334  SELLING  LATIN  AMERICA

fore  in  a  position  to  force  on  this  great  class
of  the  people  whatever  he  wishes.  I  recall
one  of  these  typical  country  merchants  telling
me  that  practically  every  man  in  the  neighborhood ­
  owed  him  money  and  that  therefore  he
had  them  all  in  his  power,  so  that  he  could
tell  them  just  what  he  wished  them  to  do  or
buy  or  be  closed  out.  The  control  held  by
such  a  man  in  these  remote  communities  is  farreaching
  and  conclusive.  It  is  quite  obvious
that  the  proletariat  may  be  reached  through
direct  appeal  to  him.  He  usually  takes  the
local  papers,  and  those  published  in  his  immediate ­
  vicinity,  and  is  certain  to  subscribe  to
one  or  more  of  the  leading  metropolitan  dailies, ­
  so  as  to  keep  in  touch  with  the  markets
and  shipping  conditions.  He  knows  almost
to  a  ton  what  this  year’s  crop  will  amount  to;
what  the  output  of  the  neighboring  mines  will
be;  how  much  rubber  will  come  from  up  country; ­
  if  wool  will  bring  a  high  price,  or  if
cattle  will  be  lower  than  last  year,  and  is  generally ­
  an  all  around  encyclopaedia  of  useful
information  on  every  local  subject.  The