A REMARKABLE WESTERN PUBLISHING HOUSE. T The Missouri Valley Farmer, The Mail and Breeze, The Topeka Capital HE largest publishing house west of St. Louis is located at Topeka. Arthur Capper, the proprietor of this successful concern, is owner of five well known publications, and employs 145 people. His papers are: The Topeka Daily Capital. The Kansas SemiWeekly Capital, The Missouri Valley Farmer, The Mail and Breeze, and The Household. Starting as a typesetter fifteen years ago in the office of the Topeka Capital, of which he is today the sole owner, Mr. Capper's career from the first day he struck Topeka with but $1.25 cash assets has indeed become a most remarkable and interesting record. Nearly all of the five big publications owned by him, and now recognized as among the best and most successful in their class, were struggling papers of small circulation until Mr. Capper got hold of them. He has a genius for building up papers that have "run down." His first venture as a publisher was the purchase of The of editorial and special writers than any other agricultural paper in the Southwestern States. Five years ago Mr. Capper purchased the Missouri Valley Farmer, which at that time had a circulation of 20,000, and made a progressive, practical journal for the farmers of the Southwest. It covers thoroughly the States of Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, Texas, Oklahoma, Iowa, ARTHUR CAPPER, Mail and Breeze, which he took when it had less than a thousand circulation, and converted into a breezy, up-to-date farmers' weekly. The Mail and Breeze is very popular with the farmers of Kansas, Oklahoma, and Southern Nebraska. Twelve experienced subscription solicit Minnesota, Colorado and Indian Territory. Mr. Capper claims this is the finest agricultural field in the world and he is working it for all there is in it. Today The Farmer has a circulation of over 160,000 copies, and every copy goes to a family which wants it, pays for it in advance and reads it. It has more classified departments edited by competent and thoroughly practical men than any other farm paper in the West de partments of actual money value to its readers. Over a car load of white paper is required to print. each issue. Mr. Capper has held a controlling interest in the Topeka Daily Capital for several years, and a few months ago became sole owner of same. It has long been recognized as the leading daily of Kansas. It now has a circulation of over 20,000. The increase in both circulation and advertising during the past year was the largest in the history of the paper. The Semi-Weekly edition has over 20,000 circulation among the farmers of the state. Mr. Capper's latest acquisition is The Household, a high class woman's monthly magazine, which has been running over three years and has a paid-in-advance circulation of over 100,000. Another Year of Prosperity. 1905 promises to be the most prosperous year that the Farmers of the Wheat Belt have ever seen. Never in the history of the middle. western states has the tide of prosperity risen so high as at the present time. Kansas has had three years of unbounded prosperity and the fourth is assured. The following is from a recent editorial in the Chicago Tribune and shows that another prosperous year for the Farmers of Kansas may be counted upon. This is also true of Missouri, which for the past three years has shared with Kansas in the General Prosperity. PROSPEROUS KANSAS. "What's the matter with Kansas? Nothing this year. There has been plenty of moisture this spring and the crop is fairly shooting up. The whole Kansas wheat belt is a mass of waving green and Kansas is counting on a great crop. Such a crop means something for Kansas and the nation. If it meets expectations and commands a fair price, as it promises to do, it will put from $50,000,000 to $60,000,000 in the Kansas Farmer's pocket. A nice little sum to have around the house or to loan to the poor down-trodden eastern plutocrat. The Kansas Farmer used to put all his eggs in one basket. If corn was a failure, he raised nothing the next year but wheat. If wheat failed, he raised nothing next year but corn. He has quit that unprofitable practice. He now raises a diversity of crops and live stock. He is putting a big acreage in corn, and, present favorable conditions continuing, will harvest around $50,000,000 from it. The man who visited Kansas ten years ago and revisits it this year is amazed at the change-the veritable revolution-that has taken place. Kansas was then in debt and a populist. Now it is wealthy and politically sane. There is nothing the matter with Kansas although Kansans think there is. They always do. They imagine they are in a life and death struggle with the oil octopus. Their future depends but slightly on this bout. They will prosper more if they whip the octopus, but they will prosper greatly if it whips them. The octopus hasn't got and can't get its tentacles on the things that are of real importance to Kansas." Naturally, advertisers want to know the best method of reaching the prosperous farmers. There is one great weekly newspaper that for fifteen years has been the favorite counsellor of the farmers of this section-the Kansas City Weekly Star. Every week this reliable publication visits the homes of more than 250,000 farmers and is carefully read by them. They give heed to it, and whatever appears in its columns appeals to them with mighty force. The advertising rate is so low in proportion to circulation that it cannot fail to pay any advertiser who has goods to sell that are needed by farmers. Fifty cents a line for a circulation exceeding 250,000 in a paper that has the influence that this publication has, is a bargain that no advertiser who wants to get the trade of good farmers can well afford to miss. The main circulation of this great weekly is packed into Missouri, Kansas and the adjoining States. Right in the center of the most prosperous section. Farmers Are Not "Reubens" Advertisers who thus picture them make a mistake. By JAMES SLOCUM, Business Manager, The Gleaner. T is painful indeed to note how some advertisers, or those who prepare the copy for them, picture the farmer of today. It is evident that their opinion of the farmer is that he is a fellow who is homely, deformed and illiterate; that his clothes are wrinkled and ill fitting, his hat always the old slouch, wrinkled and crumpled type, which has seen years of service, and his long bushy whiskers, the nesting place for field mice and meadow larks; at least this is the way they picture him, and with such insulting and ridiculous pictures they head their advertisements, expecting to interest the farmer to the extent of getting his patronage. Every time I see one of these cuts, it pictures to my mind the fellow who originates or draws them as one with his hair parted in the middle, smoking "coffin-sticks," who never spent a day on the farm in his life; a fellow who thinks he knows it all, but has lots to learn yet; one who tells his friends that he is a clever artist and KNOWS how. Just look at the following picture, "Farmers are not Farmers poor." What is are not poor there about this cut to appeal to anyone? Does this picture the farmer of today? It is an affront to him. If so, what is to be expected of him? I was brought up on a farm and lived there until I shifted for myself and in all those days I never remember of meeting a farmer who looked like this, and I don't believe anyone else ever did, in a civilized country. Note the intelligent look on the farmer boy holding the plow handles. How could he be pictured worse? Does he look to you as a type of an industrious farmer boy? This picture looks to me more like a city fellow who would ridicule the farmer. Show me one farmer boy who looks like this picture, and I will show you ten in some home of the Feeble Minded, and hundreds from the cities and villages who help to fill the States prisons. The old farmer and his cow is another brilliant inspiration of the city artist who never spent a day in his life on the farm. Where could a worse looking object be found? And yet, some advertisers flaunt these insults before the farmers as a part ALLACES' FARME "GOOD FARMING-CLEAR THINKING-RIGHT LIVING" The following letter proves conclusively the standing of Wallaces' Farmer among the mediums that reach the live stock farmer. CLAY, ROBINSON & COMPANY, LIVE STOCK COMMISSION. Wallaces' Farmer, Des Moines, Iowa. CHICAGO JAN. 20, 1905. Gentlemen-We have just finished tabulating returns from a page advertisement with keyed coupon which we recently ran in a list of nine of the strongest and best agricultural and live stock papers in the country, and are pleased to advise you that Wallaces' Farmer heads the list, both in number of inquiries and cost per inquiry. In point of quality the replies received through your paper were first-class, proving conclusively that your readers represent the best and most progressive element among stock owning farmers. We feel that such service calls for recognition, and we therefore make our best bow to Wallaces' Farmer as a gilt edged advertising medium. Yours truly, CLAY, ROBINSON & COMPANY, [Signed] R. P. Fales, Adv. Manager. It is interesting to note that the nine papers used are recognized as nine of the best farm papers published, and every paper of prominence circulating west of Chicago was on the list. Not only that, but among them were a number of papers claiming double the circulation that Wallaces' Farmer claims. AND YET, Wallaces' Farmer not only brought inquiries at a low cost, but also more inquiries than any other paper. Why? For the simple reason that circulation of Wallaces' Farmer is built up strictly on the merits of the paper, and its subscribers are reading, thinking farmers and almost invariably the best in their respective neighborhoods. They have confidence in the editorial and business policy of the paper, and this confidence extends to the advertising columns as well. If you have an article for sale that appeals to the live stock farmer, Wallaces' Farmer is one paper you ought to use and you will only need to look it over, noting the reading matter contained and the class of advertising carried to know why it pays. Let us send you a sample copy. Address for same, WALLACES' FARMER, DES MOINES, IA. Wallaces' Farmer is the only Iowa agricultural paper that requires payment in advance for subscriptions and stops when the time is out. |