of a na
tion-wide condition—is irresista
bly eloquent in its prophetic sug
gestion. Say what you will, this
typical instance proves that the
motorcar is doing more to over
throw and Europeanize the day o
Rest and to undermine the
Church than any other agency. I
this it is not merely a symptom of
a condition already existing, it
is contributing heavily to the
spread of that condition. Almost
every business man who is held
down by close business hours dur
ing the week, who invests in a
motorcar has already surrendered
by anticipation, all that a quiet
Sunday is intended to bring him
—and must bring him unless his
soul is to lie permitted to shrivel,
and the other world to he crowd
ed out. ■
Motormania breeds reckless ex
travagance.
Everybody knows that tradi
tional “somebody who has mort
gaged his house to buy a touring
ear.” llis name is legion, and
these tool-ranks are swelled by
the other people who do not have
a house to mortgage and yet have
a ear. One estimate asserts that
nearly half of the automobiles
sold today are purchased with
borrowed money, or on credit,by
people who cannot afford the lux
ury.
Desiring to deal only in cold
facts, 1 stopped writing, at this
point, long enough to consult one
of the leading dealers in Cleve
land, Ohio as to the life of the
average auto. lie gave it as
three years. He cited one
instance in which the cost was
$11250 and the owner thought him
self extremely fortunate in being
able to sell it for $800 in the thir
year. One of the machines which
he sells is priced at $900, and he
stated that its annual upkeep and
depreciation are $500, giving it
a three year life.
No doubt tor those in attluence,
expenditure on that scale does
not figure. But it is no less true
that a great multitude, which it
it would at least keep a man busy
to number, is yielding to the temp
tation to divert funds from right
ful business and household chan
nels und('r the spell of the auto.
And national'thrift comes next
to national righteousness as a
guaranty of national stability.
Motormania spreads intellectu
al blight. A New York Evening
Post states this phase of the evil
succinctly.
Speaking of the speed mania
epidemic among a large class of
wind aught to he a cheerful and .
bracing pleasure into an unwhole
some excitement. It transforms
what aught to lie one of the most,
delightful modes of traveling into
what cannot be properly be dig
nified by the name of travel at ul
instead of seeing a country, get
ting its flavor, enjoying its pecu
liarities and partaking of its at
tractions, the speeding automo
bilist chains himself down to his
program of getting over the
ground, and becomes absorbed
in the monotonous physical satis
faction of Ids swift motion by day
and the inane contemplation of
his record when lie rests at night.
There is something about the
whole matter which reminds one
of the stupefying fascination of
the drug habit. ”
It is not the church only that
suffers because of the spread of
motormania. Every form of ra
tional enjoyment and intellectual
pursuit feels the competition
Literature, art. music, all suffer.
An art-lover recently said to a
friend; “By the way, I have just
bought^a ltembrant.” “Really”
was the eager answer, “how
many cylinders has it.'”
ah, now, noid on. ion u
take one quick enough if it was
offer you, and risk all of these*
dismal consequences you are con
juring up”—1 think I. hear some
one .say.
Most assuredly, my good friend.
And in the same way I would eon
sent to a several-thousand dollar
increase in my salary in spite of
the dangers of that covetousness
which is idolatry.
But that does not alter the fac1\:
A motor-car like a fire is a good
servant but a bad master, and
there are multitudes who buy
them as servants and then sell
! themselves to theem as slaves.
And as a result the omnipresent
‘ aut° is working a radical change
in American character—and it is
not for the better.
J. H. Bomberger.
LUMET
POWDER
The wonder of bak- wt,
inj powders—Calumet.
Wonderful in its raising
powers — its uniformity, • A
i"s never failing remits, it . 1
purity. ii
>
Received
Highest
Award
World’s Pur
Food
Exposition
^ ondcrful in its economy.
j i it costs less than the b oh-pricc
' j trust brands, but it is worth as
/ / «iu>-h. It costs a trifle more than
/ j the cheap and big can kinds—
• j it is worth more. But proves its
real economy in the baking.
^ b®9 CALUMET—the Modern
Baking Powder.
p At all Grocers.
A New Store!
I wish to announce to the general
public*that I have opened a !
Grocery, Flour
and Feed
Store—two blocks east of Samuel !
Wahl’s—(northeast corner of the
Central School block).
My stock is new throughout and
the best that money can buy. My :
expenses are reduced to the small- j
est possible point, and customers
will receive the benefit of our low
expense.
I Goods delivered promptly to any
part of town and courteous treat
ment assured. Use the telephone—
NO. 509
THOS. J. WHITAKER
Market Price Paid for Produce Cash or Trade
JOHN W. POWELL
Real Estate and Loans
MORTGAGES BOUGHT AND SOLD
Monev to Loan at 5 and 6 per cent interest on good real estate
security. Also monev to loan on good chattel security.
gffffo" cwurj1 House_Falls City, Nebraska
R F*. ROBERTS
DENTIST
Office over Kerr's Pharmacy
Office Phene 260 Residence Phone 271
.
EDGAR R. MATHERS
DENTIST
- ■ ■■ ■■■
Phones: Nos. 177, 217 ,
Sam’l. Wahl Bltllinc.
DR. C. N. ALLISON
DENTIST
Phone 248 Over Richardson County
Bank.
FALLS CITY, NEBRASKA
DR. H. S. ANDREWS
General Practioneer
Calls Answered Day Or Night
In Town or Country.
TELEPHONE No. 3
BARADA. - NEBRASKA
CLEAVER & SEBOLD
INSURANCE
REAL ESTATE AND LOANS
NOTARY IN OFFICE
WHITAKER
The Auctioneer
Before arranging date write, tele
phone er telegraph, my expense
J. 0. WHITAKER
Phone. I68-I3I-2IM Fall. City. Neb
Frank Peck’s Claim Dates.
J. B. Whipple, Poland China Hog
sale, October, 15, 1910.
< I fr »*■»< + »» *
1 ‘ 4
:: D. S. flcCarthy ;
:: :;
:: DRAY and :
;: TRANSFER ;
‘I Prompt attention triven J
\ | to the removal of house- j
] ’ hold poods.
:: *
:: PHONE NO. 211
I 1111111111111 11 111 111 11 I
-1
Paste this in
Your Hat!
J. B. WHIPPLE
WILL SELL
Poland - China
Hogs
Saturday, Oct. 15, 1910
Saturday, Nov. 19, 1910
The Central
Credit Co.
FALLS CITY, NEB
I
|
DRAWER NO. 12.
REPORTS on financial standing
and reliability of firms, corporations
and individuals anywhere.
Domestic and foreign COLLEC
TIONS given prompt and competent!
attention
->
Isn’t Right Now if vour financial condition ? I
a Good Time to 1)urinK‘ these years of pros
—— ■ ■ ... peritv how much of your in
Take stock come have you saved? Per
haps very little, if any. Why not start rijrht now
by opening an account with the
Falls City State Bank
and conserve your income from now on? 1 his bank
furnishes deposit slips, checks and puss books free
and pays interest on Time Deposits and CHILD
I RKN’S ACCOUNTS.
J
Only a Fatalist Sits Down and Waits
Others Make the Most of Opportunity
We can supply you all
kinds of monuments vary
ing in price according to
material used and labor
expended.
We advise the better
quality of monuments at
a slight difference in the
price.
Nothing is more sugges
tive of the regard in
in which the deceased are
held than a substantial,
well finished monument.
Let us furnish it now.
Palls Citv Marble Works
Established 1881. R. A. ® F. A. NEIT7.EL, Mrfrs.
PITCHERS
PITCHERS OF ALL SIZES
I SHAPES AND KINDS
DISCRETIONS AND PRICES
See the new covered
Pitcher.
They are in the south
window with a price card
on each one.
Chas. M. Wilson's
I
There is One BEST in Everything
BELOIT KANSAS.
\r
•' * "*
4« Lbs.
GOLD COIN
HIOHEST PATENT FLOUR X "
& IN FLOUR ITS
Gold Coin
Ask Your Grocer. He Knows.
Heck&Warnsley
Distributors for Southeastern
Nebraska
We will buy your Apples by
the Cwt. in bulk, or by the
barrel, as you prefer.
WAREHOUSE
The Canning Factory down by
the Mill
< warehouse Phone, 396
\ Residence Phone, 3I8A
TAKE YOUR HOME PAPER FIRST
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