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The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, May 18, 1913, Image 21

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Dreamer May Be
Man of Action.
C. S. MADDOCKS
IN contradiction is - ofiten to ue found the -
essence of truth. When we 'have found
: what seems an absolute contradiction to -.'
a ■■' a j act we have often ■■ found the truest
mirror for that fact. Only by mean* of a '-t
perfect 1 contradiction can we sometimes see
both sides \of a fact simultaneously, and
there are many facts*which need to be Shown
up in this 'Way before they can be truthfully ;
grasped.; '.-.' ■ ' •">*'- '-■■l-".- : -: '
'. There axe hundreds of thousand* of men in :
the world who never End a way of seeing all v
sides of a qu€S4Jon.":Onencan sees on* (Side of '
It, - another; man get» an opposite view, which 5
ie equally itrue, ? and so \ there arise on this
; account diversity at oplnfoni, endlees discus
sions, controversies, enmitie*, an<2 huge fol
lies.
_ Yet men's mind* have broad In ed with the
process of - the run*. Great modem events
havt. as 'it were, - constructed a second mir
ror for bringing out real truths about many
thin**, and especially concerning some of the
formerly discredited faculties of .man.
No greater benefit has been; wrought by
the** great events than that which has- shown
up the dreamer. in the double and therefore
the only true light, j But there are mtneven
today, who believe that the mar. of action and
the dreamer, can n*ver one and the same
man, though the liberal minded know that
the great action has been 5 preceded 1; he
great dream. :-" ';* "■ :' - : ■ *"
'■ • ■ ■"■■..■ ■■ *- * ■ ■.. >■ ■ ■ ■'■■■.
, :■-._•. y'r. v . •..*P .. - \ -■■ '■■ '% '
All Men Are Dreamers.
W« may rejoice that it takes far less intelli- .
gence today to realize that a great man may -
and must be a great dreamer:and; that all
men are far more dreamers than they . will
acknowledge than it did before [coasts were
linked with coasts, continents apart by rail
ways, speech sent through the air. and the
air navigated. .." ; " .-- ■', J* t *\ <
" Somebody thought these things might tie |
done. Until their thought couid be worked
; out It was considered a dream,* often A wild:
and impossible one. r."V\
These long y ridiculed dreams, of flying -we
know , now were alwaj*s constructive dreamt, .■
but it • took many failures and heartache*, ;
and even blighted careers to prove this to the |
. world."' .- - '-] /"..;./:' ■ : ;:■ ;' ."/.;
- A constructive dream is no different from
action, a high type 'of; action, \ and in i the
; end I will show itself to be if it is realized.
It Is action with the greatest faith In Itself,"
for It can go on acting or doing" without see
ing th* concrete ends which men demand. .
What the constructive dreamer has, * this
perfect confidence to go on dreaming even
r when seeming to fail In practical things, is
. exactly what is considered the c%e and' su
premely excellent , '/' possession', of the most.
successful i men of action. These men suc
ceed because they do not falter, because
they, believe what they are doing; can •be
done.
* *
A Dream Is an Enthusiasm.
Eveu when a man's efforts are to prove
vain he is sustained in doing them by a sort
of dream or illusion. If he could see the use- .'
lessness of the end he proposes to himsxlf
he could not go on, but his dream carries
him on unhesitatingly. _-' v -'
Confidence is the mother of action and
whatever sustains It is as important as the
action itself. ."'"■:-/■' ■ X s - '-. '"' ■ \■ .'
A French writer has recently ■ said that
the blindness of men is the condition of their
life, a blindness' that constitutes ■ the- sub-
stance of a dream, a dream of something
hoped for and not 5 yet seen, and ,in the end '
realized because the dream is sustained until
the ; definite substance of it becomes a prac
tical fact of life. '
There it perhaps-"but one class of men who
do not dream but do act. They art the au
tomatons. r Something without themselves
started them going, and they go on automat
ically without any, new " emotion ' about Ac
tion such as a dream brings ; Yet it I* often
from this class, as well as from the class of
men greatly inefficient in any sort of action,
that there • arise men ; of perverted and de
structive dreams. The • first class come to
hate the automatic round of their lives. Th:y
fall into a sort of somnolence with no true
dreams, for the thing they dream of is to es
cape from action, action which is necessary
to any normal existence. The inefficient are
tormented by jealous dreams of getting some
thing for "nothing,; but any ; dream : worth
while is cr.ly worked out at a definite cost. _
To which class, my dreamer, do you be
long? Do you hesitate to say? Are you
afraid to anal the activities of your mind;
to find out just" what it is producing in the
way of dreams? Do you make the exluse
that if you tried to set up a double mirror
for tlhosti dreams of yours they would be no
longer dreams, that to analyse them would
be a deadly process?
A dream is an enthusiasm. No analysis
can murder ,an enthusiasm unless it is al- ? .
. ready sick. You I cannot weaken a vital lr
stinct that has not already become anaemic,
by analyzing it. :
If you have the vital Instinct, the enthusi
asm, the high hope of life, which leads you
to dream dreams that fc ' are -,*realizable,f you
will not be afraid of looking at them front
and back.
Camera Used to
Spy on Workers.
AMOS ANDREWS
*-m MOTION •' picture - mach'.ne -is <,being
A MOTION picture mach'.ne is being
used to spy on workers in a mill at
,/ V Ladysmith,' Wls. The owners say
'■ * that it has proved; a success, and.by
means of !t the various ; superintend
ents can tell how the crew has • been work-
In* during their absence. ~ ~
/' The machine ,la installed' in a hidden posi
tion In any room dteired, and is equipped
: with ; an Tautomatlc ■ arranserrwnt ;by which
It can be set to run for any period of thirty
minute* * during the day : or night. { -■ It - fur
nishes an ; accurate record 'of the amount of
work done during that time and shows which
men have shirked ■ their duty while the boss
■was absent. '"■/''•'•' * • ,;' : " .- **
r But ; its "greatest; service, \ according \ to ' the
owners of the mill, is to detect what work
men,". If * any, are smuggling . liquor into I the
building at night. Such employe* are more
'closely > watched thereafter and eventually
discharged ;if necessary -• ■
Among Men Who Work with Hand or Brain.
"Sellind His Way to a Million Dollars"
OLD. grizzled, grim Silas Crabb pulled :
out'his watch and noted the time.
" Lewie," he , said, " It is now ; two =
; ten. * 11l give you just five minutes -
, to sell me a fifty case lot of corn , bis- ■
cult.." * .- , ■
Le wit, star salesman of the I Umpire com-.
' pany, lolled back \ in his ; chair, ■ turned \ hie£
cigar reflectively in hie mouth and laughed.'
"It can't be : done." , " , .
Silas ' Crabb _* looked at r hie 'watch /again."
" Four minutes ; left to sell me that bill. ' I
■: hire you to sell goods. Better get started. .
Reaching ciown in his pocket, Lewis pulled
out a match, scratched it on hie left coat
.sleeve, and lit his cigar.'" Silas Crabb w -need.
It hurt him as much as if the garment were
his own. He looked at his watch again. '_,".
" Two minutes left"
Lewie smoked .; in silence, ? secure '; in v the
- knowledge that his year's sales were so far
ahead of the next best man on the Empire
tales. force that there . was no comparison.
"' One minute left." Still no ; answer from
-Lewis.' Sixty seconds later Sias Crabbs
watch snapped #hut and he stood up.
; " You are'discharged.' Go get what money
■ you have comlrijj to you. Not a word."
And Lewis, best salesman the Empire com*
pany ever had, left its employ because he
had .-failed to convince .; BlUts Cmbb of his
ability/to sell : a big bill of good* in an im
poetible tirr.e — minutes. - : Cl ■ -,'
; That's the way the story get around.t> Aftd
it d!dtwhAt;Kllae'Ctabbiihteii<l«<J it should— •
made v his employes Jump when, he cracked
the whip. ">'.■■ - - -"'"'."
Just between you and me. this was a clever ;
' piece of strategy on Crabb's part, as I learned
later. Lewie had made up his mind to leave
the Empire company and Crabb had adopted
this means of discharging him—ftred him in '
a spectacular manner that made every other
salesman :on the force feel," " If Crabb will:
let the beet salesman h« ever hac go on an
excuse like that, my sales record is no pro
tection. I'd better hustle." .
-This as only on* of th« mano stories that
were circulated; about Silas Crabb. vH* was
the best ; known, moat; liberally hated man (
in the lood product business, and he got more
' returns out of his salts force end his factory
: than any other man in America. 1
And I was Elated for an interview with Siias
Crabb.
For four years I bad been connected as a
taltbtn-doi with ■ his largtet competitor—the
Crane corporation. I had become di»eatJ»fiei]
owing to what 1 considered' a lack of recog
nition of results on the part of my firm.
Right ac this opportune time came a letter
; from Silas Crabb, " Come and see me" And
' 1 came. ■'■/]". ..' -^' ~ ; : ? .'; ' ; '-"rrs;"- : 'i? : "i- : : '■:'-:;:■/
-; The makeup of the Empire company's
offices was unique. \ ; ,
Cleanliness—the . strictest ', kind; not & bit'
of ■; dust;: clean white floors; sparkling win
dows,; and employ**, ac bright % looking aa
their surii/undings. V - ' • " -, ■ '
. Silas Crabb had a theory that clean sur
roundings and good ventilation were con
ducive to health, and health to good work.
'there was not a desk in the place. Every
body worked at tablac. -* And It was surpr!»
ing to see how free from the usual accumula
'■.: tion of papers ifICM tables were. ; Four times
during the twenty minutes I waited for Mr.
Crabb a boy came around : and" gathered up
papers from the ; die baskets. *■ No wonder
they were free from the usual litter. ;
There ■ wasn't ; a : picture In the entire room.
- There. wasn't an unnecessary chair. . Every*,*
thing wee there for utility, not ornamenta
tion. ;.,.■« •■■• • ' , :• ■• ' '.. ' ' .:-
Finally a girl came o-Jt and told me that
Mr. I Crabb Would see me. ■ .
Aβ the door of his office opened I involun
tarily drew a long breath. Absolutely and
positively the : most : gorgeous office 1 1 have
ever seen before or since.
•Oriental fugs on the floor, ; high wooden L
: wainscoting, oil paintings that looked like
the art collection of a millionaire, and way
back in the far corner of the room, seated*"
at a \ carved ' mahogany desk I with a plate
-; glass ; top. ; sat Silas ■ Cobb himself-a little,
weazened man, with a suit of clothe* that
was positively threadbare.
My walk across that room to the chair In I
front of the desk was the most embarrassing|
, ten seconds I ever spent; My knees knocked ;I
together and my feet were riot under control...
■; Without i being I asked, : for} fear :my J legs -
would give way altogether, I limply dropped
into the chair in front of hie desk.
Neither of ua spoke for about thirty sec
onds. Silas Crabb sat with his back to the ;
; window,-his face In comparative darkness,;
and the i light glaring in on * mine—regular,:
•'searchlight. -'"■-. _
'■A Aβ we sat there in silence I noticed a light
coating of duet over the shoulders of his coat.
Evidently he had been out in the factory.
The strong light behind him made the bris-
: tles of ; his unshaven face stand out !n relief!i
Evidently he was waiting for me to speak.
For lack of anything better. to say I blurted
; out:-;'" Got your letter, Mr. Crabb, and here !
si am." ' \' '.
; " What do you. want?" He spoke slowly
and distinctly, with a rather hard, metallic
voice. '»'..•' . ;,. .
I resented thie. The man 'was deliberately A
c trying to make me feel ill at ease. " ;
.'.' I cut my words to make it emphatic. '• You
wrote me a letter asking me 10 come and'
see you. lam here ;It seems to me to be a :
> case *, of what .do you want, not what do I i
want." . ' . -,
; He straightened up a. trlf.e In his chair. It
was clear that I had taken the right course.
.-- " Heming, how much money, are you mak
.■inr-vi,^-:;:--^--;-;, : , :; : ,^x
,; It was none of his business, but I answered
truthfully: " Three thousand a year and ex
; penses." ' ■ '' '. \'t^SßHS^d
He thought a minute. " How much are you
worth?"
IRVING R. ALLEN
THE START
I answered quickly. I had 'figured' it mar:y
times in the last 'three months. " , Four thou
sand dollars a year."
" Why ?" The one word came from him like
a shot out of a gun, but I knew what I was
talking about end answered. ~ .
" Because I cold $58,000 worth of good* at
strictly list price last year. Ten per cent is
a fair, equitable sates expense, don't you
think so?" He noddted. r and I continued. " My
traveling expenses Were $1,800, which leaves
$4,000 on a 10 per cent bails. That's why I
say lam worth-—" '". •. , ./" -*\':
He waved his hand and stopped me. "Go
out and tell the ' cashier, you are on our pay
roll at $4,000 ay ear. Today is Friday. Spend
this afternoon and tomorrow mornih'g going
through our factory, and be in your territory
Monday, morning."
Here I was, hired without bedr,« even asked
if 1 were willing. This procedure only cor
responded with what I had always heard
about Silas Crabb and his : way«.'.-But I had
an idea in my head, ■ and \I . was perfectly will
ing to go ;to work for the Empire company
provided they would give me a chance to
work It out. _. "-.' ." '-
'■■■". Mr. Crabb, • I want 'to make a special ar
rangement with your sales manager about
territory."
He snapped: -r, I have no sale* manager—
don't need on*. - Make the arrangement with
me."
. " I don't care to work on a regular UrrWory.
. I want to be a free Unceand get credit for all ;
; the sales ;Jj make irrespective of their loca
tion as long as I don't sell concern* already
customers of the nous*.'*
;¥t fully expected to be called* upon to deliver
a longwinded explanation, but' 811 a* Crabb
took my statement at its face value.
" All right. Don't care what you do or
where you tell as lone as you do sell. Be on
the Job Monday somewhere with a price book. ■
All I want is orders." ■
As I turned to go he aiked a question,
" Heming, what is you* ambition?" - . , :
Without a moment's hesitation I answered.
" To earn a million dollars "
He grunted, " Earn a million dollars," flatly,
turned his back and looked' oix of the win
dow. „
-.The.lnterview was ; over and I walked out
of the office. "»^^^^
My request to Crabb for a free lanoeHeenee
without any restricted territory m*s based
upon th* fact that I had carried in my head
I for a long Urn* an ldta that I wanted to work
out.
-"; As a matter of fact, I guess I ; acoepted : a
position with him aa much to get a chance to
put my thought into operation as for. the sake
of the extra thousand •.Tyiift^^^iS^fc^^
1 was built that way those days—hope I an
I rtiil. '% I'd r hat* to lose ] that feeling of being ;
able to cacriflce ca*h to try out a new idea. '
, Her* was my,, thought: ■ ■
Most of our sales a.t that time were made
direct to the dealer and shipped through Job
bers. Remember tlris was years ago. And
for that matter the situation exists* In many
lines todtyv . •" * ~ '. '
The Jobber with little or no work except
■ that >; of handling i the goods wa« drawing
down a nic* fat profit on every sale we made.
Hi* men covered the territories, it is true,
but they nv»d* practically no new aocounts—
just kept on going the rounds and lin<n# up
reorders. The : Empire Manufacturing com
: pan) 's: men opened all the new accounts and
• helped keep the old ones lined up. 'i *h ".-''■
And on the face of it, this paying the jobt«r
and turning the orders over to him looked
Ilk* a necessary evil. ' *
You see an individual retailer's purchase
of our product did not amount to a whole lot.
The jobber could β-ell him several other arti
cles that he was in need of and by combin
ing the shipments . cave him so much in ,
transportation charges that he couldn't
■ afford to buy direct from us And, owing to : .
the}; manufacturers' t recognition of this con
dition we were not trying to sell him direct.
Now, my idea was to Eplit the Jobbers'
proflt on our line with the merchan-t and sell
him; at the game time enough of other lines ,
he needed to make up a shipment which would
i insure his minimum freight fates. £ ;; ?<f ".;Q.;
. The Inducement to the merchant, of course,
was , the saving he mad* on our goods end we
could . also offer him \ a little lower prices on
the other lines as well. .„,»-*
, A ; wild idea :you ; gay. Perhaps, but ' wait
till you hear the reet. '. v
Eliminating the jobber In this way would
not only {five us r more profit on the goods 'we
sold, but wuuld put us indirect touch with
our trade at all times—keep us &o cloee to the
retailer that competition wtculd be headed off.
And profits on the several other lines we sup- •
, plied would be > ample to pay u» for handling |
them; entirely apart from the leverage they
gave us to place our own goods direct. '
"' You will see that I was a good deal of a
dreamer those days. .'-..,,
I had thought out my Idea carefully
worked out every detail and knew my ground .
: —every foot of it. ,At least to I thought ■>.';■
" In my mind was the certainty of success—
the kind of confluence that makes eventual ;
succeee certain. , '■ ~ . *"
The house 1 had bee»i working: for was old .
and conservative—norvprogrtesive, to put It
bluntly—and the reception I met with when I
tried to submit my idea to our sales manager
was one of the things that put me in th« right
v&ood to change firms.
. To be frank, ; I vii a trifle aCraM to sub
mit my proposition to BUa* Crabb, although
I had fully inUm£«4 to wh«n I went in hi*
•office. Ouees he sort of " threw a scar* into
m«"-; /'-;.'■ ,„-'.,.
So wttta my fre* lance eemmiMioo l was fo
ing on tne road to work out my own salva
tion.
If I failed, I could always get another posi
tion—iom« kind. Seles ability is at a. pre-
mlum In the business mart and that one thing
I had.
If I succeeded I believe that Silas Crabb
>£. would recognize' me to the tune of more dol
lars than any. other man in the business.
That was his reputation. But. to tell the
truth, I was more interested In seeing my
idea blossom into a reality than in the finan
cial benefit that might accrue.
Such are the strange Ideas of youth.
However, into r the factory ' I went for the ,:
two days prescribed. by ;Silaa Crabb. : And it
was a model factory. Daylight, cleanliness,
order, and everywhere one man doing the
work of two without realizing it. " "\ .
Silas Crabb's ideas': on ventilation, sani
tary working conditions, etc., paid him big Is.;
dividends on the money he invested to ob
tain them. * ■>■-,:. - , ■,:■■.■ ■■..:■■:.■,'.■■
.::; Monday morning found me in Kansas
City, which I had already selected as the
right location for my tryiout.
•■■■".■ Murphy Craig ran a chain of retail gro
ceries throughout the state* iof :■ Kansas
and Missouri which were famous through
out the country for the amount of merchan
dise they sold, and incidentally bought.
> They handled ja'< line of food; products com- .
petitive to ours. -
Murphy Craig s headquarter* were in Kan
sas City, lie was the man I had selected to
try out my plan 0n. .. • /_""" ' >
■-•>. >, I was unable ;to ; secure an i interview with"",
htm, but hie manager, after listening to my
proposition,, mads the statement that, while
r; it § was interesting, I t would ■, have ■to go ( out ".
v; and sell the stores individually, as each store -
;: did its own purchasing, under supervision, '
of course, from the home office. This, *he ■■;?*
'f said, > was an ironclad rule which they, would ,
not under any circumstances break. r It r ;
originated when Craig consolidated a num
ber of Independent stores.
I went back and thought it over. To sell
their stores;would necessitate a trip to each ;
•of the sixty towns where they were located.
'.-:■" ■ Some trip. But on _ the Murphy Craig Mer
:; cantile company r ': I ! had * started * and with
them I would finish. My grip hadn't even
been Unpacked, and I caught the next train
for I Clay Center, where the first ( store was
located. ■;; r :,
; I don't like to talk about the next ten days. -
§[ft|ifM j; a ; series of heartbreaks. I found
our competitors' goods strongly intrenched -1
F; in* store managers who wouldn't or couldn't ;
see through my . proposition. •_-:_'
In vain I figured on the leaves of my order
book the saving* to be made by purchasing
Ci my way. They didn't want Empire goods, Ji ; ■
ther didn't want to save money, they didn't ;
want anything except to see the Empire
company's salesman's coattatis going out
•.'their front door. - ,"" " ' ,'.
The morning of the eleventh day I found %-.'
a telegram at my hotel—seven words: ~ •
'; * c " Better go , back to your old territory. - *.
•■ -•_ ■,' ' " Silas CRABt " ".*
But iI - had my ' teeth ' firmly stink' in '' the ,/
Big Idea, and I wouldn't let go.
I wired back:
" Send somebody else in \my old territory. \i
'■'.- Tell -my customers I■ am with you. List of v
; my ■ trade in mail. John Hluwe" ;;..
Another wire caught me in the next town: v
"I will to all the- telegraphing necessary
h in this concern. Salesmen: must us* the v
mall*. ': ' ' / ***■ C*a*b.''.
Encouraging vm't it? And in the next .
three days I m»t r with no mere success than J
■is the first eleven. Twenty-eight of , Muwphy
Craig , * stores I had seen without even th* ||
" .sign, of an order. Begtn to look a* if the big .";
idea were a rank, flat failure. .
I'll ; : admit right now I;. was ; discouraged.
Wouldn't you have been? .■ \ ,
But the crowning touch of all we* the letter
that : accompanied my > *eecnd . salary check. v
just three words: / '. -\ '. »
■ " You are .discharged.V . '
But that was the one thin* I needed, to wake ,: .
me up. ' " ~ . .
I wrote on a telegraph blank: . -
:•' I am paying this message out of my own ;
money. From today I draw no : salary and
■ no'expenses, but I am still working for th» : :
-Empire i company, snd don't you forget it •
"John Hbmiko."
I sent the wire and drew a eighof relief. ,;
I had saved a few hundred dollars and I
was willing to spend my own money—to go the
; limit before I wa* prepared: to admit that the
big idea was no good. - •
Considering the fact that I was now work
ing on my own time, it looked ?as: if I had
" ] earned a rest, so I bought two large, fat
Havana cigars, lit one, and walked out to the
bank* of a river on th« outskirts of town and
seated myself under the ehade,of a big elm
to think matters over and decide wnether Ifc"
was wrong and the idea wae right or vice
vtraa.
Vs*[ Fifteen minutes of ; careful j reflection and I %
jumped to my feet. The suddenness with
which the white light dawned upon me wa*
startling. The idea was right and so wa* 1—
■.■•••• ■-. /;■ ~22&&
Now Build Ice Boxes of Cement.
nae Invaded the horn* in *«.
f y many ways and form* that Us utt ha*
1 - stated to b# a novelty and hticomi
-V< to be retarded a* a ntcoilty. It ii
, not at all uauaual nowadays to fln«
concrtte ip*cjfl«d a* tb* material for floor*
and molded baseboards, for mantel* and
ftr«piae«*. stair ran* and newel poets, to*
laundry tubs and flower bo«*r ' • ,';-"
One of the seweftt I t»rm* in , watch cement
has appeared within the hotn* i» that of the
refrigerator. Buch a rtfrifftr«.tor has a
ateel frame covered with myth wire and in
cased with a layer of ooocre-te which is coated
with waterproofing and two coat» of cement
but the baais—the fundamental of my idea
wa* money savin*;.
\£h l 1 had been appealing 'to the wrong, men. .
The managers of these store* ihdn't oars any-
V thing about money savin*. They wsr* fen
11Italia in selling mors goods and that was
all.
Murphy Craig himself, the man who signed
th* checks—the man who made th* profit or J
stood th« loss he was the one man in the
:-.. whole outfit to 'i whom my proposition would
appeal.
The rest of em—the employee—didn't care
about saving Murphy Craig's money. But
•: Murphy Craig did and he was the man I was
golnsr to see. l s '—„
• >' I had ; been on the wrong road and. now a ,
signpost pointing the right way ;was staring
im* right in the fac*. -~ -;■ - ,■ .; ,' ,■
I got up from under that tree with a strong- ;
ser determination than , I had th* day I start
ed—l got up with a new reeolve, and started i
at once' to get action. ' • •,
■ My trip had not been in, vain. ;In talking
il to the various managers I f had found out ;
Just how much they sold of the various lines,
and the Information I had secured and fig
■»ures ad*; in trying •to show the managers
their saving under my plan were the things
f that going to get Murphy Craig's name
on the dotted line, for me. ,
On th* way back to Kansas City I figured "■■'
out ; the net saving on the twenty-eight
4 store* I had visited, and it totaled the neat >
little turn of |B,QOO a year. Think of it!
; I 1 want into Craig's office full of : fire and -
salesmanship. I came out downcast. It ;
semed to be Impossible to get to Craig. He '■)
had so surrounded himself with employee
that I simply oouldnt secure an interview.
Back to th* hoteL I must get to this man
v Craig, or ; the J big \ idea -. would go to crash.
How to do that was the thing. . • .
Finally I hadf a thought.' and my despera- -
tion mad* m* try something which under ;
ordinary circumstances I 1 would • have hesi- -
tated to even consider.
I secured a blank check of the Kansas City
% National ' bank and ; filled) it out,' all except
the , signature. ; "*',,.
" Pay to th* order of Murphy Craig eight
thousand dollar*. : ."
Bight thousand dollars, you will remem
ber, ; was the figure which could be saved 'Z
■' under my 'phut at the twtaty-elght stores I ;
had visited. ... • .
I walked out to Murphy Craig's home that
evening.
When the butler a*k«d for my card I
handed him the unsigned check, together
with a note en the back of my card. **;'. '•" -']
; " Give me two minute*, and I will mike
thi* check good."
"'-- Murphy , Craig received me. He wanted to
■;- knew how to make that cheek good, and with
the figure* I bad em Ills business he saw the
big idea, too. \ , ' " -
When, per his request, I called at his office
next morning, it was to figure out the size of
; the "o'rdSer. necessary to supply bis entire chain
of ; sixty * stores with Empire • goods and '■ the
ether, line*. , ; r r
>, - And « what was more, he ' there and then ■■'{
/changed,? the policy of his entire company.
took the purchasing out of the hands of the
Individual manager* and brought rit back to
th* home office, : where fit belonged. , ; -v:. ■;
I wired my order in to Sila* ; Crabb per
sonally. , ■.... •-. .- ... \- ■ .-.;■■■„. ..■ ■•. .
A tiro word . telegram was my answer: :/>
■, '• Com* back." . - ■■ ■;\ "-■_,. . ';
;l: went t back, . but with the biggest single
order *an Empire salesman had ever taken;
--■ signed ■ and in- my .vest pocket, ; and i the up- ! ?
•hot of my one 1 hour's■ *alk with- Crabb was
" an agreement that the'nevr. policy should be
% immediately put into operation all ', over
America. The Empire company ■ had ■ the .
rnon*y, and as Crabb expressed it, a short
time would find our competitors ooroine •
; round ;to our way of doing* business,' and the f
first concern in the ■ field would establish ■
themselves and reap the cream of the trade.
The interview ended. I arose. . " Mr.
Crabb, there are tome crackerjack chain
operating out of Kew York City. I'd
l'.ke to get down there aseoon as possible."
' * Hβ \ looked >at" me quizzically, got ,up out of
his chair, and opened a door leading into
, arother room. " Come here," he said.
'T; looked in upon a small office, neat and
well fitted, with a brand new desk and a
name freshly painted on the outside door.
. " How do you like this?" asked Silas Crabb.
•• It's the .'office of my salee manager." ;*
v' H" Bu*," I in surprise, " ! You told me :
jou had no sales manager— you acted in
that capacity yourself." . ,''- :
-%?sZ',l hired one today," Sila* Crabb looked me
right in the eye.
;' "What's his name?" I was ' trying to be ; ;
polite. ' '-MW^fflm
, He pulled open the doer for me to read the
.name. on it.
"John HemlneT"— my name.
. Ha nodded. "Teu'reit.
And I was.
enamel. Tker* la an air ipaoe between the
inner and outer walls, which is filled with
cork or left vacant. providing a dead air
•pace which prevents the melting of ice with
ta- Support! for the interior shelves are ir.
•erted in the concrete walls or fastened to the
tteel skeleton. A. coating of waterproof en
amel gives the refrigerator all the advantages
of tile, with the added feature of ite being
practically monolithic—no joints or cracks.
The doors of this unique i household article
are frush with the outside and when closed
are forced by the lever handle agatest a
rubber cushion, thus forming an air tigh'
contact.
Be Ready for Job
When Offered.
G. N. BRIGGS
I **f*«im , average clerk and tfl-e aver
'^t t • J '| age mechanic." once remarked the
I late Marahall Field.; "generally
■ "differ - .curiously: in their estimates
' of th* ability of the man working;
alongside either of them. The mechanic
always reocgnlaee a more skillful or quicker
worker than himmt&l although he may not
* always acknowledge it But the ordinary,
unambitious, routine clerk #eldom sees any
'-> one ; better £ than himself β-momr ; his • fellow
vorkere on the eamoT 5 force," ' : ;
.:;■'■':',,This remark ■" from * man of ;so large ex-
S perience with both s salary and wage earner 3:'
f< mease a. ( while lot And the cause for that;;
difference Is the point* of view 1* fairly easy
to understand. ' ■■■■•■ :• ■ ■ ■
- The mechanic's work always In plain
sight, either a« the finished article or ac work
lln I progress. Both In quality and quantity
the werk is , phiin to any of hi* fellows that
I &a,re» *o sice Jt up. But the work of the ordi
?i nary clerk is rarely an open i story except.:.
kto the chief. Blunder* are noticeable, of
COUS-β*. because they butt 1» oa some other
mane V work; j> but | work performed with . a •
•f keen < understanding of s Just • what It means..
•. of what went before It, and what it is leading:
§to;-! is seldom noticed by the other fellowa.
I Hence, when promotion oomee to a good man
; it usually is ,a ? surprise to " the ; others and
a cause* of hot discontent—and probably die- y
i appointment. * ' : -
t r : ;Here ■;; the difference, so ; -i far "as ; a >.{Treat \'
many are concerned, ends. The true logical
"and 4 practical effort xat advancement ? Is:
wed C aMke ■; by both. Any impulse, . any
• opportunity, xox any evident necessity s for :
improving his knowledge of his work is Bide-.
: tracked alike .by the entry clerk, the "ship;, ;
per's assistant, the stock clerk, ; the retail
\ salesman, or the mechanic— ; j he be '&.[;.
xhronio nonprogreeeor. The general, atanoet
universal, feeling, expressed or *llenU in the r
heart of such is that when he gets a better
'I job he'll qualify I himself -to i make good - :
which is just too late. - • ~"
"^lt is ' easy for a certain type of clerk to s?e ;
no special need: of gaining a deep insight Into
9 the purpose ? and methods of all ;I the other,
'. fellow's work until ,he gets the Job of chief -:
clerk. The retail salesman / may see noth-'j
v ing for himself In a quick, keen observation
of any competitor's display and advertising' '
'■ method*. The chief, or the proprietor, gets ',
the' , money for that sort of thing; I when
he* ohlef - the salesman'll ■ pay attention to '
it and show 'em thing*! The machinist mayj
se* nothing in studying drattinc while h«\z '_
operating a lathe; when , he's foreman he'll V
look Into those matters—he'll be getting pay f
venough f for It, then. -:^ : -.:y. ."--"';.■ ..\ .." '-?x&0$
"■if; Fortunately there * are ' exceptions—lote ot '■[.;
them. There are no records of managers of
great railroads, great |factories, and ' great •
distributing plants but show that *uoh men
started :in the ranks. Their abilities : :,tov ;
! hold such * positions came first, last, and ■■„
always from a clear understanding that pre
, paring for the , Job meant education before
they could i secure the ( Jo*>; ,{ the experience
came after the Job was theirs. j - -*-
You Can Send
Yourself by Mail.
L. L. HARNED
THE introduction of parcel post service
• in this country calls to mind a peculiar
■ incident that took placed in England
some time agro, and which would occur
*,■■■■ oftenftr 'if > the } Skigiish people were
informed concerning one of the parcel post
regulations in that country. > V *
A man wished to reach i a cuetom«r living
in :a> remote pert of Balhain, one of the »iib
; urt>s •of London, "'and iit waa urgent that he
; find j him quickly. f= Knowing nothing of the
locality, , he called at fit. Martin le Grand to
' consult (a.\ directory*! Stating his case to a
clerk, he- was amaied to learn that he could
be sent to the address by '• parcel post "by
;P»rlnf a fee of & pence a mile.
He had never heard of such a things and It
is said few in Endand know it can be done
;■'■ Accepting the * off th* man was i
in charge of a m«MMifir familiar with all
rpar: of I th«; city and ;wm - soon 'on hia way.
The boy carried a printed on which was
written ; i'i description of ; the " parcel "1 in
charge under the j he»dln« " ''Article required
to be d«!lvered," and before leaving; the cus
tomer's f. house, both the 'j customer and the
■-- parcel " w#ts required to plac* their signa
tures on the paper. , " " . "'■.;-":•; :
The ; limitj in ; weigfct for anything delivered
by parcel pt»t in En*l«.nd, as In this country,
la gs&erally understood to be eleven pounds,
but there on* clause which read*: " A
: person way. b* conducted by *xpr*«« messen
ger to I any address • on; payment of mileage
-fee." " .
It may b« only a Question of time when such
a transection may be effected through parcel
pott in the United Btatei, r and If thi»beconm
powrtMe; it is to be expected that the- Ameri
cana, "ever alert and on the lookout for any
: thin*; facilitating rpeed In busines* or ether
;wise, will avail themselves of the privilege,
and Uncle Sam will do a thriving business in'
tlai-fe'citiee in the delivery of human," par
celt." ;■ ■_ -' ' ' ■
Science Notes.
The largest and most delicate seismograph
ever built haa been installed in the American
Museum of Natural HJatory in New York.
The \ Uiifted \ States] is J now importing , coffee ■
at a rat* «f about 1,000,000,000 pounds a year.
more ! than one-third of ; the ; world's produc
tion. ■. ■. ■ ■. ■ : ' ~-.■■■.■ ■:.. .
A German chemical plant which yields
much - hydrogen gas as a byproduct has built.
:>a three mile pipe line to «upply.lt to dirigible
balloons.
A recent German census of animals shows
a decline in five years of more than 8 per cent
of beef catnle. of more than 1 per cent of swine,
and of ; almost U5 per cent of sheep.
The ; history of electricity from the begin
ning of its adaptation, to the use of man down
to date will b* exhibited at tbe Panan^Cail^
fornia exposition San Diego, CaL, in 1915.
In the hop* of introducing it into the United
States, an expert from th« department of
agriculture has been sent to Manchuria to
get specimens of s;a \ peach that weighs { a
pound. ... ;

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