,library1 ,cornell ,university7         
,the ,book of ,,business ,,etiquette    
,the ,book of ,business ,etiquette      
,garden ,city      ,new ,york           
,doubleday1 ,page  ,company #aibb       
,,copyright1 #aibb1 ,,by ,,doubleday1   
,,page  ,,company  ,,all ,,rights       
,,reserved1 ,,including ,,that ,,of     
,,translation ,,into ,,foreign          
,,languages1 ,,including ,,the          
,,scandinavian  ,,printed ,,in ,,the    
,,united ,,states ,,at ,,the ,,country  
,,life ,,press1 ,,garden ,,city1 ,n4 ,y4
  ,first ,edition     ,,respectfully    
,,inscribed 7,,as ,,befits ,,an         
,,author7  ,,to ,,three ,,business ,,men
     ,,acknowledgment   ,it would be a  
pleasure to call over by name and thank 
individually the business men and the   
business organizations that so          
graciously furnished the material upon  
which this little book is based4 ,but   
the author feels that some of them will 
not agree with all the statements made  
and the inferences drawn1 and for this  

reason is unable to do better than give 
this meager return for a service which  
was by no means meager4     ,,contents  
,,part ,i  ,,chapter                    
,,page     ,i4 ,,the ,,american         
,,business ,,man             #a    ,,ii4
 ,,the ,,value ,,of ,,courtesy          
#ag   ,,iii4 ,,putting ,,courtesy ,,into
 ,,business       #dj    ,,iv4          
,,personality                           
#gj     ,v4 ,,table ,,manners           
#id    ,,vi4 ,,telephones ,,and ,,front 
,,doors          #ajh   ,,vii4          
,,traveling ,,and ,,selling             
#acj  ,,viii4 ,,the ,,business ,,of     
,,writing             #aec    ,,ix4     
,,morals ,,and ,,manners                
#ahc   ,,part ,,ii     ,x4 ,,big        
,,business                      #bji    
,,xi4 ,,in ,a ,,department ,,store      
#bdb   ,,xii4 ,a ,,while ,,with ,a      
,,traveling ,,man        #bej  ,,xiii4  
,,tables ,,for ,,two ,,or ,,more        
#bfh   ,,xiv4 ,,ladies ,,first8         
#bgi     ,transcriber's ,note3 ,please  

note that the book does not credit an   
author4 ,the ,library of ,congress lists
 ,nella ,henney as the author4          
,,part ,i     ,,the ,,book ,,of         
,,business ,,etiquette     ,i  ,,the    
,,american ,,business ,,man   ,the      
business man is the national hero of    
,america1 as native to the soil and as  
typical of the country as baseball or   
,broadway or big advertising4 ,he is an 
interesting figure1 picturesque and not 
unlovable1 not so dashing perhaps as a  
knight in armor or a soldier in uniform1
 but he is not without the noble 7and   
ignoble7 qualities which have           
characterized the tribe of man since the
 world began4 ,america1 in common with  
other countries1 has had distinguished  
statesmen and soldiers1 authors and     
artists--and they have not all gone to  
their graves unhonored and unsung--but  
the hero story which belongs to her and 
to no one else is the story of the      
business man4  ,nearly always it has had
 its beginning in humble surroundings1  

with a little boy born in a log cabin in
 the woods1 in a wretched shanty at the 
edge of a field1 in a crowded tenement  
section or in the slums of a foreign    
city1 who studied and worked by daylight
 and firelight while he made his living 
blacking boots or selling papers until  
he found the trail by which he could    
climb to what we are pleased to call    
success4 ,measured by the standards of  
,greece and ,rome or the ,middle ,ages1 
when practically the only form of       
achievement worth mentioning was        
fighting to kill1 his career has not    
been a romantic one4 ,it has had to do  
not with dragons and banners and        
trumpets1 but with stockyards and oil   
fields1 with railroads1 sewer systems1  
heat1 light1 and water plants1          
telephones1 cotton1 corn1 ten-cent      
stores and--we might as well make a     
clean breast of it--chewing gum4  ,we   
have no desire to crown the business man
 with a halo1 though judging from their 
magazines and from the stories which    

they write of their own lives1 they are 
almost without spot or blemish4 ,most of
 them seem not even to have had faults  
to overcome4 ,they were born perfect4   
,now the truth is that the methods of   
accomplishment which the ,american      
business man has used have not always   
been above reproach and still are not4  
,at the same time it would not be hard  
to prove that he--and here we are       
speaking of the average--with all his   
faults and failings 7and they are many71
 with all his virtues 7and he is not    
without them71 is superior in character 
to the business men of other times in   
other countries4 ,this without boasting4
 ,it would be a great pity if he were   
not4  ,without trying to settle the     
question as to whether he is good or bad
 7and he really can be pigeon-holed no  
better than any one else7 we have to    
accept this3 ,he is the biggest factor  
in the ,american commonwealth to-day4   
,it follows then1 naturally1 that what  
he thinks and feels will color and      

probably dominate the ideas and the     
ideals of the rest of the country4      
,numbers of our magazines--and they are 
as good an index as we have to the      
feeling of the general public--are given
 over completely to the service or the  
entertainment of business men 7the ,t4  
,b4 ,m47 and an astonishing amount of   
space is devoted to them in most of the 
others4  ,it may be1 and as a matter of 
fact constantly is1 debated whether all 
this is good for the country or not4 ,we
 shall not go into that4 ,it has        
certainly been good for business1 and in
 considering the men who have developed 
our industries we have to take them1 and
 maybe it is just as well1 as they are  
and not as we think they ought to be4   
,there was a time when the farmer was   
the principal citizen4 ,and the         
politician ingratiated himself with the 
people by declaring that he too had     
split rails and followed the plow1 had  
harvested grain and had suffered from   
wet spells and dry spells1 low prices1  

dull seasons1 hunger and hardship4 ,this
 is still a pretty sure way to win out1 
but there are others4 ,if he can refer  
feelingly to the days when he worked and
 sweated in a coal mine1 in a printing  
shop1 a cotton1 wool1 or silk mill1     
steel or motor plant1 he can hold his   
own with the ex-farmer's boy4 ,we have  
become a nation of business men4 ,even  
the dirt farmer has become a business   
man--he has learned that he not only has
 to produce1 he must find a market for  
his product4  ,in comparing the business
 man of the present with the business   
man of the past we must remember that he
 is living in a more difficult world4   
,life was comparatively simple when men 
dressed in skins and ate roots and had  
their homes in scattered caves4 ,they   
felt no need for a code of conduct      
because they felt no need for one       
another4 ,they depended not on humanity 
but on nature1 and perhaps human        
brotherhood would never have come to    
have a meaning if nature had not proved 

treacherous4 ,she gave them berries and 
bananas1 sunshine and soft breezes1 but 
she gave them trouble also in the shape 
of wild beasts1 and savages1 terrible   
droughts1 winds1 and floods4 ,in order  
to fight against these enemies1 strength
 was necessary1 and when primitive men  
discovered that two were worth twice as 
much as one they began to join forces4  
,this was the beginning of civilization 
and of politeness4 ,it rose out of the  
oldest instinct in the                  
world--self-preservation4  ,when men    
first organized into groups the units   
were small1 a mere handful of people    
under a chief1 but gradually they became
 larger and larger until the nations of 
to-day have grown into a sort of world  
community composed of separate          
countries1 each one supreme in its own  
domain1 but at the same time bound to   
the others by economic ties stronger    
than sentimental or political ones could
 ever be4 ,people are now more dependent
 on one another than they have ever been

 before1 and the need for confidence is 
greater4 ,we cannot depend upon one     
another unless we can trust one another4
  ,the ,american community is in many   
respects the most complex the world has 
ever seen1 and the hardest to manage4   
,in other countries the manners have    
been the natural result of the national 
development4 ,the strong who had risen  
to the top in the struggle for existence
 formed themselves into a group4 ,the   
weak who stayed at the bottom fell into 
another1 and the bulk of the populace1  
which1 then as now1 came somewhere in   
between1 fell into a third or was       
divided according to standards of its   
own4 ,custom solidified the groups into 
classes which became so strengthened by 
years of usage that even when formal    
distinctions were broken down the       
barriers were still too solid for a man 
who was born into a certain group to    
climb very easily into the one above    
him4 ,custom also dictated what was     
expected of the several classes4 ,each  

must be gracious to those below and     
deferential to those above4 ,the king1  
because he was king1 must be regal4 ,the
 nobility must1 noblesse oblige1 be     
magnificent1 and as for the rest of the 
people1 it did not matter much so long  
as they worked hard and stayed quiet4   
,there were upheavals1 of course1 and   
now and then a slave with a braver heart
 and a stouter spirit than his          
companions incited them to rebellion4   
,his head was chopped off for his pains 
and he was promptly forgotten4 ,the     
majority of the people for thousands of 
years honestly believed that this was   
the only orderly basis upon which       
society could be organized4  ,nebulous  
ideas of a brotherhood1 in which each   
man was to have an equal chance with    
every other1 burned brightly for a      
little while in various parts of the    
world at different times1 and flickered 
out4 ,they broke forth with the fury of 
an explosion in ,france during the      
,revolution and in ,russia during the   

,red ,terror4 ,they have smoldered      
quietly in some places and had just     
begun to break through with a steady1   
even flame4 ,but ,america struck the    
match and gathered the wood to start her
 own fire4 ,she is the first country in 
the world which was founded especially  
to promote individual freedom and the   
brotherhood of mankind4 ,she had1 to    
change the figure slightly1 a blue-print
 to start with and she has been building
 ever since4  ,her material came from   
the eastern hemisphere4 ,the nations    
there at the time when the ,united      
,states was settled were at different   
stages of their development4 ,some were 
vigorous with youth1 some were in the   
height of their glory1 and some were    
dying because the descendants of the men
 who had made them great were futile and
 incapable4 ,these nations were         
different in race and religion1 in      
thought1 language1 traditions1 and      
temperament4 ,when they were not        
quarreling with each other1 they were   

busy with domestic squabbles4 ,they had 
kept this up for centuries and were at  
it when the settlers landed at          
,jamestown and later when the ,mayflower
 came to ,plymouth ,rock4 ,yet1 with a  
cheerful disregard of the past and an   
almost sublime hope in the future they  
expected to live happily ever after they
 crossed the ,atlantic ,ocean4 ,needless
 to add1 they did not4  ,accident of    
place cannot change a man's color       
7though it may bleach it a shade lighter
 or tan it a shade darker71 nor his     
religion nor any of the other racial and
 inherent qualities which are the result
 of slow centuries of development4 ,and 
the same elements which made men fight  
in the old countries set them against   
each other in the new4 ,most of the     
antagonisms were and are the result of  
prejudices1 foolish narrow prejudices1  
which1 nevertheless1 must be beaten down
 before we can expect genuine courtesy4 
,further complications arose1 and are   
still arising1 from the fact that we did

 not all get here at the same time4     
,those who came first have inevitably   
and almost unconsciously formulated     
their own system of manners4 ,wherever  
there is community life and a certain   
amount of leisure there is a standard of
 cultivated behavior4 ,and ,america1    
young as she is1 has already accumulated
 traditions of her own4  ,it is beyond  
doubt that the men who came over in the 
early days were1 as a rule1 better      
timber than the ones who come now4 ,they
 came to live and die1 if necessary1 for
 a religious or a political principle1  
for adventure1 or like the debtors in   
,oglethorpe's colony in ,georgia1 to    
wipe clean the slate of the past and    
begin life again4 ,to-day they come to  
make money or because they think they   
will find life easier here than it was  
where they were4 ,and one of the chief  
reasons for the discontent and unrest   
7and1 incidentally1 rudeness7 which     
prevails among them is that they find it
 hard4 ,we are speaking in general      

terms4 ,there are glorious exceptions4  
,the sturdy virtues of the pioneers did 
not include politeness4 ,they never do4 
,so long as there is an animal fear of  
existence man cannot think of minor     
elegances4 ,he cannot live by bread     
alone1 but he cannot live at all without
 it4 ,bread must come first4 ,and the   
,pilgrim ,father was too busy learning  
how to wring a living from the          
forbidding rocks of ,new ,england with  
one hand while he fought off the        
,indians with the other to give much    
time to tea parties and luncheons4      
,nowhere in ,america except in the      
,south1 where the leisurely life of the 
plantations gave opportunity for it1 was
 any great attention paid to formal     
courtesy4 ,but everywhere1 as soon as   
the country had been tamed and          
prosperity began to peep over the       
horizon1 the pioneers began to grow     
polite4 ,they had time for it4  ,what we
 must remember--and this is a reason1   
not an excuse1 for bad manners--is that 

these new people coming into the        
country1 the present-day immigrants1 are
 pioneers1 and that the life is not an  
easy one whether it is lived among a    
wilderness of trees and beasts in a     
forest or a wilderness of men and       
buildings in a city4 ,the average       
,american brings a good many charges    
against the foreigner--some of them     
justified1 for much of the back-wash of 
,europe and ,asia has drifted into our  
harbor--but he must remember this3      
,whatever his opinion of the immigrant  
may be the fault is ours--he came into  
this country under the sanction of our  
laws4 ,and he is entitled to fair and   
courteous treatment from every citizen  
who lives under the folds of the        
,american flag4  ,the heterogeneous     
mixture which makes up our population is
 a serious obstacle 7but not an         
insuperable one7 in the way of courtesy1
 but there is another even greater4 ,the
 first is ,america's problem4 ,the      
second belongs to the world4  ,material 

progress has raced so far ahead of      
mental and spiritual progress that the  
world itself is a good many years in    
advance of the people who are living in 
it4 ,our statesmen ride to ,washington  
in automobiles and sleeping cars1 but   
they are not vastly preferable to those 
who went there in stagecoaches and on   
horseback4 ,in other words1 there has   
been considerably more improvement in   
the vehicles which fill our highways    
than there has been in the people who   
ride in them4  ,the average man--who is1
 when all is said and done1 the most    
important person in the state--has stood
 still while the currents of science and
 invention have swept past him4 ,he has 
watched the work of the world pass into 
the keeping of machines1 shining        
miracles of steel and electricity1 and  
has forgot himself in worshipping them4 
,now he is beginning to realize that it 
is much easier to make a perfect machine
 than it is to find a perfect man to put
 behind it1 and that man himself1 even  

at his worst 7and that is pretty bad7 is
 worth more than anything else in the   
scheme of created things4  ,this        
tremendous change in environment        
resulting from the overwhelming         
domination of machinery has brought     
about a corresponding change in manners4
 ,for manners consist1 in the main1 of  
adapting oneself to one's surroundings4 
,and the story of courtesy is the story 
of evolution4  ,it is interesting to run
 some of our conventions back to their  
origin4 ,nearly every one of them grew  
out of a practical desire for lessening 
friction or making life pleasanter4 ,the
 first gesture of courtesy was1 no      
doubt1 some form of greeting by which   
one man could know another as a friend  
and not an enemy4 ,they carried weapons 
then as habitually as they carry watches
 to-day and used them as frequently1 so 
that when a man approached his neighbor 
to talk about the prospects of the sugar
 or berry crop he held out his right    
hand1 which was the weapon hand1 as a   

sign of peace4 ,this eventually became  
the handshake4 ,raising one's hat is a  
relic of the days of chivalry when      
knights wore helmets which they removed 
when they came into the house1 both     
because they were more comfortable      
without them and because it showed their
 respect for the ladies1 whom it was    
their duty to serve4 ,and nearly every  
other ceremony which has lasted was     
based on common sense4 ,etiquette1 as   
,dr4 ,brown has said1 with all its      
littlenesses and niceties1 is founded   
upon a central idea of right and wrong4 
,the word courtesy itself did not come  
into the language until late 7etiquette 
came even later7 and then it was used to
 describe the polite practices at court4
 ,it was wholly divorced from any idea  
of character1 and the most fastidious   
gentlemen were sometimes the most       
complete scoundrels4 ,even the authors  
of books of etiquette were men of great 
superficial elegance whose moral        
standards were scandalously low4 ,one of

 them1 an ,italian1 was banished from   
court for having published an indecent  
poem and wrote his treatise on polite   
behavior while he was living in enforced
 retirement in his villa outside the    
city4 ,it was translated for the        
edification of the young men of ,england
 and ,france and served as a standard   
for several generations4 ,another1 an   
,englishman1 spent the later years of   
his life writing letters to his         
illegitimate son1 telling him exactly   
how to conduct himself in the courtly   
7and more or less corrupt7 circles to   
which his noble rank entitled him4 ,the 
letters were bound into a fat1 dreary   
volume which still sits on the          
dust-covered shelves of many a library1 
and the name of the author has become a 
synonym for exquisite manners4          
,influential as he was in his own time1 
however1 neither he nor any of the      
others of the early arbiters of elegance
 could set himself up as a dictator of  
what is polite to ,american men1 of no  

matter what class1 and get by with it4  
,not very far by1 at any rate4  ,it is  
impossible now to separate courtesy and 
character4 ,politeness is a fundamental1
 not a superficial1 thing4 ,it is the   
golden rule translated into terms of    
conduct4 ,it is not a white-wash which1 
if laid on thick enough1 will cover     
every defect4 ,it is a clear varnish    
which shows the texture and grain of the
 wood beneath4 ,in the ideal democracy  
the ideal citizen is the man who is not 
only incapable of doing an ungallant or 
an ungracious thing1 but is equally     
incapable of doing an unmanly one4      
,there is no use lamenting the spacious 
days of long ago4 ,wishing for them will
 not bring them back4 ,our problem is to
 put the principles of courtesy into    
practice even in this hurried and hectic
 ,twentieth ,century of ours4 ,and since
 the business man is in numbers1 and    
perhaps in power also1 the most         
consequential person in the country1 it 
is of most importance that he should    

have a high standard of behavior1 a high
 standard of civility1 which includes   
not only courtesy but everything which  
has to do with good citizenship4  ,we   
have no desire for candy-box courtesy4  
,it should be made of sterner stuff4    
,nor do we care for the sort which made 
the polite ,frenchman say1 ,excusez-moi 
when he stabbed his adversary4 ,we can  
scarcely hope just yet to attain to the 
magnificent calm which enabled ,marie   
,antoinette to say1 ,i'm sorry4 ,i did  
not do it on purpose1 when she stepped  
on the foot of her executioner as they  
stood together on the scaffold1 or ,lord
 ,chesterfield1 gentleman to the very   
end1 to say1 ,give ,dayrolles a chair   
when his physician came into the room in
 which he lay dying4 ,but we do want    
something that will enable us to live   
together in the world with a minimum    
degree of friction4  ,the best of us get
 on one another's nerves1 even under    
ordinary conditions1 and it takes       
infinite pains and self-control to get  

through a trying day in a busy office   
without striking sparks somewhere4 ,if  
there is a secret of success1 and some  
of the advertisements seem trying to    
persuade us that it is all secret1 it is
 the ability to work efficiently and    
pleasantly with other people4 ,the      
business man never works alone4 ,he is  
caught in the clutches of civilization  
and there is no escape4 ,he is like a   
man climbing a mountain tied to a lot of
 other men climbing the same mountain4  
,what each one does affects all the     
others4  ,we do not want our people to  
devote themselves entirely to the art of
 being agreeable4 ,if we could conceive 
of a world where everybody was perfectly
 polite and smiling all the time we     
should hardly like to live in it4 ,it is
 human nature not to like perfection1   
and most of us1 if brought face to face 
with that model of behavior1 ,mr4       
,turveydrop1 who spent his life serving 
as a pattern of deportment1 would       
sympathize with the delightful old lady 

who looked at him in the full flower of 
his glory and cried viciously 7but under
 her breath7 ,i could bite you6  ,when  
,pope ,benedict ,,xi sent a messenger to
 ,giotto for a sample of his work the   
great artist drew a perfect circle with 
one sweep of his arm and gave it to the 
boy4 ,before his death ,giotto executed 
many marvelous works of art1 not one of 
them perfect1 not even the magnificent  
bell tower at ,florence1 but all of them
 infinitely greater than the circle4 ,it
 is better1 whether one is working with 
bricks or souls1 to build nobly than to 
build perfectly4     ,,ii  ,,the ,,value
 ,,of ,,courtesy   ,every progressive   
business man will agree with the        
successful ,western manufacturer who    
says that courtesy can pay larger       
dividends in proportion to the effort   
expended than any other of the many     
human characteristics which might be    
classed as ,instruments of              
,accomplishment4 ,but this was not      
always true4 ,in the beginning big      

business assumed an arrogant1           
high-handed attitude toward the public  
and rode rough-shod over its feelings   
and rights whenever possible4 ,this was 
especially the case among the big       
monopolies and public service           
corporations1 and much of the antagonism
 against the railroads to-day is the    
result of the methods they used when    
they first began to lay tracks and carry
 passengers4 ,nor was this sort of thing
 limited to the large concerns4 ,small  
business consisted many times of        
trickery executed according to ,david   
,harum's motto of ,do unto the other    
feller as he would like to do unto you1 
but do him fust4 ,the public is a       
long-suffering body and the business man
 is a hard-headed one1 but after a while
 the public began to realize that it was
 not necessary to put up with gross     
rudeness and the business man began to  
realize that a policy of pleasantness   
was much better than the treat 'em rough
 idea upon which he had been acting4 ,he

 deserves no special credit for it4 ,it 
was as simple and as obvious a thing as 
putting up an umbrella when it is       
raining4  ,people knew1 long before this
 enlightened era of ours1 that          
politeness had value4 ,in one of the    
oldest books of good manners in the     
,english language a man with an eye to  
the main chance advised his pupils to   
cultivate honesty1 gentleness1          
propriety1 and deportment because they  
paid4 ,but it has not been until        
recently that business men as a whole   
have realized that courtesy is a        
practical asset to them4 ,business      
cannot be separated from money and there
 is no use to try4 ,men work that they  
may live4 ,and the reason they have     
begun to develop and exploit courtesy is
 that they have discovered that it makes
 for better work and better living4     
,success1 they have learned1 in spite of
 the conspicuous wealth of several      
magnates who got their money by         
questionable means1 depends upon good   

will and good will depends upon the     
square deal courteously given4  ,the    
time is within the memory of living men1
 and very young men at that1 when the   
idea of putting courtesy into business  
dealings sprang up1 but it has taken    
hold remarkably4 ,when the ,hudson      
,tubes were opened not quite a decade   
and a half ago ,mr4 ,mc,adoo inaugurated
 what was at that time an almost        
revolutionary policy4 ,he took the      
motto1 ,the ,public be ,pleased1 instead
 of the one made famous by ,mr4         
,vanderbilt1 and posted it all about1   
had pamphlets distributed1 and made a   
speech on courtesy in railroad          
management and elsewhere4 ,since that   
time1 not altogether because of the     
precedent which had been established1   
but because people were beginning to    
realize that with this new element      
creeping into business the old regime   
had to die because it could not compete 
with it1 there have been all sorts of   
courtesy campaigns among railroad and   

bus companies1 and even among post      
office and banking employees1 to mention
 only two of the groups notorious for   
haughty and arrogant behavior4 ,the     
effects of a big telephone company have 
been so strenuous and so well planned   
and executed that they are reserved for 
discussion in another chapter4  ,mr4    
,mc,adoo tells a number of charming     
stories which grew out of the ,hudson   
,tubes experiment4 ,one day during a    
political convention when he was        
standing in the lobby of a hotel in a   
certain city a jeweler came over to him 
after a slight moment of hesitation1    
gave him one of his cards and said1 ,mr4
 ,mc,adoo1 ,i owe you a great debt of   
gratitude4 ,for that1 he added1 pointing
 to ,the ,public be ,pleased engraved in
 small letters on the card just above   
his name4 ,i was in ,new ,york the day  
the tunnel was opened1 he continued1 and
 ,i heard your speech1 and said to      
myself that it might be a pretty good   
idea to try that in the jewelry trade4  

,and would you believe it1 my profits   
during the first year were more than    
fifty per cent bigger than they were the
 year before8 ,and we venture to add    
that the jeweler was more than twice as 
happy and that it was not altogether    
because there was more money in his     
coffers4  ,mr4 ,mc,adoo is a man with   
whom courtesy is not merely a policy3 it
 is a habit as well4 ,he places it next 
to integrity of character as a          
qualification for a business man1 and he
 carries it into every part of his      
personal activity1 as the statesmen and 
elevator boys1 waiters and financiers1  
politicians and stenographers with whom 
he has come into contact can testify4 ,i
 never have a secretary1 he says1 who is
 not courteous1 no matter what his other
 qualifications may be4 ,during the past
 few years ,mr4 ,mc,adoo has been placed
 in a position to be sought after by all
 kinds of people1 and in nearly every   
instance he has given an interview to   
whoever has asked for it4 ,i have always

 felt1 we quote him again1 that a public
 servant should be as accessible to the 
public as possible4 ,courtesy with him1 
as with any one else who makes it a     
habit1 has a cumulative effect4 ,the    
effect cannot always be traced as in the
 case of the jeweler or in the story    
given below in which money plays a very 
negligible part1 but it is always there4
  ,on one occasion--this was when he was
 president of the ,hudson               
,railroad--,mr4 ,mc,adoo was on his way 
up to the ,adirondacks when the train   
broke down4 ,it was ill provided for    
such a catastrophe1 there was no dining 
car1 only a small buffet1 and the wait  
was a long and trying one4 ,when ,mr4   
,mc,adoo after several hours went back  
to the buffet to see if he could get a  
cup of coffee and some rolls he found   
the conductor almost swamped by irate   
passengers who blamed him1 in the way   
that passengers will1 for something that
 was no more his fault than theirs4 ,the
 conductor glanced up when ,mr4 ,mc,adoo

 came in1 expecting him to break into an
 explosion of indignation1 but ,mr4     
,mc,adoo said1 ,well1 you have troubles 
enough already without my adding to     
them4  ,the conductor stepped out of the
 group4 ,what did you want1 sir8 he     
asked4  ,why1 nothing1 now1 ,mr4        
,mc,adoo responded4 ,i did want a cup of
 coffee1 but never mind about it4  ,come
 into the smoker here1 the conductor    
said4 ,wait a minute4  ,the conductor   
disappeared and came back in a few      
minutes with coffee1 bread1 and butter4 
,mr4 ,mc,adoo thanked him warmly1 gave  
him his card and told him that if he    
ever thought he could do anything for   
him to let him know4 ,the conductor     
looked at the card4  ,are you the       
president of the ,hudson ,railroad8     
,yes4  ,well1 maybe there's something   
you can do for me now4 ,there are two   
men out here who say they are going to  
report me for what happened this        
morning4 ,you know how things have been1
 and if they do1 ,i wish you would write

 to headquarters and explain4 ,i'm in   
line for promotion and you know what a  
black mark means in a case like that4   
,mr4 ,mc,adoo assured him that he would 
write if it became necessary4 ,the men  
were bluffing1 however1 and the         
complaint was never sent in4 ,apparently
 the incident was closed4  ,several     
years later ,mr4 ,mc,adoo's son was     
coming down from the ,adirondacks when  
he lost his ,pullman ticket4 ,he did not
 discover the fact until he got to the  
station1 and then he had no money and no
 time to get any by wire before the     
train left4 ,he went to the conductor1  
explained his dilemma1 and told him that
 if he would allow him to ride down to  
the city his father1 who was to meet him
 at the ,grand ,central station1 would  
pay him for the ticket4 ,the conductor  
liked the youngster--perhaps because    
there was something about him that      
reminded him of his father1 for as      
chance would have it1 the conductor was 
the same one who had brought ,mr4       

,mc,adoo the coffee and bread in the    
smoking car so many months before4  ,who
 is your father8 he asked4  ,mr4        
,mc,adoo4  ,president of the ,hudson    
,railroad8  ,yes4  ,boy1 you can have   
the train6  ,so far as monetary value of
 courtesy is concerned we might recount 
hundreds of instances where a single act
 of politeness brought in thousands of  
dollars4 ,only the other morning the    
papers carried the story of a man who   
thirty years ago went into a tailor's   
shop with a ragged tear in his trousers 
and begged the tailor to mend it and to 
trust him for the payment which amounted
 to fifty cents4 ,the tailor agreed     
cheerfully enough and the man went his  
way1 entered business and made a        
fortune4 ,he died recently and left the 
tailor fifty thousand dollars4 ,not long
 before that there was a story of an old
 woman who came to ,new ,york to visit  
her nephew--it was to be a surprise--and
 lost her bearings so completely when   
she got into the station that she was   

about ready to turn around and go back  
home when a very polite young man       
noticed her bewilderment4 ,he offered   
his services1 called a taxi and         
deposited her in front of her nephew's  
door in half an hour4 ,she took his name
 and address and a few days later he    
received a check large enough to enable 
him to enter the ,columbia ,law ,school4
 ,a banker is fond of telling the story 
of an old fellow who came into his bank 
one day in a suit of black so old that  
it had taken on a sickly greenish tinge4
 ,he fell into the hands of a polite    
clerk who answered all his              
questions--and there were a great many  
of them--clearly1 patiently1 and        
courteously4 ,the old man went away but 
came back in a day or so with #cjj1jjj  
which he placed on deposit4 ,i did have 
some doubts1 he said1 but this young man
 settled them all4 ,word of it went to  
people in authority and the clerk was   
promoted4  ,now it is pleasant to know  
that these good people were rewarded as 

they deserved to be4 ,we would be very  
happy if we could promise a like reward 
to every one who is similarly kind1 but 
it is no use4 ,the little words of love 
and the little deeds of kindness go     
often without recompense so far as we   
can see1 except that they happify the   
world1 but that in itself is no small   
return4  ,courtesy pays in dollars and  
cents but its value goes far beyond     
that4 ,it is the chief element in       
building good will--we are speaking now 
of courtesy as an outgrowth of          
character--and good will is to a firm   
what honor is to a man4 ,he can lose    
everything else but so long as he keeps 
his honor he has something to build     
with4 ,in the same way a business can   
lose all its material assets and can    
replace them with insurance money or    
something else1 but if it loses its good
 will it will find in ninety cases out  
of a hundred that it is gone forever and
 that the business itself has become so 
weakened that there is nothing left but 

to reorganize it completely and blot out
 the old institution altogether4  ,one  
must not make the mistake of believing  
that good will can be built on courtesy 
alone4 ,courtesy must be backed up by   
something more solid4 ,an excellent     
comparison to show the relation that    
good manners bear to uprightness and    
integrity of character was drawn a      
number of years ago by a famous ,italian
 prelate4 ,we shall paraphrase the      
quaint ,english of the original         
translator4 ,just as men do commonly    
fear beasts that are cruel and wild1 he 
says1 and have no manner of fear of     
little ones such as gnats and flies1 and
 yet because of the continual nuisance  
which they find them1 complain more of  
these than they do of the other3 so most
 men hate the unmannerly and untaught as
 much as they do the wicked1 and more4  
,there is no doubt that he who wishes to
 live1 not in solitary and desert       
places1 like a hermit1 but in fellowship
 with men1 and in populous cities1 will 

find it a very necessary thing1 to have 
skill to put himself forth comely and   
seemly in his fashions1 gestures1 and   
manners3 the lack of which do make other
 virtues lame4  ,granting dependability 
of character1 courtesy is the next      
finest business builder an organization 
can have4 ,one of the largest trust     
companies in the world was built up on  
this hypothesis4 ,a good many years ago 
the man who is responsible for its      
growth was cashier in a busted bank in a
 small city4 ,the situation was a       
desperate one1 for the bank could not do
 anything more for its customers than it
 was already doing4 ,it could not give  
them more interest on their money and   
most of its other functions were        
mechanical4 ,the young cashier began to 
wonder why people went to one bank in   
preference to another and in his own    
mind drew a comparison between the      
banking and the clothing business4 ,he  
always went to the haberdasher who      
treated him best4 ,other men he knew did

 the same thing4 ,would not the same    
principle work in a bank8 ,would not    
people come to the place which gave them
 the best service8 ,he decided to try   
it4 ,not only would they give efficient 
service1 they would give it pleasantly4 
,it was their last card but it was a    
trump4 ,it won4 ,the bank began to      
prosper4 ,people who were annoyed by    
rude1 brusque1 or indifferent treatment 
in other banks came to this one4 ,the   
cashier was raised to a position of     
importance and in an incredibly short   
time was made president of a trust      
company in ,new ,york4 ,he carried with 
him exactly the same principle that had 
worked so well in the little bank and   
the result in the big one was exactly   
the same4  ,in a leaflet which is in    
circulation among the employees at this 
institution there are these paragraphs3 
,we ask you to remember3       ,that our
 customers can get along without us4    
7,there are in ,greater ,new ,york      
nearly one hundred banks and trust      

companies1 every one of them actively   
seeking business47       ,we cannot get 
along without our customers4       ,a   
connection which1 perhaps1 it has taken 
us several months to      establish1 can
 be terminated by one careless or       
discourteous act4       ,our customers  
are asked to maintain balances of       
certain      proportions4 ,if they wish 
to borrow money1 they must deposit      
collateral4 ,they must repay loans when 
they mature2 or arrange      for their  
extension4       ,if a bank errs1 it    
must err on the side of safety1 for the 
money      it loans is not its own money
 but the money of its depositors4 ,we   
7and every other bank and trust company7
 operate almost entirely      on money  
which our customers have deposited with 
us4 ,the least we      can do1 then1 is 
to serve them courteously4 ,they really 
are our      employers4       ,ours is a
 semi-public institution4       ,every  
day1 men try to interest us in matters  
with which we have      no concern4 ,it 

is our duty to tell these men1 very     
courteously1      why their proposals do
 not appeal to us4 ,but they are        
entitled to      a hearing4 ,it may be  
that they are not in a position to      
benefit      us1 and never will be4 ,but
 almost every man can harm us1 if he    
tries to do so4 ,and a pleasantly       
expressed declination invariably        
makes a better impression than a favor  
grudgingly granted4 ,we ask      you1   
then1 to remember that our growth--and  
your      opportunities--depend not only
 upon the friends we make1 but the      
enemies we do not make4       ,remember 
names and faces4 ,do something1 say     
something that will      bring home to  
those who do business with us the fact  
that the      ,blank ,trust ,company is 
a very human institution--that it wants 
the good will of every man and woman in 
the country4  ,that is the kind of      
courtesy which has builded this         
particular organization4 ,it is a       
pleasure to visit it to-day because of  

the spirit of cooeperation which        
animates it4 ,they have done away with  
the elaborate spy systems in use in so  
many banks1 although they keep the      
management well enough in hand to be    
able to fasten the blame for mistakes   
upon the right person4 ,the employees   
work with one another and with the      
president1 whom they adore4 ,it is1 as a
 matter of fact1 largely the influence  
of the personality of the president     
filtering down through the ranks which  
has made possible the phenomenal success
 which the institution has enjoyed      
during the past few years1 another proof
 of the fact that every institution--and
 ,emerson was speaking of great         
institutions when he said it--is the    
lengthened shadow of one man4  ,banks   
have almost a peculiar problem4 ,money  
is a mighty power1 and to the average   
person there is something very awesome  
about the place where it is kept4 ,mr4  
,stephen ,leacock is not the only man   
who ever went into a bank with a funny  

little guilty feeling even when he had  
money in it4 ,when one is in this frame 
of mind it takes very little on the part
 of the clerk to make him believe that  
he has been treated rudely4 ,bank clerks
 are notoriously haughty1 but the fault 
is often as much in the person on the   
outside as in the one on the inside of  
the bars1 especially when he has come in
 to draw out money which he knows he    
should not1 such as his savings bank    
account1 for instance4 ,the other day a 
young man went into a savings bank to   
draw out all of his money for a purpose 
which he knew was extravagant although  
he had persuaded himself that it was    
not4 ,throughout the whole time he was  
in the bank he was treated with perfect 
courtesy1 but in spite of it he came out
 growling about the dirty look the      
paying teller gave him6  ,it is not only
 in the first contact that civility is  
important4 ,eternal vigilance is the    
price of success as well as of liberty4 
,another incident from the banking      

business illustrates this4 ,several     
years ago a bank which had been steadily
 losing customers called in a publicity 
expert to build up trade for them4 ,the 
man organized a splendid campaign and   
things started off with a flourish4     
,people began to come in most gratifying
 numbers4 ,but they did not stay4 ,an   
investigation conducted by the publicity
 man disclosed the fact that they had   
been driven away by negligent and       
discourteous service4 ,he went to the   
president of the bank and told him that 
he was wasting money building up        
advertising so long as his bank         
maintained its present attitude toward  
the public4 ,the president was a man of 
practical sense4 ,there was a general   
clearing up1 those who were past reform 
were discharged and those who stayed    
were given careful training in what good
 breeding meant and there was no more   
trouble4 ,advertising will bring in a   
customer but it takes courtesy to keep  
him4  ,business1 like nearly everything 

else1 is easier to tear down than to    
build up1 and one of the most           
devastating instruments of destruction  
is discourtesy4 ,a contact which has    
taken years to build can be broken off  
by one snippy letter1 one pert answer1  
or one discourteous response over the   
telephone4 ,even collection letters1 no 
matter how long overdue the accounts    
are1 bring in more returns when they are
 written with tact and diplomacy than   
when these two qualities are omitted4   
,if you insult a man who owes you money 
he feels that the only way he can get   
even is not to pay you1 and in most     
cases1 he can justify himself for not   
doing it4  ,within the organization     
itself a courteous attitude on the part 
of the men in positions of authority    
toward those beneath them is of immense 
importance4 ,sap rises from the bottom1 
and a business has arrived at the point 
of stagnation when the men at the top   
refuse to listen to or help those around
 them4 ,it is1 as a rule1 however1 not  

the veteran in commercial affairs but   
the fledgling who causes most trouble by
 his bad manners4 ,young men1 especially
 young men who have been fortunate in   
securing material advantages1 too many  
times look upon the world as an accident
 placed here for their personal         
enjoyment4 ,it never takes long in      
business to relieve their minds of this 
delusion1 but they sometimes accomplish 
a tremendous amount of damage before it 
happens4 ,for a pert1 know-it-all manner
 coupled with the inefficiency which is 
almost inseparable from a total lack of 
experience is not likely to make        
personal contacts pleasant4 ,every young
 man worth his salt believes that he can
 reform the world1 but every old man who
 has lived in it knows that it cannot be
 done4 ,somewhere half way between they 
meet and say1 ,we'll keep working at it 
just the same1 and then business begins 
to pick up4 ,but reaching the meeting   
ground takes tolerance and patience and 
infinite politeness from both sides4    

,it is the grossest sort of incivility1 
the quotation is not exact1 for we do   
not remember the source1 to be          
contemptuous of any kind of knowledge4  
,and herein lies the difficulty between 
the hard-headed business man of twenty  
years' experience and the youngster upon
 whose diploma the ink has not yet      
dried4 ,ignorance1 declares a man who   
has spent his life in trying to draw    
capital and labor together and has      
succeeded in hundreds of factories1 is  
the cause of all trouble4 ,and a lack of
 understanding1 which is a form of      
ignorance1 is the cause of nearly all   
discourtesy4  ,so long as there is      
discourtesy in the world there must be  
protection against it1 and the best1    
cheapest1 and easiest means of          
protection is courtesy itself4 ,boats   
which are in constant danger of being   
run into1 such as the tug and ferry     
boats in a busy harbor1 are fitted out  
with buffers or fenders which are as    
much a part of their equipment as the   

smokestack1 and in many cases1 as       
necessary4 ,ocean liners carry fenders  
to be thrown over the side when there is
 need for them1 but this naturally is   
not as often as in more crowded waters4 
,a single boat on a deserted sea with   
nothing but sea-gulls and flying fish in
 sight cannot damage any one besides    
herself4 ,but the moment she enters a   
harbor she has to take into account     
every other vessel in it from the       
,aquitania to the flat-bottomed row-boat
 with only one man in it4 ,it is a      
remarkable fact that most of the boats  
that are injured or sunk by collision   
are damaged by vessels much smaller than
 themselves4 ,most of these accidents   
7this statement is given on the         
authority of an able seaman7 could have 
been prevented by the use of a fender   
thrown over the side at the proper      
moment4 ,politeness is like this4 ,it is
 the finest shock absorber in the world1
 as essential from an economic point of 
view as it is pleasant from a social    

one4 ,in business there is no royal     
isolation4 ,we are all ferry boats4 ,we 
need our shock absorbers every minute of
 the day4  ,no boat has a right to run  
into another1 but they do it just the   
same1 and a shock absorber is worth all 
the curses the captain and the crew can 
pronounce1 however righteous their      
indignation toward the offending vessel4
 ,sometimes politeness is better than   
justice4  ,most of the causes of        
irritation during the course of a       
business day are too petty to bother    
about4 ,many of them could be ignored   
and a good many more could be laughed   
at4 ,a sense of humor and a sense of    
proportion would do away with ninety per
 cent of all the wrangling in the world4
 ,some one has said1 and not without    
truth1 that a highly developed sense of 
humor would have prevented the ,world   
,war4 ,too many people use              
sledge-hammers when tack hammers would  
do just as well4 ,they belong in the    
same company with ,william ,jay whose   

immortal epitaph bears these words3     
,here lies the body of ,william ,jay    
,who died maintaining his right of way4 
,he was right1 dead right1 as he sped   
along1     ,but he's just as dead as if 
he'd been wrong4  ,courtesy is restful4 
,a nervous frenzy of energy throughout  
the day leaves one at sunset as         
exhausted as a punctured balloon4 ,the  
fussy little fellow who fancies himself 
rushed to death1 who has no time to talk
 with anybody1 who cannot be polite to  
his stenographer and his messenger boys 
because he is in such a terrible hurry1 
is dissipating his energy into something
 that does not matter and using up the  
vitality which should go into his work4 
,he is very like the engine which       
,president ,lincoln was so fond of      
telling about which used so much steam  
in blowing its whistle that every time  
it did it it had to stop4  ,the         
,orientals manage things better than we 
do4 ,we tried hurrying two thousand     
years ago1 a banker in ,constantinople  

said to a tired ,american business man1 
and found that it did not pay4 ,so we   
gave it up4 ,there is always time to be 
polite1 and though it sounds like a     
contradiction1 there will be more time  
to spare if one devotes a part of his   
day to courtesy4  ,but there is danger  
in too much courtesy4 ,every virtue     
becomes a vice if it is carried too far1
 and frank rudeness is better than      
servility or hypocrisy4 ,commercial     
greed1 there is no other name for it1   
leads a firm to adopt some such idiotic 
motto as the customer is always right4  
,no organization could ever live up to  
such a policy1 and the principle back of
 it is undemocratic1 un-,american1      
unsound and untrue4 ,the customer is not
 always right and the employer in a big 
7or little7 concern who places girls    
7department stores are the chief sinners
 in this7 on the front line of approach 
with any such instructions is a menace  
to self-respecting business4 ,america   
does not want a serving class with a    

king-can-do-no-wrong attitude toward the
 public4 ,business is service1 not      
servility1 and courtesy works both ways4
 ,there is no more sense in business    
proclaiming that the customer is always 
right than there would be in a customer 
declaring that business is always right1
 and no more truth4  ,no good business  
man will argue with a customer1 or      
anybody else1 not only because it is bad
 policy to do so1 but because his       
self-respect will not allow it4 ,he will
 give and require from his employees    
courteous treatment toward his          
customers1 and when doubt arises he will
 give them 7the customers7 the benefit  
of it4 ,and he will always remember that
 he is dealing with an intelligent human
 being4 ,the customer has a right to    
expect a firm to supply him with        
reliable commodities and to do it       
pleasantly1 but he has no right to      
expect it to prostrate itself at his    
feet in order to retain his trade1      
however large that trade may be4  ,too  

little has been said about courtesy on  
the part of the customer and the        
public--that great headless mass of     
unrelated particles4 ,business is       
service1 we say1 and the master is the  
public1 the hardest one in the world to 
serve4 ,each one of us speaks with more 
or less pitying contempt of the public1 
forgetting that we ourselves are the    
public and that the sum total of the    
good breeding1 intelligence1 and        
character of the public can be no       
greater than that of the individuals who
 make it up4  ,sid1 of the ,american    
,magazine1 says that he once asked the  
manager of a circus which group of his  
employees he had most trouble keeping4  
,quite unexpectedly the man replied1    
,the attendants4 ,they get 'sucker-sore'
 and after that they are no good4 ,this 
is how it happens4 ,the wild man from   
,borneo is placed in a cage with a      
placard attached bearing in big letters 
the legend ,the ,wild ,man from ,borneo4
 ,an old farmer comes to the circus1    

looks at the wild man from ,borneo in   
his cage1 reads the placard1 looks at   
the attendant1 ,is this the wild man    
from ,borneo8 he asks4 ,no human being  
can stand an unlimited amount of this   
sort of thing1 and the attendant1 after 
he has explained some hundred thousand  
or so times that this really is the wild
 man from ,borneo begins to lose his    
zest for it and to answer snappishly and
 sarcastically4 ,an infinite supply of  
courtesy would1 of course1 be a         
priceless asset to him1 but does not    
this work both ways8 ,what right have   
people to bother other people with      
perfectly foolish and imbecile          
questions8 ,is there any one who cannot 
sympathize with a sucker-sore attendant8
 ,and with the people who are stationed 
about for the purpose of answering      
questions almost anywhere8 ,there are   
not many of us who at one time and      
another have not had the feeling that we
 were on the wrong train even after we  
had asked the man who sold us the       

ticket1 the man who punched it at the   
gate1 the guard who was standing near   
the entrance1 and the guard who was     
standing near the train1 the porter1 the
 conductor1 and the news-butcher if it  
was the right one and have had an       
affirmative answer from every one of    
them4 ,how many times can a man be      
expected to answer such a question with 
a smile8 ,for those who are exposed to  
suckers the best advice is to be as     
gentle with them as possible1 to grit   
your teeth and hold your temper even    
when the ninety-thousandth man comes    
through to ask if this is the right     
train4 ,for the suckers themselves there
 are only two words of advice4 ,they    
include all the rest3 ,stop it4  ,it is 
impossible to tell what the value of    
courtesy is4 ,perhaps some day the      
people who have learned to measure our  
minds will be able to tell us just what 
a smile is worth4 ,maybe they can tell  
us also what ,spring is worth1 and what 
happiness is worth4 ,meanwhile we do not

 know4 ,we only know that they are      
infinitely precious4     ,,iii          
,,putting ,,courtesy ,,into ,,business  
,we talk a great deal about gentlemen   
and about democracy and a good many     
other words which describe noble        
conceptions without a very clear idea of
 what they mean4 ,the biggest mistake we
 make is in thinking of them as         
something stationary like a monument    
carved in granite or a stone set upon a 
hill1 when the truth is that they are   
living ideas subject to the change and  
growth of all living things4 ,no man has
 ever yet become a perfect gentleman    
because as his mind has developed his   
conception of what a gentleman is has   
enlarged1 just as no country has ever   
become a perfect democracy because each 
new idea of freedom has led to broader  
ideas of freedom4 ,it is very much like 
walking through a tunnel4 ,at first     
there is only darkness1 and then a tiny 
pin point of light ahead which grows    
wider and wider as one advances toward  

it until1 finally1 he stands out in the 
open with the world before him4 ,there  
is no end to life1 and none to human    
development1 at least none that can be  
conceived of by the finite mind of man4 
,there are hundreds of definitions of a 
gentleman1 none of them altogether      
satisfactory4 ,cardinal ,newman says it 
is almost enough to say that he is one  
who never gives pain4 ,they be the men1 
runs an old chronicle1 whom their race  
and bloud1 or at the least1 their       
virtues1 do make noble and knowne4      
,barrow declares that they are the men  
lifted above the vulgar crowd by two    
qualities3 courage and courtesy4 ,the   
,century ,dictionary1 which is as good  
an authority as any1 says1 ,a gentleman 
is a man of good breeding1 courtesy1 and
 kindness2 hence1 a man distinguished   
for fine sense of honor1 strict regard  
for his obligations1 and consideration  
for the rights and feelings of others4  
,and this is a good enough working      
standard for anybody4 ,the ,dictionary  

is careful to make--and this is         
important--a gentleman not one who      
conforms to an outward and conventional 
standard1 but one who follows an inward 
and personal ideal4  ,of late days there
 has been a great deal of attention paid
 to making gentlemen of business men and
 putting courtesy into all the          
ramifications of business4 ,without     
doubt the chief reason for it is the    
fact that business men themselves have  
discovered that it pays4 ,one restaurant
 frankly adopted the motto1 ,courtesy   
,pays1 and had it all fixed up with gilt
 letters and framed and hung it near the
 front door1 and a number of other      
places have exactly the same policy for 
exactly the same reason though they do  
not all proclaim the fact so boldly4 ,it
 is not the loftiest motive in the world
 but it is an intelligent one1 and it is
 better for a man to be polite because  
he hopes to win success that way than   
for him not to be polite at all4  ,human
 conduct1 even at its best1 is not      

always inspired by the highest possible 
motives4 ,not even the religions which  
men have followed have been able to     
accomplish this4 ,most of them have held
 out the hope of heavenly reward in     
payment for goodness here on earth and  
countless millions of men 7and women1   
too1 for that matter7 have kept in the  
straight and narrow path because they   
were afraid to step out of it4 ,it may  
be that they were1 intrinsically1 no    
better men than the ones who trod the   
primrose path to the everlasting        
bonfire1 but they were much easier to   
live with4 ,and the man who is          
courteous1 who is a gentleman1 whatever 
his motives1 is a more agreeable citizen
 than the one who is not4  ,now         
how--this is our problem--does one go   
about making a gentleman8 ,environment  
plays1 comparatively speaking1 a very   
small part4 ,the appellation of         
gentleman1 this is from a gentleman of  
the ,seventeenth ,century1 is not to be 
affixed to a man's circumstances1 but to

 his behavior in them4 ,it is extremely 
doubtful if courtesy can be taught by   
rule4 ,it is more a matter of           
atmosphere1 and an instinct for the     
better side of things and the cleaner   
surfaces of life4 ,and yet1 heredity1   
training1 and environment all enter into
 the process4  ,it is a polite and      
pleasant fiction that courtesy is innate
 and not acquired1 and we hear a great  
deal about the born lady and the born   
gentleman4 ,they are both myths4 ,babies
 are not polite1 and the king upon 'is  
throne with 'is crown upon 'is 'ead has 
had1 if he is a gentleman1 life-long    
training in the art of being one4 ,there
 is still in existence a very           
interesting outline which was given by  
,queen ,victoria and ,prince ,albert to 
their oldest son1 the ,prince of ,wales1
 on his seventeenth birthday4 ,it       
contained a careful summary of what was 
expected of him as a ,christian         
gentleman and included such items as    
dress1 appearance1 deportment1 relations

 with other people1 and ability to      
acquit himself well in whatever company 
he happened to be thrown4  ,the ,king   
and ,queen1 although they were probably 
unaware of the fact1 were acting upon   
the advice of an authority on good      
manners at court a number of years      
before their time4 ,indeed1 says the old
 manuscript1 from seven to seventeen    
young gentlemen commonly are carefully  
enough brought up3 but from seventeen to
 seven-and-twenty 7the most dangerous   
time of all a man's life1 and the most  
slippery to stay well in7 they have     
commonly the rein of all license in     
their own hand1 and specially such as do
 live in the court4 ,if we bring the    
sentence up to date1 and it is as true  
now as it was then1 we may substitute   
business for court4 ,business men as    
well as courtiers find the ages between 
seventeen and seven-and-twenty the most 
slippery to stay well in for it is      
during these years that they are        
establishing themselves in the          

commercial world4 ,as a general thing1  
but it is wise to remember that there is
 no rule to which there are not         
exceptions1 by the time a man is        
twenty-seven his habits are formed and  
it is too late to acquire new ones4     
,most children undergo a painstaking and
 more or less painful course of         
instruction in good manners and know by 
the time they are men and women what    
should be done whether they do it or    
not4 ,our social code is not a          
complicated one1 and there is no excuse 
except for the youngsters who have just 
growed up like ,topsy or have been      
brought up by jerks like ,pip4 ,it is1  
without doubt1 easier to be polite among
 people who are naturally courteous than
 among those who snap and snarl at one  
another1 but it is a mistake to place   
too much emphasis on this part of it4   
,too many men--business men1 at         
that--have come up out of the mire for  
us to be able to offer elaborate        
apologies for those who have stayed in  

it4 ,the background is of minor         
importance4 ,a cockroach is a cockroach 
anywhere you put him4  ,it is easy to   
envy the men who have had superior      
advantages1 and many a man feels that if
 he had another's chance he1 too1 might 
have become a great gentleman4 ,it is an
 idle speculation4 ,his own             
opportunities are the only ones any man 
can attend to1 and if he is sensible he 
will take quick advantage of those that 
come1 not in dreams1 but in reality1 and
 will remember what a very sagacious    
,english statesman said about matters of
 even graver import3 ,it makes no       
difference where you are going4 ,you've 
got to start from where you are4  ,the  
lack of early training is a handicap but
 not a formidable one1 especially to a  
business man4 ,as the ,spaniards say1   
there is little curiosity about the     
pedigree of a good man4 ,and no man     
needs to be ashamed of his origin4 ,the 
president of a firm would naturally be  
interested in the ancestry of a young   

man who came to ask him for the hand of 
his daughter1 but if the man has come to
 sell a bill of goods he does not care a
 snap4 ,in discussions of the social    
evil it is often said that every child  
has a right to be well born1 but ,robert
 ,louis ,stevenson saw more deeply and  
spoke more truly when he said1 ,we are  
all nobly born2 fortunate those who know
 it2 blessed those who remember4  ,the  
finest ,gentleman the world has ever    
seen was born some two thousand years   
ago to the wife of a carpenter in       
,bethlehem and spent most of ,his time  
among fishermen1 tax-collectors1        
cripples1 lepers1 and outcasts of       
various sorts2 and yet in the entire    
record of ,his short and troubled life  
there is not one mention of an          
ungraceful or an ungainly action4 ,he   
was careful to observe even the         
trivialities of social life4 ,mary and  
,martha were quarreling before dinner4  
,he quieted them with a few gracious    
words4 ,the people at the marriage feast

 at ,cana were worried because they had 
only water to drink4 ,he touched it and 
gave them wine4 ,the multitude who came 
to hear ,him were tired1 footsore1 and  
hungry4 ,he asked them to be seated and 
gave them food4 ,he dined with the      
,pharisees1 ,he talked with the women of
 ,samaria1 ,he comforted ,mary          
,magdalen1 and ,he washed the feet of   
,his disciples4 ,he was beset and       
harassed by a thousand rude and         
unmannerly questions1 but not once did  
,he return an impatient answer4 ,surely 
these things are godlike and divine     
whatever one may believe about the      
relation of ,jesus ,christ to ,god1 the 
,father4  ,it has been said that every  
man should choose a gentleman for his   
father4 ,he should also choose a        
gentleman for his employer4             
,unfortunately he often has no more     
option in the one than he has in the    
other4 ,very few of us get exactly what 
we want4 ,but however this may be1 a    
gentleman at the head of a concern is a 

priceless asset4 ,the atmosphere of most
 business houses is determined by the   
man at the top4 ,his character filters  
down through the ranks4 ,if he is a     
rough-and-tumble sort of person the     
office is likely to be that kind of     
place2 if he is quiet and mannerly the  
chances are that the office will be     
quiet and mannerly4 ,if he is a         
gentleman everybody in the place will   
know it and will feel the effects of it4
 ,i am always glad ,john was with ,mr4  
,blank his first year in business1 said 
a mother speaking of her son4 ,mr4      
,blank was a man who had a life-long    
reputation for being as straight as a   
shingle and as clean as a hound's tooth1
 every inch a gentleman4  ,how do you   
account for the fact that you have come 
to place so much emphasis on courtesy8 a
 business man was asked one day as he   
sat in his upholstered office with great
 windows opening out on the ,new ,york  
harbor4 ,he thought for a moment1 and   
his mind went back to the little        

,georgia village where he was born and  
brought up4 ,my father was a gentleman1 
he answered4 ,i remember when ,i was a  
boy he used to be careful about such    
trifles as this4 ',now1 ,jim1' he would 
say1 'when you stop on the sidewalk     
don't stop in the middle of it4 ,stand  
aside so you won't be in anybody's way4'
 ,and even now1 the man smiled1 ,i never
 stop on the sidewalk without stepping  
to one side so as to be out of the way4 
,the life of a young person is plastic1 
easy to take impressions1 strong to     
retain them4 ,and the old man or the    
governor1 whether he is father1 friend1 
or employer1 or all three1 has          
infinitely more influence than either he
 or the young man realizes4 ,at the same
 time it is perfectly true that young   
people do not believe what older ones   
tell them about life4 ,they have to try 
it out for themselves4 ,one generation  
does not begin where the other left off4
 ,each one of us begins at the          
beginning1 and the world1 with all that 

it holds1 is as wonderful 7though       
slightly different1 to be sure7 and as  
new to the child who is born into it    
to-day as it was to ,adam on the first  
morning after it was created4  ,it is   
almost tragic that so many young men    
take the tenor of their lives from that 
of their employers1 especially if the   
latter have been successful4 ,this      
places a terrific responsibility upon   
the employer which does not1 however1   
shift it from the employee4 ,his part in
 business or in life--and this is true  
of all of us--is what he makes it1 great
 or small4 ,and the most important thing
 is for him to have a personal ideal of 
what he thinks best and hold to it4 ,he 
cannot get it from the outside4         
,courtesy is not one of the company's   
rules1 wrote the manager of a large     
organization which has been very        
successful in handling men and making   
money4 ,it is a tradition1 an instinct4 
,it is an attribute of the general tone1
 of the dominating influence of the     

management in all its relations4 ,it is 
a part of the general tone1 the honor1  
the integrity of the company4 ,for three
 generations it has been looked upon as 
an inheritance to be preserved and kept 
irreproachable4 ,employees are drawn    
into this influence by the very simple  
process of their own development4 ,those
 who find themselves in harmony with the
 character of the company or who        
deliberately put themselves in tune1    
progress4 ,those who do not1 cannot1 for
 long1 do congenial or acceptable       
service4 ,this is the statement from the
 manager of a firm that is widely known 
for courteous dealing4 ,their standard  
is now established4 ,it is a part of the
 atmosphere1 and their chief problem is 
to get men who will fit into it4  ,an   
employer does not judge a man on an     
abstract basis4 ,he takes him because he
 thinks he will be useful to his        
business4 ,this is why most places like 
to get men when they are young4 ,they   
are easier to train4  ,every one likes  

good material to work with1 and         
employers are no exception4 ,they take  
the best they can find1 and the higher  
the standard of the firm the greater the
 care expended in choosing the          
employees4 ,whenever we find a good man1
 said the manager of a big trust        
company1 we take him on4 ,we may not    
have a place for him at the time but we 
keep him until we find one4  ,except    
during times of stress such as that     
brought about by the war when the       
soldiers were at the front1 no business 
house hires people indiscriminately4    
,they know1 as the ,chinese have it1    
that rotten wood cannot be carved4 ,it  
is our opinion1 we quote from another   
manager1 that courtesy cannot be pounded
 into a person who lacks proper social  
basis4 ,in other words1 there are some  
people who would be boorish under any   
circumstances4 ,our first and chief step
 toward courtesy is to exercise care in 
selecting our employees4 ,we weigh      
carefully each applicant for a sales    

position and try to visualize his       
probable deportment as our              
representative1 and unless he gives     
promise of being a fit representative we
 do not employ him4  ,but it is not     
enough to take a man into a business    
organization4 ,every newcomer must be   
broken in4 ,sometimes this is done by   
means of formal training1 sometimes it  
consists merely of giving him an idea of
 what is expected of him and letting him
 work out his own salvation4 ,granting  
that he is already familiar with the    
work in a general way1 and that he is   
intelligent and resourceful1 he ought to
 be able to adapt himself without a     
great deal of instruction from above4   
,all of this depends upon the kind of   
work which is to be done4  ,nearly every
 employer exercises more caution in     
selecting the man who is to meet the    
public than any other4 ,it is through   
him that the all-important first        
impression is made1 and a man who is    
rude or discourteous1 or who1 for any   

reason1 rubs people the wrong way1      
simply will not do4 ,he may have many   
virtues but unless they are apparent    
they are for the time being of little   
service4  ,most salesmen have to go to  
school4 ,their work consists largely of 
the study of one of the most difficult  
subjects in the catalogue3 human        
psychology4 ,they must know why men do  
what they do and how to make them do    
what they1 the salesmen1 want them to   
do4 ,they must be able to handle the    
most delicate situations courteously and
 without friction4 ,it takes the tact of
 a diplomat1 the nerve of a trapeze     
performer1 the physical strength of a   
prize fighter1 the optimism of ,william 
,j4 ,bryan or of ,pollyanna1 and the    
wisdom of ,solomon4 ,not many men are   
born with this combination of qualities4
  ,the best training schools base their 
teaching on character and common sense4 
,one very remarkable organization1 which
 has at its head an astonishingly       
buoyant and optimistic--and1 it is      

hardly necessary to add1                
successful--man1 teaches that character 
is nine-tenths of success in            
salesmanship and technique is only      
one-tenth4 ,they study technique and    
character along with it1 in a scientific
 way1 like the students in a biological 
laboratory who examine specimens4 ,their
 prospects are their subjects1 and while
 they do not actually bring them into   
the consultation room1 they hold        
experience meetings and tell the stories
 of their successful and unsuccessful   
contacts4 ,the meetings are held at the 
end of the day1 when the men are all    
tired and many of them are depressed and
 discouraged4 ,they are opened with     
songs1 ,my ,old ,kentucky ,home1 ,old   
,black ,joe1 ,sweet ,adeline1 and the   
other good old familiar favorites that  
make one think of home and mother and   
school days and happiness4 ,one or two  
catchy popular songs are introduced1 and
 the men sing or hum or whistle or      
divide into groups and do all three with

 all their might4 ,it is irresistible4  
,fifteen or twenty minutes of it can    
wipe out the sourest memory of the day's
 business1 and trivial irritations sink 
to their proper place in the scheme of  
things4 ,the little speeches follow1 and
 the men clap and cheer for the ones who
 have done good work and try to make an 
intelligent diagnosis of the cases of   
the ones who have not4 ,when the leader 
talks he sometimes recounts his early   
experiences--he1 like most good         
salesmanagers1 was once on the road     
himself--and if he is in an             
inspirational mood1 gives a sound talk  
on the principle back of the golden     
rule4 ,the spirit of cooeperation       
throughout the institution is amazing   
and the morale is something any group of
 workers might well envy them4  ,most   
business houses recognize their         
responsibilities toward the young people
 that they hire4 ,well-organized        
concerns build up from within4 ,the     
heads of the departments are for the    

most part men who have received their   
training in the institution1 and they   
take as much pains in selecting their   
office boys as they do in selecting any 
other group1 for it is in them that they
 see the future heads and assistant     
heads of the departments4 ,in hiring    
office boys cleanness1 good manners1    
good physique1 mental agility1 and good 
habits are primary requisites1 according
 to ,mr4 ,j4 ,ogden ,armour in the      
,american ,magazine4  ,in one of the    
oldest banks in ,new ,york each boy who 
enters is given a few days' intensive   
training by a gentleman chosen for the  
purpose4 ,the instructor stresses the   
fundamentals of character and1 above all
 things1 common sense4 ,courtesy is     
rarely discussed as a separate quality  
but simple instructions are given about 
not going in front of a person when     
there is room to go around him1 not     
pushing into an elevator ahead of every 
one else1 not speaking to a man at a    
desk until he has signified that he is  

ready1 and about sustaining quiet and   
orderly behavior everywhere4 ,the       
atmosphere in the bank is the kind that 
encourages gentlemanly conduct and the  
new boys either fall in with it or else 
get out and go somewhere else4  ,it     
takes more patience on the part of the  
youngsters in the financial district    
than it does in most other places1 for  
the men there work under high tension   
and are often cross1 worried1 nervous1  
and irritable1 and as a result are1 many
 times1 without intending it1 unjust4   
,the discipline is severe1 and the boy  
would not be human if he did not resent 
it4 ,but the youngster who is quick to  
fly off the handle will find himself    
sadly handicapped1 however brilliant he 
may be1 in the race with boys who can   
keep their tempers in the face of an    
injury4  ,three boys out of the hundreds
 who have passed through the training   
school in the bank of which we were     
speaking have been discharged for acts  
of discourtesy4 ,one flipped a rubber   

clip across a platform and hit one of   
the officials in the eye1 one refused to
 stay after hours to finish some work he
 had neglected during the day1 and one  
was impertinent4 ,all three could have  
stayed if each had used a little common 
sense1 and all three could have stayed  
if each act had not been a fair         
indication of his general attitude      
toward his work4  ,one of the most      
difficult organizations to manage and   
one against which the charge of         
discourtesy is frequently brought is the
 department store4 ,yet a distinguished 
,englishwoman visiting here--it takes a 
woman to judge these things--said1 ,i   
had always been told that people in ,new
 ,york were in such a hurry that1       
although well-meaning enough1 they were 
inclined to appear somewhat rude to     
strangers4 ,i have found it to be just  
the reverse4 ,during my first strolls in
 the streets1 in the shops1 and         
elsewhere1 ,i have found everybody most 
courteous4 ,your stores1 ,i may say1 are

 the finest ,i have ever seen1 not      
excepting those of ,paris4 ,their       
displays are remarkable4 ,their         
spaciousness impressed me greatly4 ,even
 at a crowded time it was not difficult 
to move about4 ,in ,london1 where our   
shops are mostly cramped and            
old-fashioned1 it would be impossible   
for such large numbers of people to find
 admittance4  ,the tribute is a very    
nice one4 ,for a long time the          
department stores have realized the     
difficulties under which they labor and 
have been making efforts to overcome    
them4 ,they have formed associations by 
which they study each other's methods1  
and most of them have very highly       
organized systems of training and       
management4 ,one big department store   
carries on courtesy drives4 ,talks are  
given1 posters are exhibited1 and prizes
 are offered for the most courteous     
clerks in the store4 ,we know that it is
 not fair to give prizes1 the personnel 
manager says1 because it is impossible  

to tell really which clerks are the most
 courteous1 but it stimulates interest  
and effort throughout the organization  
and the effects last after the drive is 
over4  ,one big department store which  
is favorably known among a large        
clientele for courteous handling of     
customers depends upon its atmosphere to
 an enormous extent1 but it realizes    
that atmosphere does not come by chance1
 that it has to be created4 ,they have  
arranged it so that each clerk has time 
to serve each customer who enters       
without the nervous hurry which is the  
cause of so much rudeness4 ,the         
salesclerks who come into the           
institution are given two weeks'        
training in the mechanical end of their 
work1 the ways of recording sales1      
methods of approach1 and so on1 as well 
as in the spirit of cooeperation and    
service4 ,by the time the clerk is      
placed behind the counter he or she can 
conduct a sale courteously and with     
despatch1 but there is never a time when

 the head of the department is not ready
 and willing to be consulted about      
extraordinary situations which may      
arise4  ,it is during the rush seasons  
such as the three or four weeks which   
precede ,christmas that courtesy is put 
to the severest test1 and the store     
described in the paragraph above bears  
up under it nobly4 ,it did not wait     
until ,christmas to begin teaching      
courtesy4 ,it had tried to make it a    
habit1 but last year several weeks      
before the holidays it issued a bulletin
 to its employees to remind them of     
certain things that would make the      
,christmas shopping less nerve-racking4 
,the first paragraph was headed         
,,health4 ,it ran as follows3  ,if you  
want to be really merry at ,christmas   
time1 it will be well to bear in mind   
during this busy month at least these   
few 'health savers'3  ,every night try  
to get eight good hours of sleep4  ,all 
day try to keep an even temper and a    
ready smile4  ,remember that five       

minutes lost in the morning means       
additional pressure all day long4  ,try 
to make your extra effort a steady      
one--not allowing yourself to get       
excited and rushed so that you make     
careless mistakes4  ,try to eat         
regularly three good nourishing meals1  
relaxing completely while you are at the
 table and for a little while afterward4
  ,breathe deeply1 and as often as you  
can1 good fresh air--it cures weariness4
  ,and don't forget that a brisk walk1 a
 sensible dinner1 an hour's relaxation1 
and then a hot bath before retiring1    
make a refreshing end for one business  
day and a splendid preparation for the  
next4  ,there were six other paragraphs 
in the bulletin4 ,one asked the         
salesclerks to take the greatest care in
 complying with a customer's request to 
send gift purchases without the price   
tags4 ,another asked them to pay        
strictest attention to getting the right
 addresses1 and most of the others were 
taken up with suggestions for ways to   

avoid congestion by using a bank of     
elevators somewhat less conveniently    
located than the others1 by limiting    
their personal telephone calls to those 
which were absolutely necessary1 and so 
on4 ,in both tone and content the       
bulletin was an excellent one4 ,it first
 considered the employees and then the  
customers4 ,there was no condescension  
in the way it was written and there was 
no bunk about what was in it4 ,but the  
bulletin was only a small part of an    
effort that never stops4  ,the purpose  
of the store is1 to quote from its own  
statement1 to render honest1 prompt1    
courteous and complete service to       
customers and the qualities by which    
they measure their employees are as     
follows3       ,health      ,loyalty    
,cooeperation      ,initiative          
,industry      ,accuracy                
,thoroughness      ,responsibility      
,knowledge  ,courtesy is not included in
 the list but it is unnecessary4 ,if    
these qualities are developed courtesy  

will come of its own accord4 ,it is     
worth noting that health comes first in 
the list4 ,to a business man1 or indeed 
to any other1 it is one of the most     
precious possessions in the world1 and  
is the best of backgrounds upon which to
 embroider the flower of courtesy4      
,every employer who has had any         
experience knows the value of a         
contented workman1 and does what he can 
to make and keep him so by paying him   
adequate wages1 and providing           
comfortable1 sanitary1 and pleasant     
working conditions4 ,contentment is1    
however1 more an attitude of mind than a
 result of external circumstances4      
,happiness is who1 not where1 you are4  
,we do not mean by this that a workman  
should be wholly satisfied and without  
ambition or that he should face the     
world with a permanent grin1 but that he
 should to the best of his ability      
follow that wonderful motto of          
,roosevelt's1 ,do what you can where you
 are with what you have4 ,no man can    

control circumstances2 not even the     
braggart ,napoleon1 who declared that he
 made circumstances1 could control them 
to the end2 and no man can shape them to
 suit exactly his own purposes1 but     
every man can meet them bravely as a    
gentleman should4  ,most big business   
concerns supply rest rooms1 eating      
places1 recreation camps1 and all manner
 of comforts for their employees1 and   
most of them maintain welfare           
departments4 ,no business house under   
heaven could take the place of a home1  
but where the home influence is bad the 
best counterfoil is a wholesome         
atmosphere in which to work4 ,recently  
an institution advertising for help1    
instead of asking what the applicant    
could do for it1 pictured and described 
what it could do for the applicant4 ,the
 result was that they got a high-class  
group of people to make their selection 
from1 and their attitude was one which  
invited the newcomers to do their best4 
,factory owners are paying a good deal  

of attention to the appearance of their 
buildings4 ,many of them have moved out 
into the country so as to provide more  
healthful surroundings for work4        
,numbers of modern factory buildings are
 very beautiful to look at1 trim white  
buildings set in close-cut lawns with   
tennis courts and swimming pools not far
 away1 red brick buildings covered with 
ivy1 sand-colored ones with roses       
climbing over them1 and others like the 
one famous for its thousand windows1    
rather more comfortable than lovely4 ,in
 our big cities there are office        
buildings that look like cathedrals1    
railroad stations that look like        
temples1 and traffic bridges that look  
7from a distance7 like fairy arches     
leading into the land of dreams4 ,they  
are not all like this4 ,we wish they    
were4 ,but it is to the credit of the   
,american business man that he has put  
at least a part of his life and work    
into the building of beautiful things4  
,the influence which comes from them is1

 like nearly all potent influences1 an  
unconscious one1 but it makes for       
happiness and contentment4  ,the problem
 of keeping the employees contented is  
somewhat different in every place4      
,house organs1 picnics1 dances1         
recreation parks1 sanitariums in the    
country and so on can be utilized by big
 business1 but the spirit which animates
 them is the same as that which makes   
the grocery man at ,hicksville ,centre  
give his delivery boy an afternoon off  
when the baseball team comes to town4   
,the spirit of courtesy is everywhere   
the same1 but it must be kept in mind   
that the end of business is production1 
production takes work1 and that play is 
introduced in order that the work may be
 better4 ,this is true whether we are   
looking at the matter from the point of 
view of the employer or of the employee4
 ,what is to the interest of one--this  
is gaining slow but sure recognition--is
 to the interest of the other4  ,certain
 kinds of mechanical work are very      

trying because of their monotony4 ,the  
work must be done1 however1 and in      
well-ordered places it is arranged so   
that the worker has brief periods of    
rest at regular intervals or so that he 
is shifted from one kind of activity to 
another4 ,it is poor economy to wear out
 men4 ,in the old days before the power 
of steam or electricity had been        
discovered1 boats were propelled by     
slaves who were kept below decks chained
 to their seats1 and watched by an      
overseer who forced them to continue    
rowing long after they had reached the  
point of exhaustion4 ,the galley slave  
sat always on the same side of the boat 
and after a few years his body became so
 twisted and warped that he was no good 
for anything else1 and pretty soon was  
not even good for that4 ,then he was    
thrown into the discard--most of them   
died before they got this far along--and
 the owner of the boat had to look out  
for more men4 ,something like this      
happens to the soul of a man who is     

bound to dreary1 monotonous work without
 relief or any outlet for growth4 ,it is
 deadening to him1 to his work1 and to  
his employer4 ,the far-sighted employer 
knows it4 ,the masters of slaves learned
 it many years ago4 ,the chain which    
binds the servant to the master binds   
the master to the servant4 ,and the     
fastening is as secure at one end as it 
is at the other4  ,too strict           
supervision--slave-driving--is fatal to 
courtesy4 ,the places which have        
intricate spy systems to watch their    
employees are the ones where there is   
most rudeness and trickery4 ,the clerk  
who is hectored1 nagged1 spied upon1    
suspected and scolded by some hireling  
brought in for that purpose or by the   
head of the firm himself cannot be      
expected to give a smile with every     
purchase and a thank you for every      
goodbye4 ,the training of employees     
never stops1 but it is something that   
should be placed very largely in their  
own hands4 ,after a certain point       

supervision should be unnecessary4      
,most places hate to discharge a man4   
,labor turnover is too expensive4 ,most 
of them try to place their men in the   
positions for which they are best       
suited4 ,it is easier to take a round   
peg out of a square hole and put it into
 a round one than it is to send out for 
another assortment of pegs4 ,men are    
transferred from sales departments to   
accounting departments1 are taken off   
the road and brought into the home      
office1 and are shifted about in various
 ways until they fit4 ,if a man shows   
that he has it in him he is given every 
chance to succeed4 ,there is only one   
thing we drop a man for right off1 says 
an employment manager in a place which  
has in its service several thousand     
people of both sexes1 and that is for   
saying something out of the way to one  
of our girls4  ,this same manager tells 
the story of a boy he hired and put into
 a department which had been so badly   
managed that there were a number of     

loose ends to be tied up4 ,the boy threw
 himself into his work1 cleared up      
things1 and found himself in a soft snap
 without a great deal to do4 ,he        
happened not to be the kind of person   
who can be satisfied with a soft snap1  
and he became so restive and unhappy    
that he was recommended for discharge4  
,this brought him back to the head of   
the employment bureau4 ,he1 instead of  
throwing the young man out1 asked that  
he be given a second trial in a         
department where the loose ends could   
not be cleaned up4 ,it was a place where
 there was always plenty of work to do1 
and the young man has been happy and has
 been doing satisfactory work ever      
since4  ,the house in which this        
happened is always generous toward the  
mistakes of its employees if the        
mistakes do not occur too persistently  
and too frequently4 ,in one instance a  
boy made three successive errors in     
figures in as many days4 ,he was slated 
for discharge but sent first before the 

employment manager4 ,as they talked the 
latter noticed that the boy leaned      
forward with a strained expression on   
his face4 ,thinking perhaps he was      
slightly deaf1 he lowered his voice1 but
 the boy understood every word he said4 
,then he noticed that there was a tiny  
red ridge across his nose as if he were 
accustomed to wearing glasses1 although 
he did not have them on1 and when he    
asked about it he discovered that the   
boy had broken his glasses a few days   
before1 and that he had not had them    
fixed because he did not have money     
enough4  ,why didn't you tell us about  
it8 the employment manager asked4  ,it  
was not your fault that ,i broke them1  
the boy replied4 ,it was up to me1 an   
independent answer which in itself      
indicates how much worth while it was to
 keep him4  ,the manager gave him money 
enough to have the glasses mended1 the  
next day the boy was back at work1 and  
there was no more trouble4  ,an employee
 in the same organization               

unintentionally did something which hurt
 the president of the firm a great deal4
 ,but when he went to him and apologized
 7it takes a man to admit that he is    
wrong and apologize for it7 the         
president sent him back to his desk1    
,it's all right1 boy1 he said1 ,i know  
you care4 ,that's enough4  ,in a big    
department store in ,new ,england there 
was a girl a few years back with an     
alert mind1 an assertive personality1   
and a tremendous fund of energy4 ,she   
was in the habit of giving constructive 
suggestions to the heads of the         
departments in which she worked1 and    
because of her youth and manner1 they   
resented it4 ,i took her into my office1
 the manager said4 ,i'm the only one she
 can be impertinent to there and ,i     
don't mind it4 ,it is a bad             
manifestation of a good quality1 and in 
time the disagreeable part of it will   
wear off4 ,she will make an excellent   
business woman4  ,if a man finds fault  
with a boy without explaining the cause 

to him1 we are quoting here from an     
executive in a highly successful ,middle
 ,western firm1 ,i won't fire the boy1  
,i fire the man4 ,we have not a square  
inch of space in this organization for  
the man who criticizes a subordinate    
without telling him how to do better4   
,unless the plan of management is big   
enough to include every one from the    
oldest saint to the youngest sinner it  
is no good4 ,business built on          
oppression and cut-throat competition1  
whether the competition is between      
employer and employee or between rival  
firms1 is war1 and war1 industrial or   
political1 is still what ,general       
,sherman called it some years ago4  ,we 
hold no brief for paternalism4 ,we have 
no patience with it4 ,all that we want  
is a spirit of fairness and cooeperation
 which will give every man a chance to  
make good on his own account4 ,this     
spirit inevitably flowers into courtesy4
 ,in every place courtesy should be1 of 
course1 so thoroughly a part of the     

surroundings that it is accepted like   
air or sunshine without comment4 ,but it
 is not1 and never has been except in   
old civilizations where manners have    
ripened and mellowed under the          
beneficent influence of time4 ,our      
traditions here--speaking of the country
 as a whole--are still in the making1   
but we have at least got far enough     
along to realize that it is not only    
worth while to do things that are good1 
but1 as an old author has it1 to do them
 with a good grace4 ,it cannot be       
accomplished overnight4 ,courtesy is not
 like a fungous growth springing up in a
 few hours in the decayed parts of a    
tree2 it is like that within the tree   
itself which gives lustre to the leaves 
and a beautiful surface to the whole4   
,it takes time to develop it--time and  
patience--but it is worth waiting for4  
,,iv  ,,personality   ,all that makes a 
man who he is and not someone else is   
called personality4 ,it is the sum total
 of his qualities1 a thing inborn1 but  

including besides such externals as     
dress1 manner1 and appearance4 ,it is   
either a tremendous asset or a terrific 
liability1 and so important that certain
 schools which purport to teach success 
in business declare that it is          
everything4 ,which is just as foolish as
 saying that it is nothing4  ,one of    
these                                   
success-before-you-wake-to-morrow-mornin
g schools of business instruction       
dismisses the fact which has remained   
true through three thousand years of    
change1 namely1 that there is no short  
cut to success1 as a myth1 and even goes
 so far as to say that it is almost     
impossible to achieve success to-day by 
working for it4 ,e4 ,h4 ,harriman they  
give as an example of a man who did no  
work but won success by smoking cigars  
while other men built railroads for him1
 quoting a joking remark of his to prove
 a serious point1 when1 as a matter of  
fact1 ,mr4 ,harriman was one of the     
large number of ,american business men  

who have literally worked themselves to 
death4 ,foch said that he won the war by
 smoking his pipe1 but does any one     
believe that the great commander won the
 war by not working8 ,what he meant was 
that he won the war by thinking1 and the
 worn face1 which seemed almost twice as
 old when the conflict was over1 showed 
how hard that work was4  ,it is so      
impossible for a false doctrine to stand
 on its own feet that the spread-eagle  
advertisement of this school contradicts
 itself long before it gets to the ,sign
 here and mail to-day coupon4 ,the first
 time you try to swim1 shouts the       
advertisement1 for instance1 you sink2  
and the first time you try to ride a    
bicycle you fall off4 ,but the ability  
to do these things was born in you4 ,and
 shortly you can both swim and ride4    
,then you wonder why you could not      
always do these things4 ,they seem so   
absurdly simple4 ,it may be that there  
are people who have learned to swim and 
to ride a bicycle by sitting in a chair 

and cultivating certain inherent        
qualities but we have never heard of    
them4 ,everybody that we ever knew      
worked and worked hard swimming and     
riding before they learned4 ,the only   
way to learn to do a job is to do it1   
and the only way to succeed is to work4 
,any school or any person who says that 
the most important thing for you to do  
is not to work1 but first to find the   
short road to success4 ,after that you  
may safely work all you like--but as a  
matter of fact1 you won't have to work  
very hard1 is a liar and a menace to the
 country and to business4  ,but the     
value of personality is not to be       
under-estimated4 ,nature1 says          
,thackeray somewhere in ,the            
,virginians1 has written a letter of    
credit upon some men's faces1 which is  
honored almost wherever presented4      
,harry ,warrington's ,harry ,warrington 
was the hero who brought about this     
observation countenance was so stamped  
in his youth4 ,his eyes were so bright1 

his cheeks so red and healthy1 his look 
so frank and open1 that almost all who  
beheld him1 nay1 even those who cheated 
him1 trusted him4 ,it was the letter of 
credit stamped upon the face of         
,roosevelt1 pledge of the character     
which lay behind it1 which made him the 
idol of the ,american people4           
,personality is hard to analyze and     
harder still to acquire4 ,the usual     
advice given to one who is trying to    
cultivate a pleasing manner and address 
is ,be natural1 but this cannot be taken
 too literally4 ,most of us find it     
perfectly natural to be cross and       
disagreeable under trying circumstances4
 ,it would be natural for a man to cry  
out profane words when a woman grinds   
down on his corn but it would not be    
polite4 ,it was natural for ,uriah ,heep
 to wriggle like an eel1 but that did   
not make it any the less detestable4 ,it
 was natural1 considering the past      
history of ,germany and the system under
 which he was educated1 for the ,kaiser 

to want to be lord of the world1 but    
that did not make it any the less       
horrible4  ,another bromidic piece of   
advice is ,be perfectly frank and       
sincere4 ,but this1 too1 has its limits4
 ,some people pride themselves on saying
 exactly what they think4 ,usually they 
are brutal1 insensitive1 wholly         
incapable of sympathetic understanding  
of any one else1 and cursed1 besides1   
with a colossal vanity4 ,a man may      
determine to tell nothing but the truth1
 but this does not make it necessary for
 him to tell the whole truth1 especially
 when it will hurt the feelings or the  
reputation of some one else4 ,no man has
 a right to impose his opinions and     
prejudices1 his sufferings and agonies1 
on other people4 ,it is the part of a   
coward to whine4  ,and yet a man must be
 himself1 must be natural and sincere4  
,roosevelt could no more have adopted   
the academic manner of ,wilson than     
,wilson could have adopted the boyish   
manner of ,roosevelt4 ,lincoln could no 

more have adopted the courtly grace of  
,washington than ,washington could have 
adopted the rugged simplicity of        
,lincoln4 ,nor would such               
transformations be desirable even if    
they were possible4 ,the world would be 
a very dreary place if we were all cut  
by the same pattern4  ,a number of years
 ago in an upstate town in ,new ,york   
there was a shoe store which had been   
built up by the engaging personality of 
the man who owned it4 ,he had worked his
 way up from a tiny shoe shop in ,new   
,jersey where1 as a boy1 he made shoes  
by hand before there were factories for 
the purpose1 and he had always kept in  
close touch with the business even after
 he owned a large establishment and had 
a number of men working under him4 ,he  
stayed in the shop1 greeted his         
customers as they came in1 and many     
times waited on them himself4  ,when he 
retired from active business he sold out
 to a man exactly his opposite in       
temperament1 as good a man1 so far as   

character went1 as himself1 but very    
quiet and taciturn4 ,a woman who had    
always patronized the shop and was a    
friend of them both came to him soon    
after the transfer was made and said1   
,now1 ,mr4 ,tillis1 the reason this     
place has prospered so is on account of 
the personality of ,mr4 ,kilbourne4 ,his
 shoes are good but people can get good 
shoes at other places4 ,they come here  
because of ,mr4 ,kilbourne4 ,they like  
him1 and if you are not careful they    
will stop coming now that he is gone4   
,you've got to smile and show them you  
are glad to see them4  ,mr4 ,tillis felt
 that the woman was telling the truth4  
,he decided that he would stay in the   
shop and greet each customer with a     
gladsome smile and make himself         
generally pleasant and agreeable4 ,the  
next day he was fitting a shoe on a     
woman who was also an old customer and a
 friend of both men4 ,he was smiling in 
his best manner and congratulating      
himself that he was doing very well when

 the woman abruptly took her foot off   
the stand4 ,what are you laughing at8   
she demanded4  ,some years later he told
 ,mr4 ,kilbourne about it4 ,i decided   
then that there was no use in me trying 
to be you4 ,you had been yourself1 and  
,i made up my mind that ,i'd be myself4 
,and that is1 after all1 the only rule  
that can be given4 ,be yourself1 but be 
very sure that it is your best self4    
,it is personality which permits one man
 to do a thing that another would be    
shot for4 ,what is charming in this man 
is disgusting in that4 ,what is a smile 
with one becomes a smirk with another4  
,what makes one succeed will cause      
another to fail4 ,it is personality that
 opens the doors of opportunity4 ,it    
cannot1 alone1 keep them open1 but it is
 worth a good deal to get inside4  ,we  
were interested to observe the methods  
used by three young men who were looking
 for jobs1 not one of whom would        
probably have succeeded if he had used  
the tactics of either of the others4    

,the first wanted to talk with the      
biggest executive in a large            
organization4 ,he had fought his way    
through the ranks until he had got as   
far as the man's secretary4 ,mr4        
,so-and-,so does not see people who want
 jobs1 said that young lady4  ,i don't  
want a job1 he prevaricated mildly1 ,i  
want to talk to him4  ,the girl let him 
in4  ,mr4 ,so-and-,so1 he said1 ,i don't
 want a job4 ,i want advice4  ,his      
manner was so ingenuous and charming1   
his earnestness so glowing1 that the man
 at the desk listened while he talked1  
and then talked a while himself1 and    
ended by giving the young man the       
position 7as well as the advice7 that he
 wanted4 ,but if he had been less       
attractive personally and the older man 
had been shrewd enough to see through   
the ruse 7or perhaps he did see through 
it but made the proper discount for it7 
or had been opposed to trick methods1   
the scheme might not have worked so     
well4  ,the most universal weakness of  

intellect lies in the part of the brain 
which listens to flattery4 ,very few    
people like compliments laid on with a  
trowel1 but no man can resist the honest
 admiration of another if it seems      
sincere4 ,and since it is the sort of   
thing that one likes almost above all   
else he often takes the false coin for  
the true4  ,the second young man met the
 rebuff so familiar to young men looking
 for their first job1 ,we want men with 
experience4  ,that's what everybody     
says1 the boy answered1 but what ,i want
 to know is how we are going to get that
 experience if you don't give us a      
chance4  ,the older man sympathized1 but
 had no place for the other and told him
 so4  ,what would you do if you were ,i8
 the young man asked as he turned to    
leave4 ,the other grinned4 ,why1 ,i'd   
work for a firm for a week for nothing1 
he said1 and show them that they could  
not get along without me4  ,the boy     
stopped4 ,all right1 he said1 let me    
work for you a week4  ,the older man had

 not expected this but he gave the      
youngster a chance and he made good4    
,the third young man had reached the    
point of desperation4 ,he had been out  
of a job several weeks4 ,he had been    
trying to get one all that time and had 
not succeeded4 ,he walked into the      
employment bureau of a certain concern  
and said1 ,i want a job4 ,i want a good 
job4 ,not some dinky little place filing
 letters or picking up chips4 ,if you've
 got an executive position where there  
is plenty of work and plenty of         
responsibility1 ,i want it4 ,they asked 
him a few questions about what he had   
been doing and a few more about what he 
thought he could do1 and ended by giving
 him a desk and an office4  ,it would be
 foolish to advise any one to follow any
 of these plans4 ,each man must work out
 his own method1 all the better if it is
 an original one4 ,most business men    
like a simple approach without any      
flourishes4 ,it is astonishing1 says one
 man whose income runs to six figures1  

how many things one can get just by     
asking for them4 ,the best reporter in  
,america says that he has always found  
the direct method of approach better    
than any other4 ,none is infallible but 
this has the highest percentage of      
success4  ,so far as personal appearance
 is concerned--and this is one of the   
most important elements in the          
fashioning of personality--the greatest 
variations are not due to intrinsic     
differences in character1 nor to        
differences of feature or form1 but to  
the use and disuse of the bathtub4 ,more
 sharp than the distinction between     
labor and capital or between socialism  
and despotism is that between the people
 who bathe daily and those who go to the
 tub only on ,saturday night or less    
often4 ,the people with whom personal   
cleanliness is a habit find dirt1 grime1
 and sweat revolting4 ,to them the great
 unwashed are repulsive4  ,when you     
teach a man to bathe1 says ,john ,leitch
 in his book on ,industrial ,democracy1 

you do more than merely teach him to    
cleanse his body4 ,you introduce him to 
a new kind of life and create in him a  
desire for better living4  ,the month   
before he began his wonderful work at   
,tuskegee1 ,booker ,washington spent    
visiting the ,negro families in the part
 of ,alabama where he was to teach4 ,one
 of the saddest things ,i saw during the
 month of travel which ,i have          
described1 he writes in his             
autobiography1 was a young man1 who had 
attended some high school1 sitting down 
in a one-room cabin1 with grease on his 
clothing1 filth all around him1 and     
weeds in the yard and garden1 engaged in
 studying a ,french grammar4  ,farther  
on he writes1 ,it has been interesting  
to note the effect that the use of the  
tooth-brush has had in bringing about a 
higher degree of civilization among the 
students4 ,with few exceptions1 ,i have 
noticed that1 if we can get a student to
 the point where1 when the first or     
second tooth-brush disappears1 he of his

 own motion buys another1 ,i have not   
been disappointed in the future of that 
individual4 ,absolute cleanliness of the
 body has been insisted upon from the   
first4  ,cleanliness is an attribute of 
civilization4 ,we find it amusing to    
read that three or four hundred years   
ago bathing for pleasure was unknown1   
that when soap was first invented it was
 used only for washing clothes1 and that
 even so late as the ,seventeenth       
,century an author compiling a book of  
rules for the gentleman of that day     
advises him to wash his hands every day 
and his face almost as often6 ,in the   
monasteries bathing was permitted only  
to invalids and the very old4 ,perfume  
was used copiously1 and filth and       
squalor abounded4 ,this even in royal   
circles4 ,among the common people       
conditions were unspeakable4  ,to-day a 
gentleman bathes and shaves every day4  
,he keeps his hair brushed1 his finger  
nails immaculate 7or as clean as the    
kind of work which he does permits71 his

 linen is always clean and his shoes are
 polished4 ,he is not over-fastidious   
about his clothes1 but he has respect   
enough for himself as well as for the   
people among whom he lives to want to   
present as agreeable an appearance as   
possible4 ,dress1 wrote ,lord           
,chesterfield to his son1 is a very     
foolish thing1 and yet it is a very     
foolish thing for a man not to be       
well-dressed1 according to his rank and 
way of life4444 ,the difference in this 
case between a man of sense and a fop is
 that the fop values himself upon his   
dress2 and the man of sense laughs at   
it1 and at the same time knows he must  
not neglect it4  ,it is a cheap device  
for a man to trick himself out with     
lodge pins and fraternity symbols1      
rings1 and badges in the hope that they 
will open doors for him4 ,highly        
ornamental jewelry of any kind is       
inappropriate4 ,not many men can offset 
a heavy gold watch chain stretched full 
length across their bosoms1 not many can

 live down a turquoise ring set with    
pearls1 and very few can bear the       
handicap of a bright gold front tooth4  
,artists1 alone1 may gratify their taste
 for velvet jackets1 ,tam-o'-,shanters1 
and ,windsor ties1 but the privilege is 
denied business men4 ,eccentricity of   
dress usually indicates eccentricity of 
temper1 and we do not want temperamental
 business men4 ,it is hard enough to get
 along with authors and artists and     
musicians4 ,the business man who is wise
 wears conventional clothes of          
substantial material in conservative    
colors4 ,good sense and good taste      
demand it4  ,the time has passed when   
uncouthness of dress and manner can be  
taken as a pledge of honesty and good   
faith4 ,the ,president of the ,united   
,states to-day is a well-dressed1       
well-groomed man1 and no one thinks any 
the less of him for it4 ,men no longer  
regard creased trousers1 nicely tied    
cravats1 well-chosen collars1 and       
harmonious color combinations as signs  

of sissiness1 snobbishness1 or          
weak-mindedness4  ,formal dinners and   
other ceremonious functions require     
evening dress4 ,it is the custom1 as the
 ,orientals say2 and for the sake of    
other people present if not for his own1
 a man should undergo the discomfort1 if
 he finds it a discomfort1 and many men 
do1 of conforming to it4 ,holiday attire
 gives a happy note of festivity which  
might otherwise be lacking4 ,it is quite
 possible to point to a number of men   
who have succeeded in business who were 
wholly indifferent to matters of dress4 
,but it does not prove anything4 ,men   
rise by their strength1 not by their    
weakness4 ,some men wait until after    
they have become rich or famous to      
become negligent of their personal      
appearance4 ,but it is well to remember 
that if ,socrates and ,aristippus have  
done aught against custom or good       
manner1 let not a man think he can do   
the same3 for they obtained this license
 by their great and excellent good      

parts4  ,a well-dressed man is so       
comfortably dressed that he is not      
conscious of his clothes and so         
inconspicuously dressed that no one else
 is conscious of them4  ,in a good many 
instances it is not his own dress which 
bothers a business man so much as it is 
that of some one else--his stenographer1
 for instance4 ,men do not have quite so
 much opportunity to make themselves    
ridiculous as women4 ,their conventions 
of dress are stricter1 and1 as a rule1  
they can express their love of color and
 ornamentation only in their choice of  
ties and socks4 ,girls have practically 
no restrictions except what happens to  
be the style at the moment1 and a young 
girl untrained in selecting and         
combining colors and lines1 and making  
money for the first time in her life1 is
 more likely than not to make herself   
look more like a ,christmas tree than a 
lily of the field4  ,the big department 
stores which employ hundreds of girls to
 meet and serve their customers have    

settled the problem for themselves by   
requiring the girls to wear uniforms4   
,the uniform is very simple2 often a    
certain color during working hours is   
prescribed1 but the girls are permitted 
to choose their own styles4 ,other      
places have women who look after the    
welfare of the girls and prevent them   
from laying themselves open to          
misunderstanding by the way they dress4 
,large organizations can afford to have 
a special person to take care of such   
matters1 but in a small office the      
problem is different4  ,of course1 a man
 can always dismiss a girl who dresses  
foolishly or carelessly1 but this is    
sneaking away from a problem instead of 
facing it4 ,high-class offices have     
comparatively little trouble this way4  
,in the first place1 they do not attract
 the frivolous1 light-headed1 or tough  
girls2 in the second place1 if such     
girls come1 the atmosphere in which they
 work either makes them conform to the  
standards of the office or leave and go 

somewhere else4 ,if a girl in his office
 dresses in a way that he considers     
inappropriate1 a man may tactfully      
suggest that something simpler would be 
more dignified and more in keeping with 
business ideals and traditions4 ,but1   
oh1 he must be careful6 ,on no subject  
is one so sensitive as on his personal  
appearance1 and women1 perhaps1 more so 
than men4  ,there is a limit to how far 
an employer should go in dictating the  
manner of his employees' dress4 ,when   
the head of a big ,western department   
store declared that he would discharge  
all the girls who bobbed their hair1    
most of us felt that he had gone a bit  
too far1 even while we saw the logic of 
his position4 ,while it is the only     
sensible way in the world for a woman to
 wear her hair the majority of people   
have not yet come to think so4 ,to the  
average person1 especially to ,mrs4     
,grundy1 who is really the most valuable
 customer a department store has1 the   
impression given by bobbed hair is one  

of frivolity or eccentricity4 ,the      
impression given the customer as she    
enters a store is a most important item2
 the head of the store knew it1 and     
therefore he placed the ban on bobbed   
hair4 ,whichever side we take in this   
particular case this is true3 ,the      
business woman should give1 like the    
business man1 an impression of          
dependability1 and she cannot do it if  
her appearance is abnormal1 or if her   
mind is divided between how she is      
looking and what she is doing4  ,it is  
almost funny that we let the faults and 
mannerisms of other people affect us to 
such an extent4 ,they are nothing to us1
 and yet a man can work himself into a  
perfect frenzy of temper merely by      
looking at or talking to another who has
 a fidgety way of moving about1 a dainty
 manner of using his hands1 or a general
 demean--or that is delicate and        
ladylike4 ,men like what the magazines  
call a red-blooded1 two-fisted1 he-man4 
,but the world is big enough to         

accommodate us all whether the blood in 
our veins is red or blue1 and it is     
perfectly silly for a man to throw      
himself into a rage over some harmless  
creature who happens to exasperate him  
simply because he is alive4  ,it is an  
altogether different matter when it is a
 question of one man taking liberties   
with another4 ,most people object to the
 physical nearness of others4 ,it is the
 thing that makes the ,new ,york subways
 during the rush hours such a horror4   
,it is not pleasant to have a person so 
near that his breath is against your    
face1 and there are not many men who    
enjoy being slapped on the back1 punched
 in the ribs1 or held fast by a         
buttonhole or a coat lapel4 ,a safe rule
 is never to touch another person4 ,he  
may resent it4  ,the garrulous or       
impertinent talker is almost as         
objectionable as the                    
hail-fellow-well-met1 slap-on-the-back  
fellow4 ,charles ,dickens has a record  
of this kind of ,american in the book   

which he wrote after his visit in this  
country3 ,every button in his clothes   
said1 ',eh1 what's that8 ,did you speak8
 ,say that again1 will you8' ,he was    
always wide awake1 always restless2     
always thirsting for answers2           
perpetually seeking and never           
finding4444  ,i wore a fur great-coat at
 that time1 and before we were well     
clear of the wharf1 he questioned me    
concerning it1 and its price1 and where 
,i bought it1 and when1 and what fur it 
was1 and what it weighed1 and what it   
cost4 ,then he took notice of my watch1 
and asked me what that cost1 and whether
 it was a ,french watch1 and where ,i   
got it1 and how ,i got it1 and whether  
,i bought it or had it given me1 and how
 it went and where the keyhole was1 and 
when ,i wound it1 every night or every  
morning1 and whether ,i ever forgot to  
wind it at all1 and if ,i did1 what     
then8 ,where ,i had been to last1 and   
where ,i was going next1 and where ,i   
was going after that1 and had ,i seen   

the ,president1 and what did he say1 and
 what did ,i say1 and what did he say   
when ,i had said that8 ,eh8 ,lor' now6  
,do tell6  ,this sort of curiosity is   
harmless enough1 but exasperating1 and  
so childish that one hates to rebuke the
 person who is asking the foolish       
questions4 ,there is another kind which 
is perhaps worse--the man who asks      
intrusive questions about how much      
salary another is getting1 how old he is
 7men are as sensitive on this subject  
as women7 and so on and on4 ,it is      
perfectly legitimate to refuse to answer
 any question to which one does not wish
 to reply4 ,every man has a right to    
mental privacy even when he is denied1  
as he is in so many modern offices1 any 
other kind of privacy4  ,a loud or      
boisterous person is objectionable4     
,many times this is through             
carelessness1 but sometimes1 as when a  
man recounts the story of his dinner    
with ,mr4 ,brown1 who is a national     
figure1 in a voice so loud that all the 

people in the car or room or whatever   
place he happens to be in1 can hear him1
 it is deliberate4 ,the careless person 
is the one who discusses personalities  
aloud in elevators1 on the train1 and in
 all manner of public places4           
,exchanging gossip is a pretty low form 
of indoor sport and exchanging it aloud 
so that everybody can hear makes it     
worse than ever4 ,names should never be 
mentioned in a conversation in a place  
where strangers can overhear1 especially
 if the connection is an unpleasant one4
 ,private opinions should never be aired
 in public places 7except from a        
platform74  ,the highly argumentative or
 aggressive person is another common    
type of nuisance4 ,he usually raises his
 voice1 thus drowning out the           
possibility of interruption1 and talks  
with so much noise and so many vigorous 
gestures that he seems to try to make up
 for his lack of intellect by an excess 
of tumult4 ,arguments have never yet    
convinced anybody of the truth1 and it  

is a very unpleasant method to try4     
,most arguments are about religion or   
politics and even if they were settled  
nothing would be accomplished4 ,in the  
,middle ,ages men used to debate about  
the number of angels that could stand on
 the point of a pin4 ,hours and hours   
were wasted and learned scholars were   
brought into the discussion1 which was  
carried forward as seriously as if it   
were a debate between the merits of the 
,republican and ,democratic parties4    
,suppose they had settled it4 ,would it 
have mattered8  ,one of the most        
offensive public plagues is the man who 
leaves a trail of untidiness behind him4
 ,no book of etiquette1 not even a book 
of business etiquette1 could counsel    
eating on the streets in spite of the   
historic and inspiring example of ,mr4  
,benjamin ,franklin walking down the    
streets of ,philadelphia with a loaf of 
bread under each arm while he munched   
from a third which he held in his hand4 
,one can forgive a man1 however1 if he1 

feeling the need of nourishment1 eats a 
bar of chocolate if he takes great care 
to put the wrappings somewhere out of   
the way4 ,no man with any civic pride   
will scatter peanut hulls1 cigarette    
boxes1 chocolate wrappings1 raisin      
boxes1 and other debris along the       
streets1 in the cars1 on the stairs1 and
 even on the floors of office buildings4
 ,garbage cans and waste-baskets were   
made to take care of these things4      
,tidiness is worth more to a business   
man than most of them realize4 ,in the  
first place it gives a favorable        
impression to a person coming in from   
the outside1 and1 in the second place1  
it helps those on the inside to keep    
things straight4 ,folders for           
correspondence1 card indexes1 memorandum
 files and other similar devices are    
essential to the orderly transaction of 
business4  ,keeping ashes and scraps of 
paper off the floor may seem trifles1   
but such trifles go far toward making   
the atmosphere1 which is another word   

for personality1 of an office4 ,some men
 have secretaries who take care of their
 desks and papers and supervise the     
janitor who cleans the floors and       
windows1 but those who do not1 find that
 they can manage better when they have a
 place to put things and put them there4
  ,nothing has more to do with making a 
gentleman than a courteous and          
considerate attitude toward women4 ,in  
business a man should show practically  
the same deference toward a woman that  
he does in society4 ,any man can be     
polite to a woman he is anxious to      
please1 the girl he loves1 for instance1
 but it takes a gentleman to be polite  
to every woman1 especially to those who 
work for him1 those over whom he        
exercises authority4  ,it is unnecessary
 for a man to rise every time one of the
 girls in his office enters his private 
audience room1 but he should always rise
 to receive a visitor1 whether it is a  
man or woman1 and should ask the visitor
 to be seated before he sits down       

himself4 ,in witheringly hot weather a  
man may go without his coat even if his 
entire office force consists of girls1  
but he should never receive a guest in  
his shirt sleeves4 ,he should listen    
deferentially to what the visitor has to
 say1 but if she becomes too voluble or 
threatens to stay too long or if there  
is other business waiting for him1 he   
may 7if he can7 cut short her           
conversation4 ,when she is ready to go  
he should rise and conduct her to the   
door or to the elevator1 as the case may
 be1 and ring the bell for her4 ,he     
cannot1 of course1 do this if his       
visitors are frequent1 if their calls   
are about matters of trifling           
importance1 or if he is working under   
high pressure4  ,we once had an ,english
 visitor here in ,america who thought   
our manners were outrageously bad1 but  
there was one point on which we won a   
perfect score4 ,any lady1 he said1 may  
travel alone1 from one end of the       
,united ,states to the other1 and be    

certain of the most courteous and       
considerate treatment everywhere4 ,nor  
did ,i ever once1 on any occasion1      
anywhere1 during my rambles in ,america1
 see a woman exposed to the slightest   
act of rudeness1 incivility1 or even    
inattention4 ,conditions have changed   
since then4 ,women had not left their   
homes to go into offices and factories1 
but unless we can hold to the standard  
described by the ,englishman1 the change
 has not been for the better1 for any of
 the people concerned4  ,since the      
,victorian era our ideas of what        
constitutes an act of rudeness have been
 modified4 ,then it would have been     
unthinkable that a woman should remain  
standing in a coach while men were      
seated4 ,now it is possible for a man to
 keep his place while a woman swings    
from a strap and defend himself on the  
grounds that he has worked harder during
 the day than she 7how he knows is more 
than we can say71 and that he has just  
as much right 7which is certainly true7 

as any one else4 ,yet it is a gracious  
and a chivalrous act for a man to offer 
a woman his place on a car1 and it is   
very gratifying to see that hundreds of 
them1 even in the cities1 where life    
goes at its swiftest pace and people    
live always in a hurry1 surrender their 
seats in favor of the women who1 like   
themselves1 are going to work4 ,old     
people1 afflicted people1 men and women 
who are carrying children in their arms1
 and other people who obviously need to 
sit down are nearly always given        
precedence over the rest of us4 ,this   
is1 of course1 as it should be4  ,but   
the heart of what constitutes courtesy  
has not changed and never will4 ,it is  
exactly what it was on that day nearly  
four hundred years ago when ,sir ,philip
 ,sidney1 mortally wounded on the field 
of ,zutphen1 gave his last drop of water
 to the dying soldier who lay near him  
and said1 ,thy need is greater than     
mine4     ,v  ,,table ,,manners   ,in   
the old books of etiquette in the       

chapter on table manners the authors    
used to state that it was not polite to 
butter your bread with your thumb1 to   
rub your greasy fingers on the bread you
 were about to eat1 or to rise from the 
table with a toothpick in your mouth    
like a bird that is about to build her  
nest4 ,we have never seen any one butter
 his bread with his thumb1 but----      
,there are in the ,united ,states nearly
 five million people who can neither    
read nor write4 ,we have no statistics  
but we venture to say there are as many 
who eat with their knives4 ,there are   
people among us--and they are not all   
immigrants in the slum districts or     
,negroes in the poorer sections of the  
,south--who do not know what a napkin   
is1 who think the proper way to eat an  
egg is to hold it in the hand like a    
piece of candy1 and bite it1 the egg    
having previously been fried on both    
sides until it is as stiff and as hard  
as a piece of bristol board1 who would  
not recognize a salad if they saw one1  

and who have never heard of after-dinner
 coffee4  ,very few of them are people  
of wealth1 but an astonishing number of 
successful business men were born into  
such conditions4 ,they had no training  
in how to handle a knife and fork and   
they probably never read a book of      
etiquette1 but they had one faculty1    
which is highly developed in nearly     
every person who lifts himself above the
 crowd1 and that is observation4  ,in   
addition to this a young man is very    
fortunate1 especially if his way of life
 is cast among people whose manners are 
different from those to which he has    
been accustomed1 if he has a friend whom
 he can consult1 not only about table   
manners but about matters of graver     
import as well4 ,and he should not be   
embarrassed to ask questions4 ,the      
disgrace1 if disgrace it could be       
called1 lies only in ignorance4  ,a     
number of years ago a young man who was 
the prospective heir to a fortune--this 
charming story is in ,charles ,dickens's

 wonderful novel1 ,great                
,expectations--went up to ,london for   
the express purpose of learning to be a 
gentleman4 ,it fell about that almost as
 soon as he arrived he was thrown into  
the company of a delightful youth who   
had already attained the minor graces of
 polite society4 ,very much in earnest  
about what he had set out to do1 and    
blessed besides with a goodish bit of   
common sense1 he explained his situation
 to ,herbert1 for that was the other    
boy's name1 mentioned the fact that he  
had been brought up by a blacksmith in a
 country place1 that he knew practically
 nothing of the ways of politeness1 and 
that he would take it as a great        
kindness if ,herbert would give him a   
hint whenever he saw him at a loss or   
going wrong4  ',with pleasure1' said he1
 'though ,i venture to prophesy that    
you'll want very few hints4'  ,they went
 in to dinner together1 a regular feast 
of a dinner it seemed to the            
ex-blacksmith's apprentice1 and after a 

while began to talk about the           
benefactress who1 they believed1 had    
made it possible4  ',let me introduce   
the topic1' began ,herbert1 who had been
 watching ,pip's table manners for some 
little time1 'by mentioning that in     
,london it is not the custom to put the 
knife in the mouth--for fear of         
accidents--and that while the fork is   
reserved for that use it is not put     
further in than necessary4 ,it is       
scarcely worth mentioning1 only it's as 
well to do as other people do4 ,also1   
the spoon is not generally used         
over-hand but under4 ,this has two      
advantages4 ,you get at your mouth      
better 7which after all is the object71 
and you save a good deal of the attitude
 of opening oysters on the part of the  
right elbow4'  ,he offered these        
suggestions 7said ,pip7 in such a lively
 way1 that we both laughed and ,i       
scarcely blushed4  ,the conversation and
 the dinner continued and the friendship
 grew apace4 ,presently ,herbert broke  

off to observe that society as a body   
does not expect one to be so strictly   
conscientious in emptying one's glass1  
as to turn it bottom upwards with the   
rim on one's nose4  ,i had been doing   
this1 ,pip confessed1 in an excess of   
attention to his recital4 ,i thanked    
him1 and apologized4 ,he said1 ',not at 
all1' and resumed4  ,this was written   
many years ago but neither in life nor  
in literature is there a more beautiful 
example of perfect courtesy than that   
given by ,herbert ,pocket when he took  
the blacksmith's boy in hand and began  
his education in the art of being a     
gentleman4 ,not only was he at perfect  
ease himself but--and this is the       
important point--he put the blacksmith's
 boy at ease4  ,it is worth remarking1  
by way of parenthesis1 that ,herbert's  
father was a gentleman4 ,it is a        
principle of his1 declared the boy1 that
 no man who was not a true gentleman at 
heart1 ever was1 since the world began1 
a true gentleman in manner4 ,he says1 no

 varnish can hide the grain of the wood2
 and that the more varnish you put on1  
the more the grain will express itself4 
,the ,american table service is not     
complicated4 ,any intelligent person who
 knows the points covered by ,herbert   
,pocket1 who knows that one should not  
cut up all of his meat at the same time 
but mouthful by mouthful as he needs it1
 that it is not customary to butter a   
whole slice of bread at once nor to     
plaster cheese over the entire upper    
surface of a cracker1 can by a dint of  
watching how other people do it find his
 way without embarrassment through even 
the most elaborate array of table       
implements4 ,the easiest way to acquire 
good table manners 7or good manners of  
any other kind1 as far as that goes7 is 
to form the habit of observing how the  
people who manage these things most     
gracefully go about it4 ,it is best to  
begin early4 ,to use one of ,david      
,harum's expressive maxims1 ,ev'ry hoss 
c'n do a thing better 'n' spryer if he's

 ben broke to it as a colt4  ,eating    
should be1 and1 as a matter of fact1 is1
 when one follows his usual custom1 an  
unconscious process like the mechanical 
part of reading or writing4 ,it is only 
when he is trying to be a bit more      
formal or fastidious than is habitual   
with him that a man gets tangled1 so to 
speak1 in the tines of his fork4        
,cooking is one of the fine arts4       
,poets1 painters1 sculptors1 musicians1 
and millionaires have always paid       
tribute to it as such--and so is dining4
 ,like a great many other arts it was   
first developed among royal circles1 and
 there was a time when the king resented
 the idea of a commoner being able to   
dine with grace and elegance4 ,since    
then it has become democratized1 and now
 there are no restrictions except those 
which a man places about himself4 ,and  
there is no earthly 7or heavenly7 reason
 why a man should not eat in the way    
which society has established as        
correct1 and a good many reasons why he 

should4  ,physicians--and this is the   
strongest argument we know--might       
advance their plea on the grounds of    
good health4 ,in this case we find1 as  
we do in a number of others1 that what  
good manners declares should be done is 
heartily endorsed at the same time by   
good sense4 ,it is only among people of 
blunted sensibilities that nice table   
manners count for nothing2 for          
,there's no reproach among swine1 d'you 
see1         ,for being a bit of a      
swine4  ,among business men it is often 
perplexing to know whom and when to     
invite4 ,generally speaking1 the older  
man or the man with the superior        
position takes the initiative1 but there
 are an infinite number of exceptions4  
,generally speaking1 also1 the man who  
is resident in a place entertains the   
one who is visiting1 but there are      
infinite exceptions to this as well1    
especially in the case of traveling     
salesman4 ,all courtesy is mutual1 and  
it is almost obligatory upon the        

salesman who has been entertained to    
return the courtesy in kind4 ,such      
invitations should be tendered after a  
transaction is completed rather than    
before4 ,the burden of table courtesy   
falls upon the man who is selling rather
 than the one who is buying1 probably   
because he is the one to whom the       
obvious profit accrues4  ,social affairs
 among the wives of business men which  
grow out of the business relations of   
their husbands follow the same rules as 
almost any other social affairs4 ,nearly
 always it is the wife of the man with  
the higher position who issues the first
 invitation1 and it is permissible for  
her to invite a woman whom she does not 
know personally if she is the wife of a 
business friend of her husband4  ,the   
biggest hindrance to the establishment  
of good manners among business men is   
the everlasting hurry in which they 7and
 all the rest of us7 live4 ,there must  
first of all be leisure1 not perhaps to 
the extent advocated by a delightful    

literary gentleman of having three hours
 for lunch every day1 but time enough to
 sit down and relax4 ,thousands of      
business men dash out to lunch--bad     
manners are at their worst in the middle
 of the day--as if they were stopping   
off at a railroad junction with twenty  
minutes to catch a train and had used   
ten of them checking baggage4 ,and they 
do not always do it because they are in 
a hurry4 ,they have so thoroughly       
developed the habit of living in a      
frenzied rush that even when they have  
time to spare they cannot slow down4    
,pleasant surroundings are desirable4   
,it is much easier to dine in a quiet   
spacious room where the linen is white  
and the china is thin1 the silver is    
genuine silver1 and the service is      
irreproachable1 than in a crowded       
restaurant where thick dishes rattle    
down on white-tiled tables from the     
steaming arms of the flurried waitress1 
where there is no linen1 but only flimsy
 paper napkins 7which either go         

fluttering to the floor or else form    
themselves into damp wads on the table71
 where the patrons eat ravenously and   
untidily1 and where the atmosphere is   
dense with the fumes of soup and        
cigarettes4 ,but luxury in eating is    
expensive and most of us must1 perforce1
 go to the white-tiled places4 ,and the 
art of dining is not a question of what 
one has to eat--it may be beans or      
truffles--or where one eats it--from a  
tin bucket or a mahogany table--it all  
depends upon how2 and the man who can   
eat in a hash-house1 an arm-chair joint1
 a beanerie1 a cafeteria1 a three-minute
 doughnut stand or any of the other     
quick-lunch places in as mannerly a way 
as if he were dining in a hotel de luxe 
has1 we think1 a pretty fair claim to   
the title of gentleman4  ,the           
responsibility for a dinner lies with   
the host4 ,if his guest has had the same
 social training that he has or is      
accustomed to better things he will have
 comparatively little trouble4 ,all he  

can do is to give him the best within   
his means without apology4 ,we like to  
present ourselves in the best possible  
light 7it is only human7 and for this   
reason often carry our friends to places
 we cannot afford4 ,this imposes upon   
them the necessity of returning the     
dinner in kind1 and the vicious circle  
swings around1 each person in it        
grinding his teeth with rage but not    
able to find his way out4 ,entertaining 
is all right so long as it is a useful  
adjunct to business1 but when it becomes
 a burden in itself it is time to call a
 halt4  ,smoking during and immediately 
after a meal is very pleasing to the man
 who likes tobacco1 but if he has a     
guest 7man or woman7 who objects to the 
smell of it he must wait until later4   
,on the other hand if his guest likes to
 smoke and he does not he should insist 
upon his doing so4 ,it is a trifling    
thing but politeness consists largely of
 yielding gracefully in trifles4        
,old-fashioned gentlemen held it        

discourteous to mention money at table1 
but in this degenerate age no subject is
 taboo except those that would be taboo 
in any decent society4 ,obviously when  
men meet to talk over business they     
cannot leave money out of the           
discussion4 ,in a number of firms the   
executives have lunch together1 meeting 
in a group for perhaps the only time    
during the day4 ,it helps immeasurably  
to cooerdinate effort1 but it sometimes 
fails to make the lunch hour the restful
 break in the middle of the day which it
 should be4 ,it is generally much more  
fun and of much more benefit to swap    
fish stories and hunting yarns than to  
go over the details of the work in the  
publicity department or to formulate the
 plans for handling the ,smith and      
,smith proposition4 ,momentous questions
 should be thrust aside until later1 and
 the talk should be--well1 talk1 not    
arguing1 quarreling1 or                 
scandal-mongering4 ,the subject does not
 greatly matter except that it should be

 something in which all of the people at
 the table are interested4 ,whistler was
 once asked what he would do if he were 
out at dinner and the conversation      
turned to the ,mexican ,war1 and some   
one asked him the date of a certain     
battle4 ,do8 he replied4 ,why1 ,i would 
refuse to associate with people who     
could talk of such things at dinner6    
,polite society has always placed a high
 value on table manners1 but it is only 
recently that they have come to play so 
large a part in business4 ,some one has 
said that you cannot mix business and   
friendship4 ,it would be nearer the     
truth to say that you cannot separate   
them4 ,more and more it is becoming the 
habit to transact affairs over the      
table1 and a very pleasant thing it is1 
too4 ,aside from the coziness and warmth
 which comes from breaking bread        
together one is free from the           
interruptions and noise of the office1  
and many a commercial acquaintance has  
ripened into a friend and many a        

business connection has been cemented   
into something stronger through the     
genial influence of something good to   
eat and drink4 ,it is1 of course1 a     
mistake to depend too much upon one's   
social gifts4 ,they are very pleasant   
and helpful but the work of the world is
 done in offices1 not on golf links or  
in dining rooms4 ,we have little        
patience with the man who sets his nose 
to the grindstone and does not take it  
away until death comes in between1 but  
we have just as little with the man who 
has never touched the grindstone4       
,stories go the rounds of executives who
 choose their subordinates by asking    
them out to lunch and watching the way  
they eat4 ,one man always calls for     
celery and judges his applicant by what 
he does with it4 ,if he eats only the   
tender parts the executive decides that 
he is extravagant1 at least with other  
people's money1 but if he eats the whole
 stalk1 green leaves and all1 he feels  
sure that he has before him a man of    

economy1 common sense1 and good         
judgment6 ,the story does not say what  
happens when the young man refuses      
celery altogether4 ,another uses cherry 
pie as his standard and judges the young
 man by what he does with the pits4     
,there are three ways to dispose of     
them4 ,they may be lowered from the     
mouth with the spoon1 they may be       
allowed to drop unaided1 or they may be 
swallowed4 ,the last course is not      
recommended4 ,the first is the only one 
that will land a job4 ,but tests like   
this work both ways and one is rather   
inclined to congratulate the young men  
who were turned down than those who were
 accepted4  ,all this aside1 an employer
 does want to know something about the  
table manners of an employee who is to  
meet and dine with his customers4 ,an   
excellent salesman may be able to       
convince a man of good breeding and wide
 social training if he tucks his napkin 
into his bosom1 drinks his soup with a  
noise1 and eats his meat with his knife1

 but the chances are against it4  ,a man
 who is interested heart and soul in one
 thing will think in terms of it1 will  
have it constantly in his mind and on   
the tip of his tongue4 ,but the man of  
one subject1 whatever that subject may  
be1 is a bore4 ,it is right that a man  
should live in his work1 but he must    
also live outside of it4 ,one of the    
most tragic chapters in the history of  
,american life is the one which tells of
 the millions and millions of men who   
became so immersed in business affairs  
that they lost sight of everything else4
 ,the four walls of the narrow house    
which in the end closes around us all   
could not more completely have cut them 
off from the light of day4 ,it is a long
 procession and it has not ended--that  
line of men passing single file like    
convicts down the long gray vaults of   
business1 business1 business1 with never
 a thought for the stars or the moon or 
books or trees or flowers or music or   
life or love--nothing but what casts a  

shadow over that dismal corridor4       
,these are dead men with no thought     
,of things that are not sold or bought4 
99       99       99       99       99  
,in their bodies there is breath1       
,but their souls are steeped in death4  
,it is not a cheerful picture to        
contemplate 7and it seems a good long   
way away from table manners71 but the   
men who form it are more to be pitied   
than blamed4 ,they are blind4     ,,vi  
,,telephones ,,and ,,front ,,doors   ,if
 the outside of a place is not all      
right1 says a man who spends the greater
 part of his time visiting business     
houses and talking with business men1   
the chances are that it is not worth    
while to go inside4  ,there are three   
ways of getting inside3 by letter 7which
 has a chapter to itself71 by the front 
door1 and by telephone4 ,and there are  
more complaints against the telephone   
way than either or both the others1     
which is perfectly natural1 since it is 
the most difficult to manage4 ,in the   

first place1 it requires good behavior  
from three people at the same time1 and 
that is a good deal to expect4          
,secondly1 they cannot see one          
another--they are like blind people     
talking together--and no one of them can
 do his part unless the other two do    
theirs4 ,in the third place1 the        
instrument is a lifeless thing1 and when
 something goes wrong with it it rouses 
the helpless fury inspired by all       
inanimate objects which interfere with  
our comfort--like intermittent alarm    
clocks1 collar buttons that roll under  
the furniture1 and flivvers that go dead
 without reason in the middle of country
 roads4 ,in each case whatever one does 
has no effect4 ,the alarm clock         
continues to ring 7unless one gets out  
of bed to shut it off1 which is worse   
than letting it ring71 the collar button
 remains hid in the darkest part of the 
room1 the flivver remains stuck in the  
muddiest part of the road1 and the      
telephone is worst of all1 for the      

source of the trouble is usually several
 miles away and there is no means of    
getting at it4  ,the telephone is a     
nuisance--no one denies it--but it is a 
necessity also--no one denies that1     
either--and one of the greatest         
conveniences in an age of great         
conveniences4 ,some of the disagreeable 
features connected with it cannot be    
done away with but must be accepted with
 as much tranquility as we can master1  
like the terrific noise which an        
aeroplane makes or the trail of smoke   
and cinders which a railway train leaves
 behind4 ,the one who is calling1 for   
instance1 cannot know that he is the    
tenth or eleventh person who has called 
the man at the other end of the wire in 
rapid succession1 that his desk is piled
 high with correspondence which must be 
looked over1 signed1 and sent out before
 noon1 that the advertising department  
is waiting for him to ,o4 ,k4 their     
plans for a campaign which should have  
been launched the week before1 that an  

important visitor is sitting in the     
library growing more impatient every    
minute1 and that his temper has been    
filed down to the quick by an assortment
 of petty worries4 7,of course1 no      
office should be run like this1 but it  
sometimes happens in the best of them47 
,some one has said that we are all like 
islands shouting at each other across a 
sea of misunderstanding1 and this was   
long before telephones were thought of4 
,it is hard enough to make other people 
understand what we mean1 even with the  
help of facial expression and gestures1 
and over the wire the difficulty is     
increased a hundred fold4 ,for          
telephoning rests upon a delicate       
adjustment between human beings by means
 of a mechanical apparatus1 and it takes
 clear thinking1 patience1 and courtesy 
to bring it about4  ,the telephone      
company began its career some few years 
ago unhampered by the traditions to     
which the earlier corporations were     
slave1 the old public be damned idea4   

,their arbitrary methods had brought    
them to grief1 and the new concern1 with
 a commendable regard for the lessons   
taught by the experience of others1     
inaugurated a policy of usefulness1     
service1 and courtesy4 ,the inside      
history of the telephone is one of      
constant watchfulness1 careful          
management1 and continuous improvement2 
and every improvement has meant better  
service to the public4 7,we are not     
trying to advertise the telephone       
company4 ,we realize that it has been   
guilty1 like every other business1 of   
manifold sins47  ,even the fact that    
there is a telephone girl instead of a  
telephone boy is due to the alertness   
and good business sense of the company4 
,to put a boy before a switchboard and  
expect him not to pull it apart to see  
how it was made2 or to place him in a   
position to entertain himself by        
connecting the wrong parties and        
listening to the impolite names they    
called each other and expect him not to 

do it1 would be expecting the laws of   
nature to reverse themselves4 ,the      
telephone company tried it--for a while4
 ,they discovered1 besides1 that a boy  
will not take what a girl will4 ,it     
makes no difference what goes wrong with
 a connection1 the subscriber blames the
 operator when many times the operator1 
especially the one he is talking to1 has
 had nothing to do with it4 ,the girls  
have learned to hold their tempers 7not 
always1 but most of the time71 but when 
boys had charge of the switchboards and 
the man at the end of the wire yelled1  
,you cut me off6 and the youngster had  
not1 he denied it hotly3 ,you're a liar6
 ,i didn't6 ,the subscriber would not   
stand for this1 angry words flew back   
and forth1 and more than once the       
indignant young operator located the    
subscriber 7not a very difficult thing  
for him to do7 and went around to settle
 things in person4 ,words were not      
always the only weapons used4  ,if this 
had continued the telephone would never 

have become a public utility4 ,people   
would have looked upon it as an         
ingenious device but not of universal   
practical value4 ,as it is1 good        
salesmanship and efficient service first
 elevated a plaything to a luxury and   
then reduced the luxury to a necessity4 
,and it was possible not only because   
the mechanism itself is a miraculous    
thing but because it has had back of it 
an intelligent human organization       
working together as a unit4  ,we say    
this deliberately1 knowing that the     
reader will think of the times when the 
trouble he has had in getting the number
 he wanted has made him think there was 
not a thimbleful of intelligence among  
all of the people associated with the   
entire telephone company4 ,but          
considering the body of employees as a  
whole the standard of courteous and     
competent service is extraordinarily    
high4 ,the public is impatient and prone
 to remember bad connections instead of 
good ones4 ,it is ignorant also and has 

very small conception of what a girl at 
central is doing4 ,and it is quick to   
blame her for faults of its own4  ,one  
of the worst features of telephone      
service is the fact that when one is    
angry or exasperated he seldom quarrels 
with the right person4 ,some time ago a 
man was waked in the middle of the night
 by the ringing of the telephone bell4  
,he got out of bed to answer it and     
discovered that the man was trying to   
get another number4 ,he went back to bed
 and to sleep4 ,the telephone bell rang 
again1 and again he got out of bed to   
answer it4 ,it was the same man trying  
to get the same number4 ,he went to bed 
and back to sleep4 ,the telephone bell  
rang the third time1 he got out of bed  
again and answered it again and found   
that it was still the same man trying to
 get the same number6 ,i wasn't very    
polite the third time1 he confessed when
 he told about it4 ,but the poor fellow 
at the other end of the wire probably   
had just as touching a story to tell1   

for unless it had been very important   
for him to get the number he would      
hardly have been so persistent4 ,the    
girl at the switchboard may have had a  
story of her own1 but what it was is one
 of those things which1 as ,lord        
,dundreary used to say1 nobody can find 
out4  ,the girls who enter the service  
of the ,new ,york ,telephone ,company   
7and the same thing is true in the other
 branches of the telephone service1     
especially in big cities where there are
 large groups to work with7 are         
carefully selected by an employment     
bureau and sent to a school where they  
are thoroughly grounded in the          
mechanical part of their work and the   
ideals for which the company stands4    
,they are not placed on a regular       
switchboard until they have proved      
themselves efficient on the dummy       
switchboard1 and then it is with        
instructions to be courteous though the 
heavens fall 7though they do not express
 it exactly that way74 ,it is the best  

place in the world to learn             
self-control1 one of the operators      
declares1 and any one who has ever      
watched them at work will add1          
,concentration1 also4 ,one of the most  
remarkable sights in ,new ,york is a    
central exchange where a hundred or more
 girls are working at lightning speed1  
undisturbed by the low murmur around    
them1 intent only on the switchboard in 
front of them1 making something like    
five hundred connections a minute4      
,they are a wonderfully level-headed    
group1 these telephone girls1           
wonderfully unlike their clinging-vine  
,victorian grandmothers4 ,they do not   
know how to cling4 ,if a man telephones 
that he has been shot1 the girl who     
receives the call does not faint4 ,she  
sends him a doctor instead and takes the
 next call almost without the loss of a 
second4 ,if a woman wants a policeman to
 get some burglars out of the house1 she
 sends her one2 if some one telephones  
that a house is burning1 she calls out  

the fire department--and goes straight  
on with her work4 ,now and then         
something spectacular happens to bring  
the splendid courage of the girls at the
 switchboards to the attention of the   
public1 such as the magnificent service 
they gave from the exchange located a   
few feet from ,wall ,street on the day  
of the explosion1 but ordinarily it     
passes1 like most of the other good     
things in life1 without comment4  ,the  
,new ,york ,telephone ,company tries to 
keep its girls healthy and happy4 ,at   
regular intervals they are given rest   
periods4 ,attractive rooms are prepared 
for them1 tastefully furnished1         
well-lighted1 and filled with           
comfortable chairs1 good books1 and     
magazines4 ,substantial meals are       
supplied in the middle of the day at a  
nominal charge4 ,special entertainments 
are planned from time to time1 and best 
of all1 the play time is kept absolutely
 distinct from the work time1 a         
condition which makes for happiness as  

well as usefulness4  ,the girls are not 
perfect1 they are not infallible4 ,and  
they are only a third part of a         
telephone call4 ,they work under        
difficulties at a task which is not an  
easy one1 and their efficiency does not 
rest with them alone but with the people
 whom they serve as well4  ,a telephone 
call begins with the subscriber4 ,very  
few people understand the intricate     
system of cable and dynamos1 vacuum     
tubes1 coil racks1 storage batteries1   
transmitters and generators which enable
 them to talk from a distance1 and a    
good many could not understand them even
 if they were explained4 ,fortunately it
 is not necessary that they should4 ,the
 subscriber's part is very simple4  ,he 
should first make sure that he is       
calling the right number4 ,in ,new ,york
 ,city alone1 forty-eight thousand wrong
 numbers are asked for every day by     
subscribers who have not consulted the  
telephone directory first1 or who have  
unconsciously transposed the digits in a

 number4 ,for example1 a number such as 
#fded can easily be changed to #fedd4   
,the telephone directory is a safe      
guide1 much more so than an old letter  
or bill head or an uncertain memory4    
,information may be called if the number
 is not in the directory1 but one should
 be definite even with her4 ,she cannot 
supply the number of ,mr4               
,what-you-may-call-it or of ,mr4        
,thing-um-a-bob or of ,mr4 ,smith who   
lives down near the railroad station1   
and she cannot give the telephone number
 of a house which has no telephone in   
it4 ,she has no right to answer         
irrelevant questions2 is1 in fact1      
prohibited from doing so4 ,her business 
is to furnish numbers and she cannot do 
it efficiently if she is expected also  
to explain why a cat has whiskers1 how  
to preserve string beans by drying them1
 what time it is1 what time the train   
leaves for ,wakefield1 or what kind of  
connection can be made at ,jones's      
,junction4  ,in calling a number the    

name of the exchange should be given    
first4 ,the number itself should be     
called with a slight pause between the  
hundreds and the tens1 thus1            
,watkins--pause--five1                  
nine--pause--hundred for ,watkins #eijj 
or ,murray ,hill--pause--four1          
two--pause--six1 three for ,murray ,hill
 #dbfc4 ,the reason for this is that the
 switchboard before which the operator  
sits is honeycombed with tiny holes     
arranged in sections of one hundred     
each4 ,each section is numbered and each
 of the holes within it is the          
termination of a subscriber's line4 ,in 
locating ,watkins #eijj the girl first  
finds the section labelled #ei and then 
the #jj hole in that section1 and if the
 #ei is given first she has found it by 
the time the subscriber has finished    
calling the number4  ,the number should 
be pronounced slowly and distinctly4    
,when the operator repeats it the       
subscriber should acknowledge it1 and if
 she repeats it incorrectly1 should stop

 her and give her the number again4 ,and
 he should always remember1 however     
difficult it may be to make her         
understand1 that he is talking to a     
girl1 a human being1 and that the       
chances are ten to one that the poor    
connection is not her fault4  ,to recall
 the operator in case the wrong person  
is connected it is only necessary to    
move the receiver hook slowly up and    
down4 ,she may not be able to attend to 
the recall at once but jiggling the hook
 angrily up and down will not get her   
any sooner4 ,in fact1 the more furious  
the subscriber becomes the less the girl
 knows about it1 for the tiny signal    
light fails to register except when the 
hook is moved slowly2 or if the         
switchboard is one where the operator is
 signalled by a little disk which falls 
over a blank space the disk fails to    
move down but remains quivering almost  
imperceptibly in its usual position4    
,after he has placed a call a man should
 wait at the telephone or near it until 

the connection is made4 ,too many men   
have a way of giving their secretaries a
 number to send through and then        
wandering off somewhere out of sight so 
that when the person is finally         
connected he has to wait several minutes
 while the secretary locates the man who
 started the call4 ,it is the acme of   
discourtesy to keep any one waiting in  
this manner4 ,it implies that your time 
is much more valuable than his1 which   
may be true1 but it is hardly gracious  
to shout it in so brazen a fashion4  ,it
 has been estimated that in ,new ,york  
,city alone1 more than a full business  
year is lost over the telephone every   
day between sunrise and sunset4 ,there  
are #c1hjj1jjj completed connections    
made every day4 ,out of each hundred1   
six show a delay of a minute or more    
before the person called answers4 ,in   
each day this amounts to a delay of     
#bbh1jjj connections4 ,two hundred and  
twenty-eight thousand minutes 7and      
sometimes the delay amounts to much more

 than a minute7 is the equivalent of    
#dge days of eight hours each1 or as the
 gentleman who compiled these           
interesting statistics has it1 a        
business year and a third with all the  
,sundays and holidays intact4 ,in the   
course of a year it amounts to more than
 all the business days that have elapsed
 since ,columbus discovered ,america6   
,it may be argued that we would be      
better off if we lost more than a year  
every day and did all our work at more  
leisurely pace4 ,this may be1 but the   
time to rest is not when the telephone  
bell is ringing4  ,the telephone on a   
business man's desk should always be    
facing him and it should not be tricked 
out with any of the patent devices      
except those sanctioned by the company4 
,most of them lessen instead of increase
 efficiency4 ,a woman in her home where 
calls are infrequent may hide her       
telephone behind a lacquered screen or  
cover it with pink taffeta ruffles1 but 
in a business office it is best to make 

no attempts to beautify it4 ,it is when 
it is unadorned that the ugly little    
instrument gives its best service4      
,there should always be a pad and pencil
 at hand so that the message 7if there  
is one7 can be taken down without delay4
 ,the person at the other end probably  
has not time 7and certainly has not     
inclination7 to wait until you have     
fumbled through the papers on your desk 
and the rubbish in the drawers to locate
 something to write on and something to 
write with4  ,hello is a useless and    
obsolescent form of response in business
 offices4 ,the name of the firm1 of the 
department1 or of the man himself1 or of
 all three1 according to circumstances1 
should be given4 ,when there is a       
private operator to take care of the    
calls she answers with the name of the  
firm1 ,blank and ,blank4 ,if the person 
at the other end of the wire says1 ,i   
want the ,advertising department1 she   
connects them and the man there answers 
with ,advertising department4 ,the other

 then may ask for the manager1 in which 
case the manager answers with his name4 
,it is easy to grow impatient under all 
these relays1 but a complicated         
connection involving half a dozen people
 before the right one is reached can be 
accomplished in less than a minute if   
each person sends it straight through   
without stopping to exchange a number of
 ,helloes like a group of ,swiss        
yodelers1 or to ask a lot of unnecessary
 questions4  ,it is not necessary to    
scream over the telephone4 ,the mouth   
should be held close to the transmitter 
and the words should be spoken          
carefully4 ,in an open office where     
there are no partitions between the     
desks one should take especial pains to 
keep his voice modulated4 ,one person   
angrily spluttering over the telephone  
can paralyze the work of all the people 
within a radius of fifty feet4 ,if it   
were a necessary evil we could make     
ourselves grow accustomed to it4 ,but it
 is not4 ,and there is already enough   

unavoidable wear and tear during the    
course of a business day without adding 
this4  ,hello1 what do you want8 is no  
way to answer a call4 ,no decent person 
would speak even to a beggar at his door
 in this way and the visitor over the   
telephone1 whoever he is1 is entitled to
 a cordial greeting4 ,the voice with the
 smile wins4  ,an amusing story is told 
of a man in ,washington who was waked   
one evening about eleven o'clock by the 
telephone bell4 ,at first he swore that 
he would not answer it but his wife     
insisted that it might be something very
 important1 and finally1 outraged and   
angry1 he blundered through the dark    
across the room and into the hall1      
jerked down the receiver and yelled1    
,hello6 ,his wife1 who was listening    
tensely for whatever ill news might be  
forthcoming1 was perfectly amazed to    
hear him saying in the next breath1 in  
the most dulcet tones he had ever used1 
,oh1 how do you do1 ,i'm so glad you    
called4 ,oh1 delightful4 ,charmed4 ,i'm 

sure she will be1 too4 ,thank you4 ,yes1
 indeed4 ,so good of you4 ,good-bye4 ,it
 was the wife of the ,president of the  
,united ,states asking him and his wife 
to dinner at the ,white ,house4  ,if the
 person calling is given the wrong      
department he should be courteously     
transferred to the right one4           
,courteously1 and not with a brusque1   
,you've got the wrong party or ,i'm not 
the man you want but with ,just a       
minute1 please1 and ,i'll give you ,mr4 
,miller4  ,the time when people are     
rudest over the telephone is when some  
one breaks in on the wire4 ,it might be 
just as well to remember that people do 
not interrupt intentionally1 and the    
intruder is probably as disconcerted as 
the man he has interrupted4 ,if he had  
inadvertently opened the wrong door in a
 business office the man inside would   
not have yelled1 ,get out of here1 but  
over the telephone he will shriek1 ,get 
off the wire in a tone he would hardly  
use to drive the cow out of a cabbage   

patch4  ,in an effort to secure better  
manners among their subscribers the     
telephone company has asked them to try 
to visualize the person at the other end
 of the wire and to imagine that they   
are talking face to face4 ,many times a 
man will say things over the            
telephone--rude1 profane1 angry1        
insulting things1 which he would not    
dream of saying if he were actually     
before the man he is talking to4 ,and to
 make it worse he is often so angry that
 he does not give the other a chance to 
explain his side of it1 at least not    
until he has said all that he has to    
say1 and even then he not infrequently  
slams the receiver down on the hook as  
soon as he has finished6  ,listening on 
a wire passes over from the field of    
courtesy into that of ethics4 ,on party 
lines in the country it is not          
considered a heinous offense to         
eavesdrop over the telephone1 but the   
conversation there is for the most part 
harmless neighborhood gossip and it does

 not matter greatly who hears it4 ,in   
business it is different4 ,but it is    
practically impossible for any one      
except the operator to overhear a       
conversation except by accident1 and it 
is a misdemeanor punishable by law for  
her to give a message to any one other  
than the person for whom it was         
intended4  ,in every office there should
 be a large enough mechanical equipment 
manned by an efficient staff to take    
care of the telephone traffic without   
delay4 ,the line is busy given in answer
 to a call three or four times will send
 the person who is calling to some other
 place to have his wants looked after4  
,few places appreciate the tremendous   
volume of business that comes in by way 
of telephone or the possibilities which 
it offers to increase business          
opportunities4 ,they are as             
short-sighted as the department store   
which1 a good many years ago1 when      
telephones were new1 had them installed 
but took them out after a few weeks     

because the clerks were kept so busy    
taking orders over them that they did   
not have time to attend to the customers
 who came into the store6  ,another     
important vantage point which1 like the 
telephone1 suffers from neglect is the  
reception desk4 ,millions of dollars'   
worth of business is lost every year and
 perfect sandstorms and cyclones of     
animosity are generated because business
 men have not yet learned the great     
value of having the right kind of person
 to receive visitors4 ,to the strangers 
who come--and among the idlers and      
swindlers and beggars who assail every  
successful business house are potential 
good friends and customers--this person 
represents the firm1--is1 for the time  
being1 the firm itself4  ,it is very    
childish for a man to turn away from a  
reception desk because he does not like 
the manner of the person behind it1 but 
business men1 sensible ones at that1 do 
it every day4 ,pleasant connections of  
years' standing are sometimes broken off

 and valuable business propositions are 
carried to rival concerns because of    
indifferent or insolent treatment at the
 front door4 ,only a short time ago an  
advertising agency lost a contract for  
which it had been working two years on  
account of the way the girl at the door 
received the man who came to place it4  
,he dropped in without previous         
appointment and was met by a blonde     
young lady with highly tinted cheeks who
 tilted herself forward on the heels of 
her ,french pumps and pertly inquired   
what he wanted4 ,he told her4 ,mr4 ,hunt
 isn't in4 ,when will he be back8 ,i    
don't know1 and she swung around on the 
impossible heels4 ,the man deliberated a
 moment and then swung around on his    
heels 7which were very flat and         
sensible7 and carried the contract to   
another agency4 ,instances of this kind 
might be multiplied4 ,some business men 
would have persisted until they got what
 they wanted from the young lady4       
,others would have angrily reported her 

to the head of her office1 but the      
majority would have acted as this man   
did4  ,most men 7and women71 whether    
they are in business or not1 do not     
underestimate their own importance and  
they like to feel that the rest of the  
world does not either4 ,they do not like
 to be kept waiting2 they like to be    
received with a nice deference1 not     
haughtily2 they do not like to be sent  
to the wrong department2 and they love  
7and so do we all7 talking to important 
people4 ,realizing this1 banks and trust
 companies and other big organizations  
have had to appoint nearly as many      
vice-presidents as there were           
second-lieutenants during the war to    
take care of their self-important       
visitors4 ,even those whose time is not 
worth ten cents 7a number of them are   
women7 like to be treated as if it were 
worth a great deal4 ,it is1 for the most
 part1 an innocent desire which does no 
one any special harm1 and any business  
that sets out to serve the public 7and  

there is no other kind7 has to take into
 account all the caprices of human      
vanity4 ,we cannot get away from it4    
,benjamin ,franklin placed humility     
among the virtues he wished to          
cultivate1 but after a time declared it 
impossible4 ,for1 he said1 if ,i        
overcame pride ,i would be proud of my  
humility4  ,courtesy is the first       
requirement of the business host or     
hostess and after that1 intelligence4   
,some business houses make the mistake  
of putting back of the reception desk a 
girl who has proved herself too         
dull-witted to serve anywhere else4 ,the
 smiling idiot with which this country  
7and others7 so abounds may be harmless 
and even useful if she is kept busy     
behind the lines1 but1 placed out where 
she is a buffer between the house and   
the outside world1 she is a positive    
affliction4 ,she may be pleasant enough1
 but the caller who comes for           
information and can get nothing but a   
smile will go away feeling about as     

cheerful as if he had stuck his hand    
into a jar of honey when he was a mile  
or so away from soap1 water1 and towel4 
,a litter of office boys sprawling      
untidily over the desks and chairs in   
the reception room is as bad1 and a     
snappy young lady of the ,now see here1 
kid variety is worse4  ,the position is 
not an easy one1 especially in places   
where there is a constant influx of     
miscellaneous callers1 and it is hardly 
fair to ask a young girl to fill it4 ,in
 ,england they use elderly men and in a 
number of offices over here1 too4 ,their
 age and manner automatically protect   
them 7and incidentally their firms7 from
 many undesirables that a boy or girl in
 the same position would have           
considerable difficulty in handling4    
,and they lend the place an air of      
dignity and reserve quite impossible    
with a youngster4  ,in some offices1    
especially in those where large amounts 
of money are stored or handled1 there   
are door men in uniform and often plain 

clothes huskies near the entrances to   
protect the people 7and the money7 on   
the inside from cranks and crooks and   
criminals4 ,in others1 a physician's    
office1 for instance1 or any small      
office where the people who are likely  
to come are of the gentler sort1 a young
 girl with a pleasing manner will do    
just as well as and perhaps better than 
any one else4 ,in big companies where   
there are many departments1 it is       
customary to maintain a regular bureau  
of information to which the caller who  
is not sure whom or what he wants is    
first directed1 but the majority of     
businesses have only one person who is  
delegated to receive the people who come
 and either direct them to the person   
they want to see or turn them aside4    
,most of them must be turned aside4 ,if 
the stage managers in ,new ,york        
interviewed all the girls who want to   
see them1 they would have no time left  
for anything else1 and the same thing is
 true of nearly every man who is        

prominent in business or in some other  
way4 7,charlie ,chaplin received #gc1jjj
 letters during the first three days he 
was in ,england4 ,suppose he had        
personally read each of them67 ,hundreds
 of people must be turned away1 but     
every person who approaches a firm      
either to get something from it or to   
give something to it has a right to     
attention4 ,men are in business to work1
 not to entertain1 and they must protect
 themselves4 ,but the people who are    
turned away must be turned away         
courteously1 and the business house     
which has found some one who can do it  
has cause to rise and give thanks4      
,,vii  ,,traveling ,,and ,,selling      
,the etiquette of traveling includes    
very few points not covered by the      
general laws of good behavior4 ,keeping 
one's place in line before the ticket   
window1 having money ready and moving   
aside as quickly as possible instead of 
lingering to converse with the          
ticket-seller about train schedules and 

divers other interesting subjects are   
primary rules4 ,it is permissible to    
make sure that the train is the right   
one before getting on it1 but it is     
unnecessary to do it more than half a   
dozen times4 ,when the sign over the    
gate says ,train for ,bellevue it       
probably is the train for ,bellevue1 and
 when the guard at the gate repeats that
 it is the train for ,bellevue the      
chances are that he is telling the      
truth4  ,an experienced traveler usually
 carries very little baggage4 ,a lot of 
suitcases and grips are bothersome1 not 
only to the one who has charge of them1 
but also to those who are cramped into  
small quarters because of them4 ,a      
traveler may make himself as comfortable
 as he likes so long as it is not at the
 expense of the other passengers4 ,if   
they object to an open window the window
 must stay down4 ,lounging over a seat  
is bad form1 especially if there is some
 one else in it4 ,so is prowling from   
one end of the car to the other4        

,besides1 it makes some people nervous4 
,snoring is impolite and so is talking  
in one's sleep1 but they are beyond     
remedy4 ,talking with the person in the 
berth above or below is not1 however1   
and is much more disturbing than the    
noise of the train4 ,forgetting the     
number of one's berth and blundering    
into the wrong place is a serious breach
 of good manners in a sleeping car1 and 
it is extremely severe on timid persons 
who have gone to bed with visions before
 their minds of the man who was murdered
 in lower ten and the woman who brought 
her husband's corpse from ,florida in   
the same berth with her4  ,among men1   
picking up acquaintances on a train or  
boat is allowable if it comes about in a
 natural way1 but there are men who     
object to it4 ,many business men do not 
discontinue their work because they are 
traveling4 ,portable typewriters1       
secretaries1 the telegraph and other    
means of swift communication have made  
it possible for them to accomplish      

almost as much as if they were in the   
office back home4 ,such men do not like 
to be interrupted1 and if a garrulous or
 an intrusive person approaches it is   
within the bounds of courtesy to turn   
him aside4 ,generally1 however1 there is
 a comradery of the road1 a sort of good
 fellowship among voyagers which lets   
down ordinary bars1 and the men who like
 to rest as they travel find it highly  
diverting and interesting to talk with  
other men from various parts of the     
country4 ,this holds true in hotels1    
especially in the commercial hotels1    
where traveling men foregather to meet  
their customers and transact their      
business1 and in hotels in small places 
where the possibilities for amusement   
are limited and the people have to      
depend on one another for entertainment4
 ,but there are limits4 ,no man should  
ever thrust himself upon another and it 
is almost an iron clad rule that he     
should never pick up women acquaintances
 when traveling4 ,it is permissible to  

talk with them1 but not to annoy them   
with personal attentions nor to place   
them under obligation by paying their   
bills4 ,if a man and a woman who are    
traveling on the same train fall into   
conversation and go into the dining car 
together1 each one should pay his or her
 own check1 or if he insists upon paying
 at the table she should insist upon    
settling afterwards4 ,in hotels also    
this is essentially true4  ,hotels are  
judged more by the people who come to   
them than by anything else4 ,the guests 
indicate the quality of the service1 and
 for this reason1 most hotels prefer    
that they be gentlemen4 ,there is an    
atmosphere about a first-class hotel    
that frightens away second-rate people4 
,most places have standards and many a  
man has been turned away even when there
 was an empty room because the          
management did not like his looks4      
,tipping is one of the most vexatious   
petty problems with which a traveler is 
confronted4 ,it is an undemocratic      

custom which every sensible man deplores
 but sees no way around4 ,waiters1      
porters1 and other functionaries who are
 in positions to receive tips draw very 
small salaries1 if any4 ,they depend    
upon the generosity of the public they  
serve4 ,the system may be all wrong 7we 
believe it is7 but it means bread and   
butter to those who live by it1 and it  
is only just1 as matters are now        
arranged1 for the traveler to pay4 ,it  
is foolish to tip extravagantly or to   
tip every pirate who performs even the  
most trifling service1 but a small fee1 
especially if the service has been good1
 is a courtesy not to be forgotten4     
,tipping originally grew out of         
kindness4 ,the knight who had received  
special attention at the hands of his   
squire expressed his gratitude by a     
special reward4 ,the word gratuity      
itself indicates that the little gift   
was once simply a spontaneous act of    
thoughtfulness4 ,it has degenerated into
 a perfunctory habit1 but it should not 

be so4 ,excellent service deserves a    
recompense just as slip-shod service    
does not4 ,and no one has a right to    
spoil a waiter 7or any one else7 by     
tipping him for inefficient work4 ,in   
hotels and restaurants the standard fee 
is ten per cent of the bill4  ,regular  
travelling of any kind even under       
favorable circumstances is a great wear 
and tear on the disposition4 ,commuters 
who go in and out of town every day are 
a notoriously hag-ridden lot1 and the   
men who go on the road are not much     
better4 ,but there is one enormous      
difference4 ,it is the privilege of the 
commuter to growl as much as he likes   
about the discomforts of the road and   
the stupidity of the men who make up the
 time tables1 but travelling men--we are
 speaking of salesmen especially--can   
never indulge in the luxury of a grouch4
 ,one of the biggest parts of his job is
 to keep cheerful all the time and that 
in itself is no small task4 7,try it and
 see47 ,a farmer can wear a frown as    

heavy as a summer thunder cloud and the 
potatoes will grow just the same2 a     
mechanic can swear at the automobile he 
is putting into shape 7a very impolite  
thing to do even when there is no one   
but the machine to hear71 and the bolts 
and screws will hold just as fast2 a    
lawyer can knit his brows over his brief
 case and come to his solution just as  
quickly as if he sat grinning at it1 but
 the salesman must smile1 smile1 smile4 
,the season may be dull1 the crops may  
be bad1 there may be strikes1 lockouts1 
depressions and deflations1             
unemployment--it makes no difference--he
 must keep cheerful4 ,it is the courtesy
 of salesmanship1 and it is this quality
 more than any other that makes selling 
a young man's job--we do not mean in    
years1 but in spirit--an old one could  
not stand it4  ,in the good old days    
when the country was young and          
everybody1 from all accounts we can     
gather1 was happy1 salesmen in the      
present sense of the term were almost   

unknown4 ,there were peddlers1          
characters as picturesque as gipsies1   
who travelled about the country preying 
chiefly on the farmers4 ,often they     
spent the night--hotel accommodations   
were few and houses were far apart--and 
entertained the family with lively tales
 of life on the road4 ,next morning they
 gave the children trifling presents1   
swindled the farmer out of several      
dollars and made themselves generally   
agreeable4 ,the farmer took it all in   
good part and looked forward with       
pleasure to the next visit4 ,the        
peddlers came in pairs then1 like       
snakes1 but they were for the most part 
welcome and there was genuine regret    
when they became things of the past like
 top-buggies and ,prince ,albert coats4 
,after the peddler came the drummer1 a  
rough1 noisy chap1 as his name          
indicates1 harmless enough1 but         
economically not much more significant  
than the peddler4 ,he stayed in the     
business district where he was tolerated

 with good-natured indulgence4 ,he was  
less objectionable than the man who     
followed him1 the agent4 ,he was 7and   
is7 a house-to-house and                
office-to-office canvasser and a general
 nuisance4 ,he sold everything from     
books to life insurance1 from patent    
potato peelers to opera glasses4 ,he    
still survives1 but not in large        
numbers1 for his work1 like that of the 
peddler and the drummer1 has been       
swallowed up by the salesman4  ,the     
rewards which modern salesmanship holds 
out to those who succeed at it are so   
large that the field has attracted all  
kinds of men1 highly efficient ones who 
love the game for its own sake1 grossly 
incompetent ones who1 having failed at  
something else1 have decided to try     
this1 and adventurers who believe they  
see in it a chance to get rich quick4   
,the teachers of salesmanship tell us   
that we are all selling something1 even 
when there is no visible product4 ,the  
worker1 according to them1 is selling   

his services just as the salesman is    
selling goods4 ,it may be true1 but we  
all could not 7and it is a blessing7 go 
out and sell things in the ordinary     
sense in which we use the word4 ,some of
 us have to be producers4 ,but the      
salesman's work is important4 ,we do not
 discredit it4  ,salesmanship is built  
on faith4 ,a man must believe in his    
product and then must make other people 
believe in it as firmly as he does4 ,so 
devoted are some salesmen to their work 
that it is difficult to tell whether    
they consider their calling a trade1 a  
profession1 a science1 or a religion4   
,sometimes it is all four4 ,sometimes it
 goes beyond them and becomes a kind of 
mesmerism in which the salesman uses a  
sort of hypnotic process 7which is      
simply the result of being over-anxious 
to sell7 to persuade the prospect that  
he cannot wait another day before buying
 the particular article that the        
salesman is distributing4 ,the article  
may be stocks and bonds1 wash cloths1   

soap1 or hair nets4 ,it makes no        
difference1 but he must be filled with  
enthusiasm and must be able to pass it  
along4 ,and this very virtue which is   
the foundation of successful            
salesmanship is likely to lead the      
salesman into gross rudeness4 ,for the  
man who is selling is so eager and so   
earnest that he forgets that the man who
 is buying may have his own ideas on the
 subject4  ,the first step in           
salesmanship is to acquire a thorough   
knowledge of the product4 ,the next is  
to gain access to the man who is to buy 
it4 ,this is not always easy4 ,business 
men have been annoyed so much by agents 
that they have had to erect barriers1 in
 many instances almost impenetrable     
ones4 ,it is especially difficult in big
 cities where the pressure is heavy1 but
 most worth while business men have     
learned the value of contact with the   
world outside and are willing to give   
almost any man an interview if he can   
show a valid reason why he should have  

it4 ,whether he gets a second interview 
or not depends upon how he handled the  
first one4  ,there are many ways of     
getting into an office4 ,a salesman     
usually stands a much better chance if  
he writes ahead for an appointment4 ,it 
is much more courteous to ask a man when
 he wants to see you than to drop in on 
him casually and trust to luck that the 
time is not inopportune4 ,some salesmen 
are afraid to write because they think  
the knowledge of what they have to sell 
will prejudice the prospect against it4 
,at the same time they feel that if they
 can only get a chance to talk to him a 
few minutes they can over-ride the      
prejudice4 ,a salesman may come into an 
office without letting the man know what
 his purpose is 7though it is best to   
begin with cards on the table7 but he   
will not come in 7unless he is a crook7 
under false pretenses4  ,the friends of 
a salesman can sometimes be very useful 
to him in presenting him to valuable    
prospects1 and when they feel that the  

meeting will result in mutual benefit   
they are glad to do it4 ,sometimes the  
friend will give a letter or a card of  
introduction4 ,sometimes he will        
telephone or speak for an appointment4  
,it is best when these come unsolicited1
 though it is permissible to ask for    
them4 ,no man should depend upon the    
help of his friends4 ,a salesman should 
be able to stand on his own feet1 and if
 he and his product together do not form
 a strong enough combination to break   
down all obstructions there is something
 wrong with one or the other of them4   
,the best card of admission at the door 
of a business office is a pleasing      
personal appearance coupled with a calm 
and assured manner4 ,this is a universal
 standard of measuring a man's character
 and calibre4 ,until we have heard him  
speak we judge him by the way he looks4 
,it is a dangerous practice1 as the     
proverb warns us1 but the percentage of 
hits is high enough to make us continue 
to use it4  ,a favorite device with a   

certain cheap type of salesman is to    
give his name to the girl at the        
entrance desk and ask her to tell ,mr4  
,brown that ,mr4 ,green has sent ,mr4   
,smith to call4 ,the ,mr4 ,green is     
entirely fictitious1 but since ,mr4     
,brown has several business             
acquaintances of that name1 he          
interrupts his work and comes out to see
 ,mr4 ,smith and discovers that he is a 
life insurance agent who thinks that if 
he can once get inside he can put it    
across4 ,most business men have no use  
for such practices and rarely allow the 
salesmen who employ them to stay in     
their offices any longer than it takes  
to get them out4 ,besides1 the salesman 
places himself under a handicap to begin
 with4 ,he will find it pretty hard to  
convince the man in the office that he  
is not dishonest about his goods just as
 he is about himself4 ,he is the        
greatest enemy of his profession4 ,and  
he makes the work of every one else     
engaged in it infinitely harder4 ,it is 

something every business and profession 
has to fight against--the dishonest     
grafter who is using it as a means of   
swindling society4  ,most salesmen give 
their names at the entrance desk instead
 of presenting their cards4             
,psychologists and experience have      
taught them that the card is distracting
 and that even if the interview is      
granted it is harder to get the         
attention of the other man if he has a  
card to twiddle between his fingers4 ,it
 is more conventional to send in a card 
7a good card is a letter of introduction
 in itself7 but if the salesman finds it
 a handicap1 however slight1 he should  
by all means dispense with it4 ,if the  
card is cheap or flashy or offensive in 
any way it arouses prejudice against the
 man who bears it before he has had a   
chance to present his case in person4   
,the business card may be the same as   
the personal card1 simply a bit of      
pasteboard bearing the name and perhaps 
the address1 or it may be larger than   

the ordinary personal card and bear the 
name of the firm for which the salesman 
is working1 and in addition1 if it is a 
very simple design1 the trademark of the
 firm4  ,whether to rise when a caller  
enters and shake hands is a question to 
be settled by each person according to  
the way he likes best4 ,it is certainly 
more gracious to rise and ask him to be 
seated before resuming one's own place4 
,but promiscuous handshaking is an      
,american habit which ,europeans as a   
rule frown upon and in which a number of
 ,americans do not indulge1 for they    
like the grasp of their hand to mean    
something more than a careless greeting 
and reserve it for their friends4 ,in   
any case1 the caller should not be the  
first to extend his hand4  ,if a man is 
accustomed to see a great number of     
people he will find it too much of a    
strain on his vitality to shake hands   
with them all4 ,roosevelt used to       
surprise strangers with the laxness of  
his grasp1 but the ,colonel had learned 

to conserve his strength in small things
 so that he might give it to great ones4
 ,the ,president of the ,united ,states 
has more than once in the course of the 
history of our country come to the end  
of the day with his hands bleeding from 
the number of times people have pressed 
it during the day4 ,now the ,president  
ought to be willing to give his life for
 his country1 but he ought not to be    
required to give it in this way4 ,it    
probably meant a great deal to each one 
of the people in the throng to be able  
to say1 ,i once shook hands with the    
,president1 but how much more it would  
have meant if each one of them could    
have said1 ,one day ,i helped my        
,president1 even if the help was so     
small an act of thoughtfulness as       
forbearing to shake his hand4  ,but to  
get back to salesmen3 ,some of them have
 a way1 especially the over-zealous     
ones1 of getting as close to the        
prospect as is physically possible4     
,they place their papers or their brief 

cases on the desk before which the      
prospect is sitting1 hitch their chairs 
up as close as they can1 and talk with  
their breath in his face4 ,no one likes 
this and it is only a rude and          
thoughtless salesman who is guilty of   
it4 ,one man who had been vexed by it   
over and over again had the visitor's   
chair nailed to the floor in his office 
some little distance from his own4 ,and 
he never had a caller who didn't try to 
move it nearer to him6  ,for years it   
has been the habit for business men to  
receive their callers at their desks1   
but lately there has been a turning away
 from this4 ,the desk is usually        
littered with papers and letters which  
the caller can hardly help reading1 and 
there are constant interruptions from   
the telephone and the other members of  
the office4 ,for these reasons a number 
of business men are going out to see    
their callers instead of bringing them  
in to see them1 a practice which is much
 more cordial than the other if one can 

afford the time for it4 ,one big        
business house abolished its large      
reception room and built in a number of 
smaller ones instead4 ,in this way each 
visitor has privacy and there is a      
feeling of hospitality and coziness     
about the little room which the bigger  
one failed to give4 ,each room was      
fitted up with comfortable chairs1      
books1 and magazines so that if the     
caller had to wait he would have the    
means of entertaining himself4  ,once a 
man agrees to see a salesman or other   
visitor he should give1 in so far as it 
is possible1 his full attention to him4 
,it is better to refuse an audience     
altogether than to give it grudgingly4  
,a prominent man cannot possibly see all
 of the people1 salesmen and whatnot1   
who want to talk with him or he would   
have no time left to keep himself       
prominent4 ,a busy man has to protect   
himself against the cranks and idlers   
who try to gain access to him1 and most 
men have to have devices by which they  

can rid themselves of objectionable or  
tiresome callers4 ,one man who has a    
constant stream of visitors has only one
 chair in his office1 and he sits in it4
 ,another never allows a visitor to     
enter his office1 but goes to the outer 
reception room and stands while he      
talks4 ,one man stands up as a signal   
that the interview is at an end4        
,another begins to fumble with the      
papers on his desk1 and the salesman    
does not live who is not familiar with  
the man who must hurry out to lunch or  
who has only five minutes to catch a    
train4 ,one man has his secretary or his
 office boy interrupt him after a       
visitor has been in as much as ten      
minutes1 to tell him that ,mr4          
,so-and-,so is waiting outside4 ,another
 rises to his feet and walks slowly     
toward the door1 the salesman following1
 until he has maneuvered him out4 ,if   
the salesman is a man of sense none of  
these devices will be necessary4 ,he    
knows that a courteous and prompt       

departure helps his cause much more than
 an annoying persistence1 and the man   
who stays after his prospect's mind has 
lost every interest except to get him   
out of the way is lacking in one of the 
fundamentals of social good manners as  
well as business good manners4 ,rarely1 
perhaps never1 does he succeed4 ,for the
 successful salesman is the one who can 
put himself into his prospect's place   
and let him know that he has made a     
study of his needs and is there to help 
him4  ,carefully prepared approaches and
 memorized speeches are worth much to   
the beginner1 but an agility in adapting
 himself is much more important4        
,ludendorff failed to get to ,paris     
because his original plan was upset and 
he could not think quickly enough to    
rally the ,german army and attack from a
 different angle4 ,most salesmen have to
 talk to men who are continually        
interrupted to attend to something else4
 ,and most business men know what they  
want1 or think they do1 and when they   

ask a direct question they want a direct
 answer4 ,many a young salesman has     
ruined himself so far as his career was 
concerned because he went out with      
instructions to keep the interview in   
his hands and every time the man he was 
selling asked a question he passed      
airily over it and kept stubbornly on   
the road he had mapped out for himself4 
,the salesman cannot think in           
theoretical terms2 he must think        
concretely and from the point of view of
 the man he is trying to convince4 ,as  
one very excellent salesman has put it1 
he must get the prospect's own story and
 tell it to him in different words1 and 
if he can actually show him a way to    
decrease expenses or to increase output 
he will win not only his attention1 but 
his heart as well4  ,the salesman must  
be absorbed in his commodity1 but not to
 the exclusion of the man he is trying  
to sell4 ,a beginner of this type went  
into a man's office some time ago and   
rattled off a speech he had memorized   

about some charts4 ,the man listened    
until he came to the end--the boy was   
talking so rapidly and excitedly that it
 would have been hard to interrupt him  
except by shouting at him--and then     
quietly told him that he had not been   
able to understand a word of what he had
 said4 ,you have not been talking to me1
 he explained4 ,you have been talking at
 me4  ,another salesman of the same     
general kind went into the office of a  
busy lawyer one morning recently in a   
building which happened to be owned by  
the lawyer4  ,i am going to give you    
some books1 he announced4  ,the lawyer  
asked him what they were1 but the       
salesman refused to be diverted before  
he had led up to the dramatic moment in 
his carefully planned speech at which he
 thought it best to mention the name of 
the books4 ,he went through the whole of
 his canvass and then thrust a paper    
under the lawyer's face with ,sign here 
above the dotted line4  ,i thought you  
were going to give them to me1 the      

lawyer said4  ,the salesman began to    
explain that of course he could not give
 him the books outright and so on and on
 and on--everybody has heard this part  
of his speech4 ,the lawyer laughed and  
the salesman lost his temper4 ,very     
angry1 he started out of the room4 ,near
 the door which opened into the hall was
 another door which opened into a closet
 that contained a shelf which was a     
little more than five feet high4 ,the   
salesman opened this door by mistake and
 struck his head smartly against the    
shelf4 ,this made him angrier than ever4
 ,he jerked the other door open and     
slammed it behind him with a crash that 
nearly broke the glass out4 ,this was   
more than the lawyer could stand4 ,he   
sprang up and started in pursuit of the 
salesman1 who by this time was on his   
way into another office in the same     
building4 ,the lawyer asked him where he
 was going4 ,the salesman told him4     
,not in my building1 the lawyer said4 ,i
 can't have the men who have offices    

here disturbed by people who act like   
this4 ,now go on1 he added kindly but   
firmly1 and let's forget that you ever  
came here4  ,and the salesman went4     
,salesmanship is service1 and the man   
who persuades another to buy something  
he knows he does not want1 does not     
need1 and cannot use1 is a scoundrel4   
,good salesmanship1 and this is the only
 sort that any self-respecting man will 
engage in1 is selling goods that won't  
come back to customers that will4 ,it is
 cumulative in its effect1 and the man  
who sells another something that really 
fills a want wins his eternal gratitude 
and friendship4 ,he tells his friends   
about it1 they come to the same salesman
 and the product begins almost to sell  
itself4 ,but it takes patience and      
courtesy to bring it up to this point4  
,some salesmen kill a territory on their
 first trip4 ,bad manners can do it very
 easily4 ,sometimes they make themselves
 so objectionable that the customer will
 buy to get rid of them1 especially if  

the purchase does not involve more than 
a dollar or two4 ,sometimes they carry  
the customer along so smoothly with     
plausible arguments that they persuade  
him to buy something that he knows he   
does not want4 ,it is all right so long 
as the salesman is present1 but         
discontent follows in his trail4        
,sometimes--stocks and bonds salesmen   
are guilty here--they wheedle the       
customer into buying more than he can   
afford1 beginning on the premise that   
since their stocks are good 7and the men
 who sell fraudulent ones use the same  
methods7 a man should if he has a       
hundred dollars buy a hundred dollars'  
worth1 if he has a million he should buy
 a million dollars' worth1 if he has a  
home he must mortgage it1 if he has an  
automobile he must sell it4 ,no good    
salesman works like this4 ,people are   
very gullible and it takes little       
argument to persuade them to invest     
nearly all they have in something that  
will make them rich in a hurry1 but the 

fact that they are foolish is not quite 
sufficient justification for fooling    
them4 ,even if the stocks and bonds are 
all the salesman believes and represents
 them to be1 no man has a right to risk 
his home or his happiness for them4 ,a  
worth while salesman leaves his customer
 satisfied and comes back a year later  
and finds him still satisfied4 ,and this
 sort of customer is the best           
advertisement and the best friend any   
business can have4  ,bad salesmen create
 violent prejudices against the firms   
they represent4 ,for the average        
customer1 like the average man1 judges  
the whole of a thing by the part that he
 sees4 ,to most of us the word ,chinaman
 calls up the picture of the laundryman 
around the corner in spite of the fact  
that there are some three hundred       
million ,chinamen in the world engaged  
in other occupations4 ,salesmen who are 
consumed with their own importance do   
their firms more harm than good4 ,they  
usually are men in positions too big for

 them 7they may not be very big at that7
 and are for the most part of not much  
more real consequence than the gnat     
which sat on the tip of the bull's horn 
and cried1 ,see what a dust ,i raise6   
,glum and sullen salesmen--there are not
 many of them--are of little genuine    
value to their firms4 ,it is not true   
that when you weep you weep alone4      
,gloomy moods are as contagious as      
pleasant ones1 and a happy man radiates 
happiness4  ,it is not easy to look     
pleasant when one's nerves are bruised  
from miscellaneous contacts with all    
sorts of people1 but it is an actual    
fact that assuming the gestures of a    
mood will often induce the mood itself4 
,the man who forces himself to look     
cheerful 7we are not talking about the  
one who takes on an idiotic grin7 may   
find himself after a while beginning to 
feel cheerful4 ,after he has greeted the
 elevator boy with a smile 7it may be a 
very crooked one7 and the hotel clerk   
and the waitress and the bootblack and  

the paper boy he is likely to find that 
the smile has straightened out into a   
genuine one4 ,it does not always        
work--it is like counting to a hundred  
when one is angry--but it is worth      
trying4  ,salesmen find their greatest  
difficulties among people of little     
education4 ,it is the people with fewest
 ideas that cling to them most          
tenaciously4 ,scholars and scientists   
and business men who have learned to    
employ scientific methods are constantly
 watching for something new4 ,they      
welcome new discoveries and new ideas1  
but the man in the backwoods of         
ignorance has a fence around the limits 
of his mind and it is hard for anything 
to get inside it4 ,he is open to        
conviction1 but like the ,scotsman1 he  
would like to see the person who could  
convict him4 ,it is hard work to get a  
new idea into the mind of a man who is  
encased in a shell of ignorance or      
prejudice1 but the salesman is worse    
than bad-mannered who lets another man1 

whoever he is1 know that he thinks his  
religion is no good1 that his political 
party is rotten1 that his country is not
 worth a cancelled postage stamp1 and   
that the people of his race are frogs1  
square-heads1 dagos1 wops1 or kikes4    
,salesmen who are themselves courteous  
usually meet with courtesy4 ,the people 
who move graciously through life find   
comparatively little rudeness in the    
world4 ,and a good salesman is courteous
 to all men alike4 ,with him overalls   
command as much respect as broadcloth4  
,it pays--not only in money1 but in     
other things that are worth more4  ,a   
salesman should be especially careful of
 his attitude toward the representatives
 of rival houses and their products4    
,his eagerness to advance his own cause 
should never lead him into belittling   
them4 ,he need not go out of his way to 
praise them nor should he speak of them 
insincerely in glowing terms2 but an    
honest word of commendation shows that  
he is not afraid of his rivals in spite 

of the fact that they too have excellent
 goods1 and when it is impossible to    
speak well of them it is best to stay   
silent4  ,it is not hard to see why     
business men spend so much time and     
effort in selecting their salesmen4     
,they know that one who is ill-mannered 
or offensive in any way indicates either
 a lack of breeding or a lack of        
judgment on the part of the parent      
concern4 ,and one is about as bad as the
 other4     ,,viii  ,,the ,,business    
,,of ,,writing   ,half the business     
letters which are written should never  
be written at all1 and of the other half
 so many are incomplete or incoherent   
that a transaction which could be       
finished and filed away in two letters  
frequently requires six or eight4  ,a   
good letter is the result of clear      
thinking and careful planning4 ,in the  
case of the sales-letter it sometimes   
takes several weeks to write one1 but   
for ordinary correspondence a few       
minutes is usually all that is          

necessary4 ,the length of time does not 
matter--it is the sort of letter which  
is produced at the end of it4  ,books of
 commercial correspondence give a number
 of rules and standards by which a      
letter can be measured4 ,but all rules  
of thumb are dangerous1 and there are   
only two items which are essential4 ,the
 others are valuable only as they       
contribute to them4 ,the letter must    
succeed in getting its idea across and  
it must build up good will for its firm4
 ,and the best one is the one which     
accomplishes this most courteously and  
most completely in the briefest space of
 time 7and paper74  ,there should be a  
reason back of every letter if it is    
only to say ,thank you to a customer4   
,too much of our national energy goes up
 in waste effort1 in aimless            
advertising1 worthless salesmanship1    
ineffective letter writing1 and in a    
thousand and one other ways4 ,a lot of  
it is hammered out on the typewriters   
transcribing perfectly useless letters  

to paper which might really be worth    
something if it were given over to a    
different purpose4  ,a good letter never
 attracts the mind of the reader to     
itself as a thing apart from its        
contents4 ,last year a publishing house 
sent out a hundred test letters         
advertising one of their books4 ,three  
answers came back1 none of them ordering
 the book1 but all three praising the   
letter4 ,one was from a teacher of      
commercial ,english who declared that he
 was going to use it as a model in his  
classes1 and the other two congratulated
 the firm on having so excellent a      
correspondent4 ,the physical make-up of 
the letter was attractive1 it was       
written by a college graduate and       
couched in clear1 correct1 and colorful 
,english4 ,and yet it was no good4 ,no  
letter and no advertisement is any good 
which calls attention to itself instead 
of the message it is trying to deliver4 
,there is not much room for             
individuality in the make-up of a       

letter4 ,custom has standardized it1 and
 startling variations from the          
conventional format indicates           
freakishness rather than originality4   
,they are like that astonishing         
gentleman who walks up ,fifth ,avenue on
 the coldest mornings in the year1      
bareheaded1 coatless1 sockless1 clad in 
white flannels and tennis slippers4 ,he 
attracts attention1 but he makes us     
shiver4  ,plain white paper of good     
quality is always in good taste4        
,certain dull-tinted papers are not bad1
 but gaudy colors1 flashy designs1 and  
ornate letter heads are taboo in all    
high types of business4 ,simple headings
 giving explicit and useful information 
are best4 ,the name and address of the  
firm 7and ,new ,york or ,chicago is not 
sufficient in spite of the fact that a  
good many places go into no more detail 
than this71 the cable address if it has 
one1 the telephone number and the       
trademark if it is an inconspicuous one 
7there is a difference between          

conspicuous and distinctive7 are all    
that any business house needs4  ,hotels 
are often pictured on their own         
stationery in a way that is anything but
 modest1 but there is a very good reason
 for it4 ,the first thing most people   
want to know about a hotel is what sort 
of looking place it is4 ,all right1 here
 you are4 ,some factories1 especially   
those that are proud of their           
appearance1 carry their own picture on  
their stationery4 ,there is nothing to  
say against it1 but one of the most     
beautiful factories in ,america has on  
its letter head only the name of the    
firm1 the address1 and a small trademark
 engraved in black4 ,sometimes a        
picture1 in a sales letter1 for         
instance1 supplements the written matter
 in a most effective way4 ,and whenever 
any kind of device is really helpful it 
should by all means be used1 subject    
only to the limits of good taste4  ,it  
is more practical in business to use    
standard size envelopes4 ,if window     

envelopes are used the window should be 
clear1 the paper white or nearly so1 and
 the typewritten address a good honest  
black4 ,the enclosure should fit snugly 
and should be placed so that the address
 is in plain view without having to be  
jiggled around in the envelope first4 ,a
 letter passes through the hands of     
several postal clerks before it reaches 
the person to whom it is addressed1 and 
if each one of them has to stop to play 
with it awhile an appreciable amount of 
time is lost1 not to mention the strain 
it puts on their respective tempers4    
,the paper of which an envelope is made 
should always be opaque enough to       
conceal the contents of the letter4     
,practically all business letters are   
typewritten4 ,occasionally a ,help      
,wanted advertisement requests that the 
answer be in the applicant's own        
handwriting1 but even this is rare4 ,in 
most places the typing is taken care of 
by girls who have been trained for the  
purpose1 but most young girls just      

entering business are highly            
irresponsible1 and it is necessary for  
the men and women who dictate the       
letters to know what constitutes a      
pleasing make-up so that they can point 
out the flaws and give suggestions for  
doing away with them4  ,the letter      
should be arranged symmetrically on the 
page with ample margins all around4     
,nothing but experience in copying her  
own notes will teach a stenographer to  
estimate them correctly so that she will
 not have to rewrite badly placed       
letters4 ,it is a little point1 but an  
important one4  ,each subject considered
 in a letter should be treated in a     
separate paragraph1 and each paragraph  
should be set off from the others by a  
wider space than that between the lines1
 double space between the paragraphs    
when there is single space between the  
lines1 triple space between the         
paragraphs when there is a double space 
between the lines1 and so on4  ,a       
business letter should handle only one  

subject4 ,two letters should be         
dispatched if two subjects are to be    
covered4 ,this enables the house        
receiving the letter to file it so that 
it can be found when it is needed4      
,when a letter is addressed to an       
individual it is better to begin ,dear  
,mr4 ,brown or ,my dear ,mr4 ,brown than
 ,dear ,sir or ,my dear ,sir4 ,gentlemen
 or ,ladies is sometime used in         
salutation when a letter is addressed to
 a group4 ,dear ,friend is permissible  
in general letters sent out to persons  
of both sexes4 ,honorary titles should  
be used in the address when they take   
the place of ,mr41 such titles as       
,reverend1 ,doctor1 ,honorable          
7abbreviated to ,rev41 ,dr41 ,hon417 and
 the like4 ,titles should not be dropped
 except in the case of personal letters4
  ,special care should be taken with the
 outside address4 ,state abbreviations  
should be used sparingly when there is a
 chance of confusion as in the case of  
,ga41 ,va41 ,la41 and ,pa4 ,city is not 

sufficient and should never be used4    
,nor should the name of the state ever  
be omitted even when the letter is      
addressed to some other point in the    
same state1 as from ,new ,york to       
,brooklyn4 ,and postage should be       
complete4 ,a letter on which there is   
two cents due has placed itself under a 
pretty severe handicap before it is     
opened4  ,it is astonishing how many    
letters go out every day unsigned1      
lacking enclosures1 carrying the wrong  
addresses1 bearing insufficient postage1
 and showing other evidences of         
carelessness and thoughtlessness4 ,in a 
town in ,new ,england last year one of  
the specialty shops received at         
,christmas time twenty different lots of
 money--money orders1 stamps1 and       
cash--by mail1 not one of which bore the
 slightest clue to the identity of the  
sender4 ,countless times during the year
 this happens in every mail order house4
  ,the initials of the dictator and of  
the stenographer in the lower left-hand 

corner of a letter serve not only to    
identify the carbon1 but often to place 
the letter itself if it has gone out    
without signature4 ,the signature should
 be legible1 or if the one who writes it
 enjoys making flourishes he may do so  
if he will have the name neatly typed   
either just below the name or just above
 it4 ,it should be written in ink 7black
 or blue ink71 not in pencil or colored 
crayon1 and it should be blotted before 
the page is folded4 ,the dictator       
himself should sign the letter whenever 
possible4 ,dictated but not read bears  
the mark of discourtesy and sometimes   
brings back a letter with ,received but 
not read written across it4 ,when it is 
necessary to leave the office before    
signing his letters1 a business man     
should deputize his stenographer to do  
it1 in which case she writes his name in
 full with her initials just below it4  
,a better plan is to have another person
 take care of the entire letter1        
beginning it something like1 ,since ,mr4

 ,blake is away from the office to-day  
he has asked me to let you know----     
,the complimentary close to a business  
letter should be ,yours truly1 ,yours   
sincerely or something of the kind1 and 
not ,yours cordially1 ,yours faithfully 
or ,yours gratefully unless the         
circumstances warrant it4  ,in writing a
 letter as a part of a large            
organization one should use ,we instead 
of ,i4 ,a firm acts collectively1 no one
 except the president has a right to the
 pronoun of the first person1 and he 7if
 he is wise7 seldom avails himself of   
it4 ,if the matter is so near personal  
as to make ,we somewhat ridiculous ,i   
should1 of course1 be used instead4 ,but
 one should be consistent4 ,if ,i is    
used at the beginning it should be      
continued throughout4  ,similarly a     
letter should be addressed to a firm    
rather than to a person1 for if the     
person happens to be absent some one    
else can then take charge of it4 ,but   
the address should also include the name

 of the addressee 7whenever possible7 or
 ,advertising ,manager1 ,personnel      
,manager or whatever the designation of 
his position may be4 ,the name may be   
placed in the lower left-hand corner of 
the letter ,attention ,mr4 ,green or    
,attention ,advertising ,manager1 and it
 may also be placed just above the      
salutation inside the letter4 ,sometimes
 the subject of the letter is indicated 
in the same way1 ,re ,montana shipment1 
,re ,smythe manuscript1 etc4 ,these     
lines may be typed in red or in capital 
letters so as to catch the attention of 
the reader at once4 ,if a letter is more
 than two pages long this line is often 
added to the succeeding pages1 a very   
convenient device1 for letters are      
sometimes misplaced in the files and    
this helps to locate them4  ,a business 
letter should never be longer than      
necessary4 ,if three lines are enough it
 is absurd to use more1 especially if   
the letter is going to a firm which     
handles a big correspondence4 ,some one 

has said with more truth than           
exaggeration that no man south of       
,fourteenth ,street in ,new ,york reads 
a letter more than three lines long4    
,but there is danger that the too brief 
letter will sound brusque4 ,mail order  
houses which serve the small towns and  
the rural districts say that1 all other 
things being equal1 it is the long sales
 letter which brings in the best        
results4 ,farmers have more leisure and 
they are quite willing to read long     
letters if 7and this if is worth taking 
note of7 they are interesting4  ,all    
unnecessary words and all stilted       
phrases should be stripped from a       
letter4 ,replying to your esteemed      
favor1 ,yours of the #aath inst4 to     
hand1 contents noted1 ,yours of the     
#bdth ult4 received4 ,in reply would    
say1 ,awaiting a favorable reply1 ,we   
beg to remain are dead weights4 ,prox   
might be added to the list1 and ,in     
reply to same4 ,per diem and other      
,latin expressions should likewise be   

thrown into the discard4 ,as per our    
agreement of the #agth should give place
 to ,according to our agreement of the  
#agth1 and1 wherever possible1          
simplified expression should be         
employed4 ,legal phraseology should be  
restricted to the profession to which it
 belongs4 ,wills1 deeds1 and other      
documents likely to be haled into court 
need whereas's and wherefores and said's
 and same's without end1 but ordinary   
business letters do not4 ,it is         
perfectly possible to express oneself   
clearly in the language of conversation 
7which is also the language of business7
 without burying the meaning in tiresome
 verbiage4 ,and yet reputable business  
houses every day send out letters which 
are almost ridiculous because of the    
stiff and pompous way they are written4 
,the following letter was sent recently 
by one of the oldest furniture houses in
 ,america3       ,,dear ,,madam3        
,herewith please find receipt for full  
payment of your bill4      ,please      

accept our thanks for same4             
,relative to the commission due ,mrs4   
,robinson would say that if      she    
will call at our office at her          
convenience we shall be glad      to pay
 same to her4       ,thanking you for   
past favors1 we beg to remain1          
,yours very truly1  ,contrast that with 
this3       ,,dear ,,mrs4 ,,brown3      
,we are returning herewith your         
receipted bill4 ,thank you very         
much4       ,if you will have ,mrs4     
,robinson call at our office at her     
convenience we shall take pleasure in   
paying her the commission      due her4 
,yours very truly1  ,here is another    
letter so typical of the kind that      
carelessness produces3       ,,dear     
,,sir3       ,i have your letter of the 
#bgth inst4 and ,i have forwarded it to 
,mr4 ,stubbs and will see him in a few  
days and talk the matter      over4     
,i remain      ,yours sincerely1  ,would
 it not have been just as easy to write3
       ,,dear ,,mr4 ,,thompson3         

,thank you for your letter of the #bgth4
 ,i have forwarded it to ,mr4           
,stubbs and will see him in a few days  
to talk the matter over4       ,your    
sincerely1  ,in the preparation of this 
volume a letter of inquiry was sent out 
to a number of representative business  
houses all over the country4 ,it was a  
pleasure to read the excellent replies  
that came in response to it4 ,one letter
 reached its destination in the midst of
 a strike1 but the publicity manager of 
the firm sent a cordial answer1 which   
began3       ,your very courteous letter
 to ,mr4 ,jennings came at a time when  
his mind is pretty well occupied with   
thoughts concerning the      employment 
situation in our various plants4        
,we shall endeavor1 therefore1 to give  
you such information as      comes to   
mind with regard to matters undertaken  
by the company      which have          
contributed to the standard of courtesy 
which exists      in the departments    
here4  ,we select another at random3    

,it pleases us very much to know that   
our company has been      described to  
you as one which practises courtesy in  
business4 ,we      should like nothing  
better than to have all our employees   
live up      to the reputation credited 
to them by ,mr4 ,haight4       ,as for  
our methods of obtaining it----         
,contrast these two excellent beginnings
 with 7and this one is authentic1 too73 
,in reply to yours of the #fth inst4    
relative to what part courtesy          
plays in business and office management 
would say that it is very               
important4  ,routine letters must be    
standardized--a house must conserve its 
own time as well as that of its         
customers--but a routine letter must    
never be used unless it adequately      
covers the situation4 ,there is no      
excuse for a poor routine letter1 for   
there is plenty of time to think it out1
 and there is no excuse for sending a   
routine letter when it does not         
thoroughly answer the correspondent's   

question4 ,the man who is answering a   
letter must put himself in the place of 
the one who wrote it4  ,this is a fair  
sample of what happens when a letter is 
written by a person who either has no   
imagination at all1 or does not use what
 he has4  ,a woman who had just moved to
 ,new ,york lost the key to her         
apartment and wrote to her landlord for 
another4 ,this answer came3             
,replying to your letter1 will say am   
sorry but it is not the      custom of  
the landlord to furnish more than one   
key for an      apartment4 ,should the  
tenant lose or misplace the key it is up
 to      them to replace same4  ,the    
woman felt a justifiable sense of       
irritation4 ,she was new to the city and
 thought she was taking the most direct 
method of replacing same4 ,perhaps she  
should have known better1 but she did   
not4 ,buying a key is not so simple as  
buying a box of matches and to a        
newcomer it is a matter of some little  
difficulty4 ,she was at least entitled  

to a bit more information and to more   
courteous treatment than is shown in the
 letter signed by his landlordly hand4  
,she went to see him and found him most 
suave and polite 7which was his habit   
face to face with a woman74 ,he         
explained the heavy expense of          
furnishing careless tenants with new    
keys 7which she understood perfectly to 
begin with7 and was most apologetic when
 he discovered that she had intended all
 the time to pay for it4 ,it would have 
been just as easy for him in the        
beginning to write3       ,i am sorry   
that ,i cannot send you a key1 but we   
have had so many      similar requests  
that we have had to discontinue         
complying with      them4       ,you    
will find an excellent locksmith at #de 
,west #aai ,st4 ,his      telephone     
number is ,main #cdhj4  ,or3       ,i am
 sending you the key herewith4 ,there is
 a nominal charge for      it which will
 be added to your bill at the end of the
 month4 ,i      hope it will reach you  

safely4 ,it is a nuisance to be without 
one4  ,imagination is indispensable to  
good letter writing1 but it is going    
rather far when one sends thanks in     
advance for a favor which he expects to 
be conferred4 ,even those who take      
pleasure in granting favors like to feel
 that they do so of their own free will4
 ,it takes away the pleasure of doing it
 when some one asks a favor and then    
assumes the thing done4 ,royalty alone  
are so highly privileged as to have     
simply to voice their wishes to have    
them complied with1 and royalty has gone
 out of fashion4  ,at one point in their
 journey all the travellers in          
,pilgrim's ,progress exchanged burdens1 
but they did not go far before each one 
begged to have back his original load4  
,that is what would happen if the man   
who dictates a letter were to exchange  
places with his stenographer4 ,each     
would then appreciate the position of   
the other1 and if they were once in a   
while to make the transfer in their     

minds 7imagination in business again7   
they would come nearer the sympathetic  
understanding that is the basis of good 
teamwork4  ,the responsibility for a    
letter is divided between them1 and it  
is important that the circumstances     
under which it is written should be     
favorable4 ,the girl should be placed in
 a comfortable position so that she can 
hear without difficulty4 ,the dictator  
should not smoke whether she objects to 
it or not4 ,he should have in mind what 
he wants to say before he begins        
speaking1 and then he should pronounce  
his words evenly and distinctly4 ,he    
should not bang on the desk with his    
fist1 flourish his arms in the air1 talk
 in rhetorical rushes with long pauses  
between the phrases1 or raise his voice 
to a thunderous pitch and then let it   
sink to a cooing murmur4 ,these things  
have not the slightest effect on the    
typewritten page1 and they make it very 
hard for the girl to take correct notes4
 ,no one should write a letter while he 

is angry1 or if he writes it 7and it is 
sometimes a relief to write a scorching 
letter7 he should not mail it4  ,it is  
said that ,roosevelt used to write very 
angry letters to people who deserved    
them1 drawing liberally upon his very   
expressive supply of abusive words for  
the occasion4 ,each time his secretary  
quietly stopped the letter4 ,each time  
the ,colonel came in the day after and  
asked if the letter had been sent4 ,each
 time the secretary said1 ,no1 that one 
did not get off4 ,and each time the     
,colonel exclaimed1 ,good6 ,we won't    
send it6 ,it came to be a regular part  
of the day's routine4  ,inexperienced   
dictators will find it good practice to 
have their stenographers read back their
 letters so they can recast awkward     
sentences and make other improvements4  
,it can usually be discontinued after a 
while1 for dictating1 like nearly       
everything else1 becomes easier with    
habit4  ,a considerate man will show    
special forbearance in breaking in a new

 girl4 ,different voices are hard to    
grow accustomed to1 and a girl who is   
perfectly capable of taking dictation   
from one man will find it very difficult
 to follow another until she has grown  
used to the sound of his voice4 ,it is  
like learning a foreign language4 ,the  
pupil understands his teacher1 but he   
does not understand any one else until  
he has got the hang of it4  ,the        
training of a good stenographer does not
 end when she leaves school4 ,she should
 be able not only to take down and      
transcribe notes neatly and correctly4  
,she should be able to spell and        
punctuate correctly and to make the     
minor changes in phrasing and diction   
that so often can make a good letter of 
a poor one4 ,the most fatal disease that
 can overtake a stenographer 7or any one
 else7 is the habit of slavishly        
following a routine4  ,many young       
fellows1 this is from ,henry ,ford1     
especially those employed in offices1   
fall into a routine way of doing their  

work that eventually makes it become    
like a treadmill4 ,they do not get a    
broad view of the entire business4      
,sometimes that is the fault of the     
employer1 but that does not excuse the  
young man4 ,those who command attention 
are the ones who are actually pushing   
the boss4444 ,it pays to be ahead of    
your immediate job1 and to do more than 
that for which you are paid4 ,a mere    
clock watcher never gets anywhere4      
,forget the clock and become absorbed in
 your job4 ,learn to love it4  ,the     
position of secretary is a responsible  
one4 ,frequently she knows almost as    
much about his business as her employer 
himself 7and sometimes even more74 ,he  
depends upon her quite as much as she   
depends upon him1 though in a somewhat  
different way4 ,it takes personal effort
 together with native ability to raise  
any one to a position of importance1 but
 personal effort often needs            
supplementing1 and many business houses 
have taken special measures to help     

their employees to become good          
correspondents4  ,in some places there  
are supervisors who give talks and      
discuss the actual letters1 good ones   
and bad1 which have been written4 ,they 
go over the carbons and hold conferences
 with the correspondents who need help4 
,in other places courtesy campaigns for 
a higher standard of correspondence are 
held1 while in others the matter is     
placed in the hands of the heads of the 
various departments1 acting on the      
assumption that these heads are men of  
experience and ability or they would    
never have attained the position they   
hold4  ,the president of a bank which   
has branches in ,london and ,paris and  
other big foreign cities used every now 
and then to stop the boy who was        
carrying a basket of carbons to the file
 clerk and look them over4 ,if he found 
a letter he did not like1 or one that he
 did like a great deal1 he sent for the 
person who wrote it and talked with him4
 ,it was not necessary for him to go    

over the letters often4 ,the fact that  
the people in the office knew that it   
was likely to happen kept them on the   
alert and nearly every letter that left 
the organization was better because the 
person who wrote it knew that the man at
 the head was interested in it and that 
there was a strong chance that he might 
see it4  ,what is effective in one place
 may not be so in another4 ,each house  
must work out its own system4 ,but one  
thing must be understood in the         
beginning1 and that is that the spirit  
of courtesy must first abide in the home
 office before the people who work there
 can hope to send it out through the    
mail4  ,roughly speaking there are eight
 types of business letters which nearly 
every business man at one time or       
another has to write or to consider4    
,the first is the letter of application4
 ,the applicant should state simply his 
qualifications for the place he wants4  
,he should not make an appeal to        
sympathy 7sob stuff7 nor should he beg  

or cringe4 ,he should not demand a      
certain salary1 though he may state what
 salary he would like1 and he should not
 say ,salary no object4 ,it would       
probably not be true4 ,there are        
comparatively few people with whom money
 is no object4 ,if it is the first time 
the applicant has ever tried for a      
position he should say so2 if not1 he   
should give his reason for leaving his  
last place4 ,it should not be a long    
letter4 ,a direct statement of the      
essential facts 7age1 education1        
experiences1 etc47 is all that is       
necessary4  ,many times the letter of   
application is accompanied by1 or calls 
for1 a letter of recommendation4  ,no   
man should allow himself to recommend   
another for qualities which he knows he 
does not possess4 ,if he is asked for a 
recommendation he should speak as       
favorably of the person under           
consideration as he honestly can1 and if
 his opinion of him is disapproving he  
should give it with reservations4  ,at  

one time during the cleaning up of      
,panama there was considerable talk     
about displacing ,general ,gorgas and a 
committee waited on ,roosevelt to       
suggest another man for the job4 ,he    
listened and then asked them to get a   
letter about him from ,dr4 ,william ,h4 
,welsh of ,johns ,hopkins4 ,dr4 ,welsh  
wrote a letter praising the man very    
highly1 but ended by saying that while  
it was true that he would be a good man 
for the place1 he did not think he would
 be as good as the one they already     
had--,general ,gorgas4 ,the ,colonel    
acted upon the letter confident 7because
 he had great faith in ,dr4 ,welsh7 that
 he was taking the wise course1 which   
subsequent events proved it to be4      
,would to heaven1 he said1 that every   
one would write such honest letters of  
recommendation6  ,the general letter of 
recommendation beginning ,to whom it may
 concern is rarely given now4 ,it has   
little weight4 ,usually a man waits     
until he has applied for a position and 

then gives the name of his reference1   
the person to whom he is applying writes
 to the one to whom he has been         
referred1 and the entire correspondence 
is carried on between these two4 ,in    
this way the letter of recommendation   
can be sincere1 something almost        
impossible in the open letter4 ,it is   
needless to add that all such           
correspondence should be confidential4  
,the letter of introduction is1 in a    
measure1 a letter of recommendation4    
,the one who writes it stands sponsor   
for the one who bears it4 ,it should    
make no extravagant claims for the one  
who is introduced4 ,he should simply be 
given a chance to make good on his own  
responsibility4 ,but it should give the 
reason for the presentation and suggest 
a way of following it up that will      
result in mutual pleasure or benefit4   
,it should be in an unsealed envelope   
and the envelope should bear1 in        
addition to the address1 the words1     
,introducing ,mr4 ,blank on the lower   

left-hand corner4 ,this does away with  
an embarrassing moment when the letter  
is presented in person and enables the  
host to greet his guest by name and ask 
him to be seated while he reads it4     
,letters of introduction should not be  
given promiscuously4 ,some men permit   
themselves to be persuaded into giving  
letters of introduction to people who   
are absolute nuisances 7it is hard to   
refuse any one who asks for this sort of
 letter1 but often kindest for all      
concerned7 and then they send in secret 
another letter explaining how the first 
one came about4 ,this really throws the 
burden on the person who least of all   
ought to bear it1 the innocent man whom 
the first one wanted to meet4 ,no letter
 of presentation is justified unless    
there is good reason behind it1 such1 as
 for instance1 in the following3        
,this is ,mr4 ,franklin ,b4 ,nesbitt4   
,he has been in ,texas for several      
months studying economic conditions1 and
 ,i believe can give you      some      

valuable information which has resulted 
from his research      there4 ,he is a  
man upon whom you can rely4 ,i have     
known him for      years1 and ,i am sure
 that whatever he tells you will be     
trustworthy4  ,it is a common practice  
for a business man to give his personal 
card with ,introducing ,mr4 ,mills or   
,introducing ,mr4 ,mills of ,howard and 
,powell ,motor ,co4 written across it to
 a man whom he wishes to introduce to   
another4 ,this enables him to get an    
interview4 ,what he does with it rests  
entirely with him4  ,sales letters are a
 highly specialized group given over1   
for the most part1 to experts4 ,their   
most common fault is overstatement or   
patronizing4 ,the advertisements        
inserted in trade papers and the letters
 sent out to the trade are often so     
condescendingly written that they       
infuriate the men to whom they are      
addressed4 ,it is safer to assume that  
the man you are writing to is an        
intelligent human being4 ,it is better  

to overestimate his mentality than to   
underestimate it1 and it is better to   
talk to him in the letter than to write 
to him4  ,sales letters are1 as a rule1 
general1 not personal1 and yet the best 
ones have the personal touch4 ,the      
letter is a silent salesman whose       
function is to anticipate the needs of  
its customers and offer to supply them4 
,in this as in any other kind of        
salesmanship it is the spirit which     
counts for most1 and the spirit of      
genuine helpfulness 7mutual helpfulness7
 gives pulling power to almost any      
letter4 ,the one which presents a       
special offer on special terms specially
 arranged for the benefit of the        
customer wins out almost every time1    
provided1 of course1 that the offer is  
worth presenting4 ,there is no use in   
declaring that all of the benefit is to 
the subscriber4 ,it would be very       
foolish if it were actually true4 ,once 
a man went into a haberdashery to buy a 
coat4 ,the shop owner unctuously        

declared that he was not making a cent  
of profit1 was selling it for less than 
it cost him1 and so on and on4 ,the man 
walked out4 ,i'll go somewhere where    
they have sense enough to make a profit1
 he said4  ,a sales letter should never 
be sent out to a large group of people  
without first having been tried out on a
 smaller one4 ,in this way the letter   
can be tested and improvements made     
before the whole campaign is launched4  
,the results in the small group are a   
pretty fair indication of what they will
 be in the large one1 and a tremendous  
amount of time and money can be saved by
 studying the letter carefully to see   
where it has failed before sending it   
out to make an even bigger failure4  ,on
 the face of things it seems that an    
order letter would be an easy one to    
write1 but the mail order houses have   
another story to tell4 ,order blanks    
should be used wherever possible4 ,they 
have been carefully made and have blank 
spaces for the filling in of answers to 

the questions that are asked4 ,in an    
order letter one should state exactly   
what he wants1 how he wants it sent1 and
 how he intends to pay for it4 ,if the  
order consists of several items1 each   
one should be listed separately4 ,if    
they are ordered from a catalogue they  
should be identified with the catalogue 
description by mention of their names1  
their numbers and prices4 ,one should   
state whether he is sending check1      
money1 stamps1 or money order1 but he   
should not say ,enclosed please find4   
,the commonest form of letter of        
acknowledgment is sent in answer to an  
order letter4 ,if there is to be the    
least delay in filling the order the    
letter acknowledging it should say so   
and should give the reason for it1 but  
even when the order is filled promptly  
7if it is a large or a comparatively    
large one7 the letter of acknowledgment 
should be sent4 ,then if anything goes  
wrong it is easier to trace than when   
the customer has no record except the   

copy of his order letter4 ,the letter of
 acknowledgment should simply thank the 
customer and assure him of prompt and   
efficient service4  ,complaints should  
be acknowledged immediately4 ,if there  
is to be a delay while an investigation 
is made1 the letter of acknowledgment   
should simply state the fact and beg    
indulgence until it is finished4        
,complaints should always receive       
careful and courteous attention4 ,most  
of them are justified1 and even those   
that are not had something to begin on4 
,the letter of complaint should never be
 written hastily or angrily4 ,it should 
go directly to the root of the trouble  
and should state as nearly as possible  
when and where and how it came about4   
,one should be especially careful about 
placing the blame or charging to an     
individual what was really the fault of 
an unfortunate train of circumstances4  
,the tone should never be sharp1 no     
matter how just the complaint4 ,please  
goes further than ,now1 see here4       

,collection letters are hardest to      
write4 ,they should appeal to a man's   
sense of honor first of all4 ,it is a   
cheap 7and ineffective7 method to beg   
him to pay because you need the money1  
and rarely brings any reaction except   
rousing in his mind a contempt for you4 
,the first letter in a series 7and the  
series often includes as many as six or 
eight7 should be simply a reminder4     
,drastic measures should not be taken   
until they are necessary1 and at no time
 should the letters become abrupt or    
insulting4 ,in the first place1 it is   
ungentlemanly to write such letters1 in 
the second it antagonizes the debtor1   
and if he gets angry enough he feels    
that it is hardly an obligation to pay  
the money2 that it will serve 'em right 
if he does not do it4  ,advertising is a
 sort of letter writing4 ,each          
advertisement is a letter set before the
 public or some part of the public in   
the hope that it will be answered by the
 right person4 ,it enters into an       

over-crowded field and if it is to      
attract attention it must be vivid1     
unusual1 and convincing4                
,increasingly--and there is cause to be 
thankful for this--exaggerated          
statements are being forced to          
disappear4 ,in the first place the      
ballyhoo advertisers have shouted the   
public deaf4 ,they no longer believe4   
,in the second place advertisers        
themselves have waked to the menace of  
the irresponsible and dishonest people  
who are advertising and are taking legal
 measures to safeguard the honor of the 
profession4  ,one of the most successful
 advertisers of modern times was a man  
who carried the idea of service into    
everything he did4 ,for a while he had  
charge of soliciting advertising for    
automobile trucks for a certain         
magazine4 ,instead of going at it       
blindly he made a careful study of the  
map of the ,united ,states and marked   
off the areas where automobile trucks   
were used1 where they could be used1 and

 where they should be used1 and sent it 
to the manufacturers along with a       
statement of the circulation of the     
magazine and the advantages of reaching 
the public through it4 ,the result was  
that the magazine got more advertising  
from the manufacturers than it could    
possibly handle4 ,it is very gratifying 
to know that this man succeeded         
extraordinarily as an advertiser1 for   
not once during his long career did he  
ever try to put one over on the public  
or on anybody else4  ,no advertisement  
should be impertinent or importunate4   
,during the war there was a splendid    
poster bearing a picture of ,uncle ,sam 
looking straight into your eyes and     
pointing his finger straight into your  
face as he said1 ,young man1 your       
country needs you6 ,the poster was      
excellent from every point of view1 but 
since the war1 real estate companies1   
barber shops1 restaurants and whatnot   
have used posters bearing the pictures  
of men pointing their fingers straight  

at you saying1 ,there is a home at      
,blankville for you1 ,watch out to use  
,baker's ,best1 and ,you're next6 ,after
 all1 ,uncle ,sam is the only person who
 has a right to point his finger at you 
in any such manner and say1 ,i need you4
 ,and besides1 there is the moral side  
of it4 ,imitation is the sincerest      
flattery1 but the dividing line between 
it and dishonesty is not always clear4  
,and the law cannot every time prosecute
 the offender1 for there is a kind of   
cleverness that enables a man to pilfer 
the ideas of another and recast them    
just sufficiently to get by4 ,it would  
be very stupid for a man not to profit  
by the experience of other men1 but     
there is a vast difference between      
intelligent adaptation of ideas and     
stealing them4 ,this is more a question 
of morals than of manners1 for the      
crime--and it is a crime--is usually    
deliberate1 while most breaches of      
manners are unintentional and due to    
either carelessness or ignorance4       

,house memoranda are letters among the  
various people who are working there4   
,they should be brief1 above all things1
 and clear1 but never at the sacrifice  
of courtesy4 ,titles should not be      
dropped and nicknames should not be used
 although initials may be4 ,memoranda   
should never be personal unless they are
 sent confidentially4 ,an open          
memorandum should never contain anything
 that cannot be read by every one       
without reflecting unfavorably upon any 
one4 ,and it is wise to keep in mind--no
 matter what you are writing--that the  
written record is permanent4     ,,ix   
,,morals ,,and ,,manners   ,it has      
become a habit of late years for people 
to argue at great length about right and
 wrong1 and what with complexes and     
psycho-analysis and what with this and  
that1 they have almost come to the      
conclusion that there is no right and   
wrong4 ,man1 so they have decided1 is a 
frail and tender being completely at the
 mercy of the traits he has inherited   

from his ancestors and those he has     
acquired from his neighbors4 ,what he   
does is simply the result of the        
combination of circumstances that have  
made him what he is4 ,there is some     
truth in it1 of course1 but what there  
is is no bigger than a mustard seed1 and
 all the volumes that have been written 
about it1 all the sermons that have been
 preached upon it1 and all the miles of 
space that have been devoted to it in   
the newspapers and magazines have not   
served to increase it4 ,most of us never
 give any one else credit for our       
achievements and there is no more reason
 for giving them blame for our failures4
 ,a gentleman is lord of his own        
actions4 ,he balances his own account1  
and whether there is a debit or a credit
 is a matter squarely up to him4  ,the  
pivot upon which all right-thinking     
conduct involving relations with other  
people turns is the ,golden ,rule1      
,whatsoever ye would that men should do 
to you1 do ye even so to them4 ,it is to

 the moral what the sun is to the       
physical world1 and just as we have     
never made full use of the heat and     
light which we derive from the sun but  
could not live without that which we do 
use1 so we have never realized more than
 a small part of the possibilities of   
the ,golden ,rule1 but at the same time 
could not get along together in the     
world without the meagre part of it that
 we do make use of4 ,the principle is   
older than the ,christian ,era1 older   
than the sequoias of ,california1 older 
than the ,pyramids1 older than ,chinese 
civilization4 ,it is the most precious  
abstract truth that man has yet         
discovered4 ,it contains the germ of all
 that has been said and written about   
human brotherhood and all that has been 
done toward making it an accomplished   
fact4 ,and if to-morrow it were to      
vanish from the earth we should miss it 
almost1 if not quite1 as much as we     
should the sun if it were to go hurtling
 off into space so far away that we     

could neither see nor feel it4 ,in the  
one case there would be no life at all  
on earth1 in the other there would be   
none worth living4  ,the ,golden ,rule  
amounts to no more than putting yourself
 into another person's place4 ,it is not
 always easy to do4 ,half of the people 
in the ,united ,states have very little 
idea of what the lives of the other half
 are like and have no special interest  
in knowing4  ,what1 we asked the manager
 of a bookshop which caters to a large  
high-grade clientele1 do you find your  
greatest trouble8  ,lack of imagination 
on the part of our customers1 he        
answered promptly1 a total inability to 
put themselves into our place1 to       
realize that we have our lives to live  
just as they have theirs4 ,if we haven't
 a book in stock they want to know why4 
,if we don't drop everything to attend  
to them they want to know why4 ,if      
anything goes wrong they want to know   
why1 but they won't listen to           
explanations and won't accept them when 

they do4 ,they simply can't see our side
 of it4 ,and they make such unreasonable
 demands4 ,why1 last year during the    
,christmas rush when the shop was fairly
 jammed to the door and we were all in a
 perfect frenzy trying to wait on them  
all1 a man called up to know if his wife
 was here6  ,it is not always easy to   
see life1 or even a small section of    
life1 from another person's point of    
view4 ,a man very often thinks housework
 practically no work at all 7the        
drudgery of it he has never realized    
because he has never had to do it7 and a
 woman very often underestimates the    
wear and tear and strain of working in  
an office and getting a living out of it
 in competition with hundreds of other  
men4 ,marie ,antoinette had no          
conception of what it meant when the    
,french people cried for bread4 ,it     
seemed impossible to her that a person  
could actually be hungry4 ,why1 give    
them cake6 she exclaimed4 ,it may be    
pretty hard for a man who is making     

#aj1jjj a year to sympathize with the   
stenographer he hires for #fjj or #gjj a
 year1 or for her to see his side of    
things4 ,but it is not impossible4      
,very few of us could honestly go as far
 as the novelist who recently advocated 
the motto3 ,my neighbor is perfect or   
the governor who set aside a day for the
 people in his state to put it into     
practice4 ,we happen to know that our   
neighbors are1 like ourselves1          
astonishing compounds of vice and virtue
 in whom any number of improvements     
might be made4 ,it is not necessary to  
think them perfect1 only to remember    
that each one of us1 each one of them1  
is entitled to life1 liberty1 and the   
pursuit of happiness4 ,in other words1  
that every man has a right to a square  
deal4  ,in the ancient world there were 
four cardinal virtues3 justice1         
prudence1 temperance1 and discretion4   
,in the modern world of business there  
are only two4 ,others may follow1 but   
these two must come first4 ,justice1 we 

mean1 and kindness4 ,no man was ever    
really a gentleman who was not just and 
kind1 and we think it would be almost   
impossible for one who is1 whatever his 
minor shortcomings may be1 not to be a  
gentleman4 ,just to his employees 7or to
 his employer71 to his customers1 to his
 friends1 to himself1 and this justice  
always tempered with kindness1 the one  
quality giving the firmness necessary in
 dealing with people1 the other the     
gentleness which is no less necessary4  
,in the first place1 and this is one of 
the corner stones of justice1 industrial
 life must be made safe for the worker4 
,and it is a job in which he has as     
large a part as the man who hires him4  
,under present conditions one workman   
out of every eight is injured during the
 year and the accident is as often his  
fault as it is that of his employer4 ,in
 some instances efficient safety devices
 are not provided1 in others they are   
not made use of4  ,special kinds of     
work1 such as that in which the laborer 

is exposed to poisonous fumes1 to sand  
blasts1 dangerous chemicals or mineral  
dusts1 need special protective devices  
and men with sense enough to use them4  
,the employer cannot do his share unless
 the worker does his1 and the worker is 
too quick to take a chance4 ,the        
apprentice is usually cautious enough1  
but the old hand grows unwary4          
,ninety-nine times he thrusts his arm in
 among belts whirling at lightning speed
 and escapes1 but the hundredth time the
 arm is caught and mangled4 ,and there  
is nothing to blame but his own         
carelessness4   ,,who ,,am ,i8  ,i am   
more powerful than the combined armies  
of the world4  ,i have destroyed more   
men than all the wars of the nations4   
,i am more deadly than bullets1 and ,i  
have wrecked more homes than the        
mightiest of siege guns4  ,i steal1 in  
the ,united ,states1 alone1 over        
#cjj1jjj1jjj each year4  ,i spare no    
one1 and ,i find my victims among the   
rich and poor alike1 the young and old1 

the strong and weak4 ,widows and orphans
 know me4  ,i loom up to such           
proportions that ,i cast my shadow over 
every field of labor1 from the turning  
of the grindstone to the moving of every
 railroad train4  ,i massacre thousands 
upon thousands of wage earners a year4  
,i lurk in unseen places and do most of 
my work silently4 ,you are warned       
against me but you heed not4  ,i am     
relentless4  ,i am everywhere--in the   
house1 on the streets1 in the factory1  
at the railroad crossings1 and on the   
sea4  ,i bring sickness1 degradation and
 death1 and yet few seek to avoid me4   
,i destroy1 crush or maim2 ,i give      
nothing but take all4  ,i am your worst 
enemy4   ,i ,,am ,,carelessness  ,any   
kind of carelessness which results in   
injury 7or is likely to result in it71  
whether the injury is mental or         
physical1 is criminal4 ,no plea can     
justify building a theatre which cannot 
stand a snowstorm1 a school which cannot
 give a maximum of safety to the        

children who are in it1 a factory which 
does not provide comfortable working    
conditions for the people employed      
there1 or allowing any unsafe building  
or part of a building to stand4  ,there 
is a factory 7this story is true7 which 
places the lives of the majority of its 
employees in jeopardy twice a day4      
,there are two sets of elevators1 one at
 the front of the building for the      
executives and their secretaries and    
visitors1 one at the rear for the rank  
and file of the employees4 ,since there 
are several hundred of the latter the   
advantages of the division are too      
obvious to need discussion4 ,we have no 
quarrel with it4 ,but the apparatus upon
 which the elevators in the rear run is 
so old and so rotten and so rusty that  
there is constant danger of its breaking
 down4 ,three times already there have  
been serious accidents4 ,the men who are
 hired to operate the cars rarely stay  
more than a week or so4 ,protests have  
been sent in but nothing has been done4 

,the management knows what the          
conditions are but they have never      
stopped to realize the horror of it4 ,it
 is not that they value a few dollars   
more than they do human life1 but that  
they simply do not stop to think or to  
imagine what it would be like to have to
 ride in the ramshackle elevator        
themselves4 ,in the offices of this     
factory there is an atmosphere of       
courtesy and good breeding far beyond   
the ordinary--in justice to the people  
there it must be said that they do not  
know the conditions in the rear1 but the
 management does4 ,and the management is
 polite in most of its dealings1 both   
with its employees and outside1 but     
polish laid over a cancerous growth like
 this is not courtesy4  ,there are three
 essentials for good work3 good lighting
 7it must be remembered that a light    
that is too glaring is as bad as one    
that is too dim71 fresh air 7air that is
 hot and damp or dry and dusty is not   
fresh71 and cleanliness 7clean          

workrooms--and workers--clean drinking  
water with individual drinking cups1 and
 in places where the work is unusually  
dirty1 plenty of clean water for bathing
 purposes47  ,in the matter of          
salaries--economically one of the most  
important questions in the world--the   
employer should pay1 not as little1 but 
as much as he can afford4 ,no man has a 
right to hire a girl 7or a boy either7  
at less than a living wage and expect   
her to live on it4 ,the pitiless        
publicity which was given the evil of   
hiring girls at starvation wages some   
years ago 7in particular through the    
short stories of ,o4 ,henry1 the little 
shop-girl's knight which1 according to  
,colonel ,roosevelt1 suggested all the  
reforms which he undertook in behalf of 
the working girls of ,new ,york7 did    
much in the way of reform1 but there is 
much yet to be done4  ,money has been   
called the root of all evil4 ,it is not 
money1 but greed4 ,greed and            
thoughtlessness4 ,sir ,james ,barrie    

says stupidity and jealousy1 but both   
these might be included under           
thoughtlessness4 ,men who are generous  
almost to a fault when a case of        
individual need is brought before them  
will hire girls at less than any one    
could exist on in decency4 ,when they   
meet these same girls in the hall or    
when they come directly into contact    
with them in their work they may be     
polite enough1 but their politeness is  
not worth a tinker's curse4 ,justice    
must come first4 ,only if the employer  
pays a fair day's wage can he expect a  
fair day's work4 ,even then1 he         
protests1 ,i can't get it4 ,and this is1
 unfortunately1 in large measure true4  
,as ,kipling said some few years ago1   
and it still holds1      ,from forge and
 farm and mine and bench       ,deck1   
altar1 outpost lone--     ,mill1 school1
 battalion1 counter1 trench1            
,rail1 senate1 sheepfold1 throne--      
,creation's cry goes up on high         
,from age to cheated age3     ,send us  

the men who do the work       ,for which
 they draw the wage4  ,i can't even get 
them here on time1 the employer's wail  
continues4 ,the employee may respond    
that the employer is not there1 but this
 has nothing to do with it4 ,most people
 are paid to get to their work at a     
certain hour4 ,they have a daily        
appointment with their business at a    
specified time4 ,it is wise and         
honorable to keep it4 ,tardiness is a   
habit1 and1 like most others1           
considerably harder to break than to    
form1 but punctuality also is a habit1  
not quite so easy to establish as       
tardiness because it is based on        
strength while the other is based on    
weakness4 ,most of us hate to get up in 
the morning1 but it is good discipline  
for the soul1 and we have the words of  
poets as well as of business men that   
,early to bed and early to rise     ,is 
the way to be healthy1 wealthy1 and     
wise4  ,time is one of the most valuable
 of commodities4 ,more people are       

discharged for coming in late than for  
any other reason1 not excepting 7we     
believe this no exaggeration7 lay-offs  
during dull seasons4 ,slipping out      
before the regular time and soldiering  
on the job fall into the same           
classification with tardiness4 ,such    
practices the employee too often looks  
upon as a smart way of getting around   
authority1 blithely ignoring the fact   
which has so many times been called to  
our attention3 that what a man does to a
 job is not half so important as what   
the job does to him4 ,the material loss 
which comes from it is the least of its 
harms4  ,all work and no play makes     
,jack a dull boy1 but he is duller yet  
if he tries to mix them4 ,intense       
concentration during working hours      
followed by complete rest is the only   
way to make a contented workman1 and it 
is the happy workman 7just as it is the 
happy warrior71 in spite of all that is 
said about divine discontent1 who counts
 for most both to himself and to his    

community4 ,there is a gladness about   
earnest eager work which is hard to find
 in anything else4 ,i know what pleasure
 is1 declared ,robert ,louis ,stevenson1
 because ,i have done good work4        
,gossiping1 idling1 smoking1 writing    
personal letters during working hours   
7these usually on the firm's            
stationery71 and a thousand and one     
other petty acts of dishonesty are      
ruinous1 not so much to the house which 
tolerates them 7because it cannot help  
itself7 as to the person who commits    
them4 ,telephones are the cause of a    
good deal of disturbance during business
 hours in places where employees spend  
an appreciable amount of time on        
personal calls4 ,in some organizations  
they are prohibited altogether2 but in  
most they are allowed if not carried to 
excess4 ,it is not business people who  
need education in this so much as their 
friends who have never been in business 
and seem unable to realize that personal
 calls are not only annoying1 but       

time-killing and distracting4  ,part of 
the unrest and unhappiness among        
employees is due to the fact that vast  
numbers of them are working not at what 
they want to do but at what they have to
 do1 marking time until they can get    
something better4 ,it is very           
commendable for a man to be constantly  
watching out to improve himself1 but it 
does not in the meanwhile excuse him    
from doing his best at the job for which
 he is drawing pay4 ,it is dishonest4   
,it is unsportsmanlike4 ,it is unmanly4 
,the question of salary is1 from        
whatever angle it is approached1 a      
delicate one4 ,my experience is1        
observed ,david ,harum1 that most men's 
hearts is located ruther closter to     
their britchis pockets than they are to 
their vest pockets4 ,it is a tender     
subject1 and one that causes more       
trouble than almost any other in the    
world4 ,employees who are trusted with  
the payroll should not divulge figures  
and employees who are on the payroll    

should not discuss and compare salaries4
 ,jones cannot understand why ,brown    
gets more than he does when he knows    
that ,brown's work is not so good1      
,brown cannot see why ,smith gets as    
much as he does when he is out two or   
three days in the week1 and ,smith      
cannot see why he has not been made an  
executive after all the years he has    
worked in the place4 ,there are many    
sides to the matter of salary adjustment
 and they all have to be taken into     
consideration4 ,and the petty jealousies
 that employees arouse by matching      
salaries against one another only serve 
to make a complex problem more          
difficult4  ,there is only one base upon
 which a man should rest his plea for an
 increase in salary1 and that is good   
work4 ,the fact that he has a family    
dependent upon him1 that he is ill or   
hard up may be ample reason for giving  
him financial help or offering him a    
loan1 but it is no reason why his salary
 should be increased unless his work    

deserves it4 ,paternalism is more unfair
 than most systems of reward1 and the   
man who comes whimpering with a tale of 
hard luck is usually 7but not always7   
not worth coddling4 ,years of           
experience1 even though they stretch out
 to three score and ten1 are not in     
themselves sufficient argument for      
promotion4 ,sometimes the mere fact that
 a man has been content to stay in one  
place year after year shows that he has 
too little initiative to rise in that   
particular kind of work and is too timid
 to try something else4  ,another big   
cause of trouble among men working in   
the same organization is rigid class    
distinction4 ,when a man hires others to
 work for him he invites discontent2    
when he hires them to work with him     
there may be dissatisfaction1 but the   
chances of it are lessened4 ,a business 
well knit together is like any other    
group1 an army or a football team1 bound
 into a unit to achieve a result4 ,at   
its best each person in it feels a      

responsibility toward each one of the   
others2 each realizes that who a man is 
is not half so important as what he     
does1 and that      444 the game is more
 than the player of the game            
,and the ship is more than the crew1    
or1 as another poet with a ,kiplingesque
 turn of mind and phrase has it1        
,it is not the guns or armament         
,or the money they can pay4     ,it's   
the close cooeperation       ,that makes
 them win the day4     ,it is not the   
individual       ,or the army as a      
whole1     ,but the everlastin' team    
work       ,of every blooming soul4     
,each man is directly responsible to his
 immediate superior4 ,he should never1  
unless the circumstances are unusual1 go
 over his head and he should never do so
 without letting him know4 ,it should be
 impossible1 and is1 in a well-organized
 house1 for men coming from the outside 
to appeal over a member of a firm4      
,responsible men should be placed in the
 contact positions and their            

responsibility should be respected4     
,salesmen are warned not to bother with 
the little fellow but to go straight to 
the head of a firm4 ,like most general  
advice1 it is dangerous to put into     
universal practice4 ,the heads of most  
firms have men to take care of visitors1
 and in a good many instances1 the      
salesman helps his cause by going to the
 proper subordinate in the first place4 
,it is all very well to go to the head  
of a firm but to do it at the expense of
 the dignity of one of the smaller      
executives is doubtful business policy  
and doubtful ethics4  ,passing the buck 
is a gentle vice practised in certain   
loosely hung together concerns4 ,it is a
 strong temptation to shift the         
accountability for a mistake to the     
shoulders of the person on the step     
below1 but it is to be remembered that  
temptations1 like obstacles1 are things 
to be overcome4 ,the buck1 as has been  
pointed out1 always passes down and not 
up1 a fact which makes a detestable     

practice all the more odious4 ,one of   
the first laws of knighthood was to     
defend the weak and to protect the poor 
and helpless2 it still holds1 though    
knighthood has passed out of existence2 
and the creature 7he is not even good   
red herring7 who blames some one else   
for a fault of his1 or allows him to    
take the blame1 is beneath contempt4    
,when a mistake has been made and the   
responsibility fixed on the right person
 the penalty may be inflicted4 ,if it is
 a scolding or a bawling out it should  
be done quietly4 ,good managers do not  
shout their reprimands4 ,they do not    
need to4 ,the reproof for a fault is a  
matter between the offender and the     
boss4 ,no one else has any concern with 
it1 and there is no reason why the      
instinct for gossip or the appetite for 
malicious reports on the part of the    
other employees should be satisfied4    
,the world would be happier and business
 would be infinitely more harmonious if 
each person in it could realize that his

 chief aim in life should be to mind his
 own business or1 at least1 to let other
 people's alone4  ,private secretaries  
and other people in more or less        
confidential positions are many times   
tempted to give away secret information1
 not so much for the benefit of the     
person to whom it is given as to show   
how much they themselves are trusted4   
,nearly every one who holds a           
responsible business position receives  
items of information which are best not 
repeated1 and if common sense does not  
teach him what should be kept private   
and what should be told1 nothing will4  
,it should not be necessary for the     
superior to preface each of his remarks 
with1 ,now1 this must go no further4    
,matters concerning salaries should     
always be confidential1 and so should   
personal items such as health reports1  
character references1 and so on1 credit 
reports1 blacklists1 and other          
information of a similar nature4 ,it is 
compiled for a definite purpose and for 

the use of a limited group of people4   
,it is unethical to use it in any other 
way4  ,the reason for dismissing a      
person from a business organization     
should be kept private1 especially if it
 is something that reflects unfavorably 
on his character4 ,but the reason should
 always be given to the employee        
himself4 ,he may not listen1 and most of
 the men who have had experience in     
hiring and firing say that he will not1 
but that is his own responsibility4 ,the
 employer has no right to let him go    
without letting him know why4 ,and the  
employee should listen--it may not be   
his fault but he should check up        
honestly with himself and find out4 ,the
 same thing that lost him this place may
 lose him another1 and a good many times
 all that he can get out of being       
discharged is a purification of soul4   
,it is a pity if he misses that4        
,discharging a person is a serious      
matter1 serious from both sides1 and it 
is not a thing to be done lightly4 ,most

 houses try to obviate it in so far as  
possible by hiring only the kind of     
people they want to keep4 ,our efforts  
toward efficiency 7we quote from one    
manager who is typical of thousands7    
begin at the front door4 ,we try to     
eliminate the unfit there4 ,we do not   
employ any one who happens to come      
along4 ,we try by means of an interview 
and references and psychological tests  
to get the very highest type of         
employee4 ,no human test is perfect1    
however1 and there are times1 even in   
the best regulated houses1 when it      
becomes necessary to dismiss persons who
 have shown themselves unfit4  ,it is   
not always a disgrace to be discharged  
and it is not always a step downward4   
,it may be because of business          
depression or it may be because the man 
is a square peg in a round hole4        
,sometimes it is the only experience    
that will reduce a man's1 especially a  
young man's1 idea of his own importance 
to something like normal proportions1   

the only one that will clear his mind of
 the delusion that he is himself the    
only person who is keeping off the rocks
 the business for which he is working1  
in which case it is one of the best     
things that could have happened to him4 
,a roll call of famous or successful men
 who were fired would take up several   
reams of paper1 and it is a pretty rash 
personnel manager 7not to say brutal and
 unfair7 who will throw a man out like a
 rotten potato and declare that he is   
absolutely no good4 ,besides1 he does   
not know4 ,all that he can be sure of is
 that the man was not qualified for the 
job he was holding4 ,and he should think
 twice before giving a man a bad name   
even if he feels certain that he        
deserves it4 ,at the same time he must  
protect himself and other business men  
from incompetent1 weak1 or vicious      
employees4 ,if after his dismissal a man
 sends back to his former employer for a
 recommendation1 the recommendation     
should be as favorable as possible      

without sacrificing the truth4  ,when a 
man breaks his connection with a        
business house1 whether he does so      
voluntarily or involuntarily1 his       
departure should be pleasant1 or at the 
least dignified4 ,it is childish to take
 advantage of the fact that you are     
going away to tell all of the people you
 have grudges against how you feel about
 them1 and it is worse than a mere      
breach of good manners to abuse the     
house that has asked you to leave4 ,if  
it has done some one else an injustice1 
talk about that all you please1 but on  
your own account be silent4 ,even if the
 fault has been altogether with the     
house it does not help to call it names4
 ,self-respect should come to the rescue
 here4 ,this is the time when it is     
right to be too proud to fight4  ,for a 
long time it has been held bad ethics   
for the members of one trade or         
profession to speak disparagingly of    
their competitors1 and we have grown    
accustomed to say that you can judge a  

man by the way he speaks of his rivals4 
,this has limits1 however1 and in some  
instances a mistaken idea of loyalty to 
one's calling has led to the glossing   
over of certain evils which could have  
been cured much earlier if they had been
 made public4 ,it is all very well to be
 generous and courteous toward one's    
competitors but the finest courtesy in  
any business consists of doing whatever 
tends to elevate the standard of that   
business4  ,every man likes his business
 to be well thought of1 and most        
businesses have organized for the       
promotion of a high standard of ethics  
as well as for the development of more  
efficient methods4 ,notable among these1
 to mention one of the most recent ones1
 is the ,advertisers' ,association4     
,there was a time when the whole        
profession was menaced by the swindlers 
who were exploiting fraudulent schemes  
by means of advertising in magazines and
 newspapers1 but to-day no reputable    
periodical will accept an advertisement 

without investigating its source and    
most of them will back up the guarantee 
of the advertiser that his goods are    
what he represents them to be with a    
guarantee of their own4 ,no publication 
which intends to keep alive can afford a
 reputation of dishonesty1 and the      
efforts of the publishers toward        
cleaning up have been seconded by the   
association to such an extent that any  
person or corporation that issues a     
deceptive advertisement1 whether or not 
there was intent to deceive1 will be    
prosecuted and punished4  ,there was a  
time when a man could do almost anything
 within the law in a commercial         
transaction and excuse himself by saying
 business is business4 ,happily this is 
no longer true4 ,business men have not  
grown perfect but they have raised their
 standards of business morality as high 
as their standards of personal morality4
 ,they have learned that business and   
life are one1 that our lives cannot--and
 this has a number of disadvantages--be 

separated into compartments like so many
 tightly corked bottles on a shelf4 ,we 
have only one vessel and whatever goes  
into it colors what is already there4   
,and it is significant to remember that 
muddy water poured into clean water will
 make it muddy1 but that clean water    
poured into muddy water will not make it
 clean4 ,it takes very little ink in a  
pail of milk to color the whole of it1  
but it takes an enormous amount of milk 
to have any effect on a bottle of ink4  
,business men have also learned that the
 only way to build a business that will 
last is to lay its foundation on the    
,golden ,rule1 and many a man who might 
otherwise sidetrack the principles of   
integrity holds by them for this reason4
 ,honesty1 declared one of the most     
insufferable prigs ,america ever        
produced1 is the best policy4 ,he was   
right4 ,prigs usually are4 ,it is only  
because they are so sure of it          
themselves that they irritate us4  ,it  
is a fact1 in spite of the difficulty   

,diogenes had when he took up his       
lantern and set out to find an honest   
man1 that most people like to pay their 
way as they go1 and the business men who
 recognize this are the ones who come   
out on top4 ,they do not say that the   
customer is always right nor that he is 
perfect1 but they assume that he is     
honest and trust him until he has proved
 himself otherwise4 ,the biggest mail   
order house in ,america never questions 
a check4 ,as soon as an order is        
received they fill it and attend to the 
check afterward4 ,their percentage of   
loss is extraordinarily small4 ,distrust
 begets distrust1 and the perversity of 
human nature is such that even an honest
 man will be tempted to cheat if he     
knows another suspects him of it4 ,the  
converse is equally true4 ,there are1 of
 course1 exceptions4 ,but the only rule 
in the world to which there are no      
exceptions is that there is no rule that
 holds good under all conditions4       
,,part ,,ii     ,x  ,,big ,,business    

,in the preceding pages we have looked  
over the field of etiquette in business 
in a general way1 and have come to the  
only conclusion possible1 namely1 that  
the basis of courtesy in business is    
common sense1 and that whatever rules   
may be given must not be followed       
slavishly1 but must simply be used as   
guide posts4 ,in the pages which follow 
we shall go into detail and watch       
courtesy at work among certain groups   
and individuals4  ,let us take1 for     
example1 a big concern which employs a  
thousand or more people4 ,we shall begin
 with the president4  ,president of a   
,big ,organization4 ,here is a man who  
bears a heavy responsibility4 ,he has   
not only his own welfare to look after  
but that of the men and women who work  
with 7we like this word better than for7
 him4 ,his first duty is to them4 ,how  
can he best perform it8  ,it is a matter
 of fact that few men rise to such      
positions who are not innately          
courteous4 ,it is one of the qualities  

which enable them to rise4 ,for this    
reason we shall take it for granted that
 the president needs no instructions4   
,already he has learned the great value 
of courtesy4 ,but this does not protect 
him always from discourtesy in other    
people4  ,every man who holds a high    
position in a big organization is       
besieged with visitors1 but no one so   
much as the president4 ,he is a target  
for cranks and idlers and freaks as well
 as for earnest business men who want to
 help him or to get help from him4      
,thousands during the course of a year  
come to call on him4 ,if he saw them all
 he would have to turn over the         
presidency to some one else and devote  
himself to entertaining visitors4 ,many 
of those who come ask for him when he is
 not at all the man they want to see1   
but they have been taught in the schools
 of salesmanship or they have read in a 
magazine that it never pays to bother   
with the little fellow1 but that they   
should go straight to the top4  ,every  

minute of the time of the president of a
 big company is valuable 7all time is   
valuable1 as far as that goes71 and it  
must be protected from the people who   
have no right to infringe upon it4  ,you
 would think that the vice-presidents   
and the managers and the various        
executives would be his best protection4
 ,they are not4 ,it is the person who is
 placed at the front door to receive    
visitors4 ,we shall consider him next4  
,the ,man at the ,door4 ,as a matter of 
fact1 this person is usually a girl1    
many times a very young and             
irresponsible one1 because great numbers
 of business men have not yet realized  
the importance of the position4 ,a      
well-poised girl or a woman who has had 
wide experience in handling people can  
fill the place quite as efficiently as a
 man1 and a great deal more so if the   
man has not been chosen because he has  
the quick sympathy and ready tact so    
necessary in taking care of the needs of
 a miscellaneous assortment of callers4 

,in the house we are observing the      
person at the door is a young man who   
began as a messenger boy1 and who1      
because he did what he was asked to do  
cheerfully instead of sullenly1 with a  
,certainly1 sir1 and a smile instead of 
a ,that's ,bob's business and a frown1  
was made manager of the messengers1 and 
then first assistant of the man at the  
door1 and later1 when that man was given
 another position1 was promoted to his  
place4 ,the job commands a good salary  
and offers chances of promotion4 ,the   
young man likes it4  ,a visitor comes1 a
 young salesman1 let us say1 who has had
 little experience4 ,this is only the   
second or third time he has tried to    
storm the doors of big business4 ,he    
asks at once for the president4 ,he does
 not give his card because the school   
where he learned his trade cautioned him
 against doing so4 7,he is perfectly    
correct1 and he would have been equally 
correct if he had given it4 ,the more   
formal style is to send in the card47   

,the man at the door sees at once what  
kind of man he has to deal with4  ,the  
president is busy1 he answers--a safe   
remark always1 because if he is not he  
should be2 maybe ,i can do something for
 you4  ,the salesman explains that he   
has an attachment to increase efficiency
 of typewriters4 ,he would like to show 
the president how it works4  ,oh1 you   
don't want ,mr4 ,president1 the host    
answers4 ,you want ,mr4 ,jones4 ,he     
attends to all such things for us4 ,will
 you be seated here in the reception    
room1 motioning toward the door which is
 at one side of his desk1 while ,i find 
out if he is busy8  ,this concern is    
very conservative about buying new      
attachments and new machinery of any    
kind1 but it is ever on the alert to    
discover means of increasing its output 
and saving its manpower4 ,almost any new
 idea is worth a demonstration4  ,if the
 man at the desk has an intelligent     
messenger boy--and he should have--he   
sends him in to ,mr4 ,jones4 ,the boy   

finds ,mr4 ,jones busy4 ,he will be free
 in about fifteen minutes and then will 
be glad to see the salesman4 ,the man   
reports to the visitor and asks if he   
cares to wait4 ,he does4 ,the host      
offers him a magazine and asks him to   
make himself comfortable while he goes  
back to his desk to attend to the next  
visitor4  ,this one also wants to see   
the president4  ,the president is in    
conference just now1 the young man      
replies4 ,perhaps there is something ,i 
can do for you in the meanwhile if you  
will tell me what you want4  ,it's none 
of your business1 he answers rudely4 ,i 
want the president4  ,the chances are   
against a man of this sort4 ,he may be a
 person the president wants to see1 but 
the odds are ten to one that he is not4 
,i'm sorry but you cannot possibly see  
him now4 ,he is busy4  ,when will he be 
free8  ,it is hard to tell4 ,these      
conferences sometimes last an hour or   
two1 and ,i am sure he will not see you 
even then unless you tell him why you   

want to see him4 ,he is a very busy man4
  ,the visitor sputters around a few    
minutes and it develops that he is      
selling insurance4 ,the young man knows 
that the president will not see him     
under any circumstances4 ,he is already 
heavily insured1 as every wise man      
should be1 and he cannot be bothered    
with agents who are trying to sell him  
larger policies4  ,i'm sorry1 the young 
man repeats1 but ,i am sure there is no 
use in letting him waste your time4 ,he 
is already carrying a heavy policy and  
he positively refuses to talk insurance 
with anyone1 no matter who it is4  ,this
 should be enough for the salesman4     
,what the young man says is true4 ,it   
would be a waste of his time as well as 
the president's4 ,he does not care half 
so much for the salesman's time--there  
is no reason why he should--but notice  
how tactfully he tells him that the head
 of the organization has no time to     
spend with him4  ,there is a certain    
rough type of salesman 7we use the word 

salesman here in the broadest sense1 as 
the salesmen themselves use it1 to cover
 all the people who are trying to       
convince some one else that what they   
have is worth while whether it is an    
idea or a washing machine or a packet of
 drawings7--there is a certain rough    
type of salesman who tries to bluster   
his way through4 ,he never lasts long as
 a salesman1 though unfortunately he    
survives a good many years in various   
kinds of business4 ,even he must not be 
turned away rudely4  ,i'm sorry1 the    
young man says to a person of this sort1
 but the president has given positive   
orders that he must not be disturbed    
this morning4 ,he is engaged in a very  
important transaction4  ,the next man   
who approaches the door has an authentic
 claim on the president4 ,it would be as
 great a calamity to turn him away as it
 would be to let some of the others in4 
,he presents his card and says that he  
has an appointment4 ,a truly courteous  
man1 whenever possible1 arranges an     

appointment beforehand4 ,the young man  
takes the card1 waves toward the        
reception room1 and asks him to be      
seated while he finds out if the        
president is busy4 ,he telephones to the
 secretary of the president1 tells him  
who is calling1 and asks if the         
president is ready to see him4 ,if the  
answer is affirmative he asks if he will
 see him in his office or out in the    
reception room4 ,it is much easier to   
get rid of a visitor from the entrance  
hall or reception room than from an     
inside office4 ,if he says that he will 
see him in the reception room the girl  
reports to the visitor that he will come
 in a few minutes1 offers him a         
magazine1 and asks him to make himself  
at home4 ,if the president says that he 
will see the visitor in his office the  
young man sends one of the messenger    
boys to usher him through the building4 
,now it may be that this man had no     
appointment with the president1 but that
 he has used it as a pretext to break   

through4 ,in this case1 the secretary   
answers1 after consulting his schedule1 
that the president has never heard of   
such a person and has no such           
appointment4 ,a man of this sort is not 
worth a minute's consideration4 ,he has 
shown himself dishonest at the outset   
with a petty contemptible dishonesty1   
and the temptation is to pitch him out  
on his head4 ,but the young man says    
quietly3  ,his secretary says that the  
president has no appointment with you4  
,i am afraid you have come to the wrong 
place4 ,it must be some other ,mr4      
,beacon4  ,there is a note of finality  
in his voice which convinces the visitor
 that there is no use in going further4 
,the next visitor is a woman who has    
come to have lunch with a friend of hers
 who works in the accounting department4
  ,it is fifteen minutes before time for
 lunch1 the young man answers4 ,i can   
call her now1 of course1 but if you     
would rather not disturb her1 ,i'll tell
 her that you will wait for her in the  

reception room until she comes for you4 
,the woman thanks him and agrees that it
 will be much better not to disturb her4
 ,the young man offers her a chair and a
 magazine and invites her to make       
herself comfortable4  ,it grows         
monotonous in the telling for him to ask
 each of the visitors exactly the same  
questions 7never exactly the same1 of   
course7 in the same cordial tone of     
voice and to tell them to make          
themselves comfortable in exactly the   
same way1 but the means of attaining    
success in such a place lies in the fact
 that he greets each visitor as if he   
were the only one he had to attend to1  
and that he is1 for the time being1 at  
least1 completely at the visitor's      
service4 ,it is not so much what the    
young man says as the way he says it4   
,good morning can be spoken in such a   
way that it is an insult4  ,the ,girl at
 the ,telephone4 ,it is nerve-racking to
 stand at the door to receive callers1  
but it is much more so to sit at the    

switchboard and receive messages4 ,the  
only point of contact is through the    
voice1 but it is remarkable how much of 
one's personality the voice expresses4  
,if you are tired your voice shows it2  
if you are cross your voice tells it2 if
 you are worried1 your voice betrays it4
 ,it is possible for one 7everyone7 to  
cultivate a pleasing voice4 ,the        
telephone companies have learned this1  
and there is no part of her equipment   
upon which they spend more time and     
effort than on the voice of the         
telephone girl4 ,it is interesting to   
know that their very excellent motto1   
,the voice with the smile wins did not  
spring into being without thought4 ,on  
the early bulletins this clumsy phrase  
was printed3 ,a smiling voice           
facilitates service4  ,the girl at the  
telephone1 even though she receives a   
thousand calls a day1 must answer each  
one pleasantly and patiently4 ,some     
people call without a very clear idea of
 what they want1 and the fact that      

business houses have so many different  
names for exactly the same job often    
makes it difficult for them to locate   
the person they are asking for1 even    
when they are fairly sure who it is they
 want4  ,may ,i speak to your personnel 
manager8 comes the query over the wire  
to a girl who has never heard of a      
personnel manager4  ,i'm sorry1 ,i did  
not quite hear you4  ,the person at the 
other end repeats the word and the girl 
is sure she had it right the first time4
  ,we have no personnel manager here4   
,maybe there is some one else who would 
do4 ,if you will tell me what you       
want----  ,i want a job4  ,just a       
minute1 please1 ,i'll connect you with  
our employment manager4  ,advertising   
engineers1 executive secretaries1 and   
many others are old jobs masquerading   
under new names4  ,more business men    
complain of the girl at the telephone   
than of any other person in business4   
,she must1 under the handicap of        
distance1 accomplish exactly what the   

man at the door does1 and must do it as 
efficiently and as courteously4  ,no    
matter how angry the one who is calling 
becomes1 no matter how profane he may   
be1 no matter what he says1 she must not
 answer back1 and she must not slam the 
receiver down while he is talking4      
,perfect poise1 an even temper1         
patience1 and a pleasant voice under    
control--if she has these1 and a vast   
number of the telephone girls have1 she 
need not worry about the rules of       
courtesy4 ,they will take care of       
themselves4  ,the numbers that a girl in
 a business office has to call          
frequently she should have on a pad or  
card near the switchboard so that she   
will not have to look them up4 ,many    
business men ask the girl at the board  
to give them ,blank and ,blank or ,smith
 and ,smith instead of giving her the   
numbers of the two concerns4 ,she then  
has to look them up1 quite a difficult  
task when one has the headpiece on and  
calls coming in and going out every     

minute4 ,to stop to look up one number  
often delays several1 and it is a duty  
which should never devolve upon the girl
 whose business it is to send the calls 
through4 ,the man who is calling1 or his
 secretary1 if he has one1 or a person  
near the switchboard stationed there for
 the purpose should look up the numbers 
and give them to the operator4  ,an     
efficient girl at the telephone sends   
numbers through as quickly as is humanly
 possible1 but even then she is often   
scolded by nervous and harassed men who 
expect more than can really be done4    
,mr4 ,hunter has called ,main #fghe4 ,it
 is busy4 ,he waits4 ,hours pass4 ,at   
least it seems so to him1 and he grows  
impatient4  ,what's the matter with that
 number1 ,miss ,fisher8  ,i'm still     
trying1 ,mr4 ,hunter4 ,i'll call you    
when they answer4  ,the line continues  
busy4 ,mr4 ,hunter looks over the papers
 on his desk4 ,his nervousness          
increases4 ,he takes down the receiver  
again and asks what the trouble is4 ,he 

does not get the number any more quickly
 this way1 but it would be hard to      
convince him that he does not4 ,the girl
 says quietly again that she is still   
trying4 ,he clings to the receiver and  
in a few minutes she answers            
triumphantly1 ,here they are1 and the   
connection is made4  ,the telephone girl
 in a big concern 7or a little one7 is  
constantly annoyed with people who have 
the wrong number4 ,when it happens ten  
or twelve times in the course of a      
day--fortunately it is not usually so   
often--it is hard for her to keep a grip
 on her temper and answer pleasantly1   
,this is not the number you want1 but   
the snappish answer always makes a bad  
situation worse1 and the loss of temper 
which causes it drains the energy of the
 person who makes it4 ,it is not merely 
the voice with the smile that wins2 it  
is the disposition and temperament to   
which such a voice is the index4  ,the  
,secretary4 ,the next in the line of    
defense is the president's secretary4   

,to him 7and we use the masculine       
pronoun although this position1 like a  
good many others1 is often held by women
 even in the biggest organizations1     
where the responsibility attached to it 
is by no means small7--to him the       
president turns over the details of his 
day's work4 ,he arranges the president's
 schedule and reminds him of the things 
he has forgotten and the things he is   
likely to forget4 ,he receives all of   
his visitors by telephone first and many
 times disposes of their wants without  
having to connect them with the         
president at all4 ,he receives many of  
the callers who are admitted by the man 
at the door and in the same way often   
takes care of them without disturbing   
the president4 ,he knows more about the 
petty routine of the job than the       
president himself4 ,he is accurate4 ,he 
is responsible4 ,he is patient4 ,he is  
courteous4  ,in order that he may be all
 these things it is necessary for the   
president to keep him well informed as  

to what he is doing and where he is     
going and what he is planning so that he
 can give intelligent answers to the    
people who come1 so that he can keep    
things running smoothly when the        
president is away1 so that he can answer
 without delay when the president asks  
whether he has a luncheon engagement on 
,thursday1 and what he did with the     
memorandum from the circulation manager1
 and who is handling the shipping       
sheets4  ,men who have their minds on   
larger matters cannot keep all the      
details of their jobs in mind1 but it is
 significant to know that most          
successful business men know with more  
than a fair degree of accuracy what     
these details amount to4 ,some          
secretaries feel very superior to the   
men who employ them because they can    
remember the date on which the          
representatives of the ,gettem ,company 
called and the employers cannot4 ,the   
author knows a chauffeur who drives for 
a famous ,new ,york surgeon who thinks  

himself a much better man than the      
surgeon because he can remember the     
numbers of the houses where his patients
 and his friends live and the surgeon   
cannot4 ,the author also knows a        
messenger boy who thinks himself a much 
bigger man than one of the most         
successful brokers in ,wall ,street     
because the broker sometimes gives him  
the same message twice within fifteen   
minutes1 the second time after it has   
already been delivered4  ,the secretary 
comes to the office every morning neatly
 clad and on time4 ,the hour at which   
his employer comes in has nothing to do 
with him4 ,there is a definite time at  
which he is expected to be at his desk4 
,he is there4  ,he opens the letters on 
his desk--and those addressed to the    
president come first to him--and sorts  
them1 throwing aside the worthless      
advertising matter1 saving that which   
may be of some interest1 marking the    
letters that are to be referred to      
various other members of the house1 and 

placing them in the memorandum basket1  
piling into one heap those that he      
cannot answer without first consulting  
the president1 and into another those   
which must be answered by the president 
personally4 ,intimately personal letters
 often come mixed in with the rest of   
the mail4 ,no man wants a secretary whom
 he cannot trust even with letters of   
this sort1 but almost any secretary     
worth having will feel a certain amount 
of delicacy in opening them unless he is
 requested to do so4 ,when these letters
 are from people who write often the    
secretary grows to recognize the        
handwriting from the outside of the     
envelope1 and therefore does not need to
 open them4 ,in other cases it is       
sometimes possible to distinguish a     
personal from a business letter4 ,these 
should be handled according to the      
wishes of the man to whom they are      
directed4 ,many business men turn       
practically everything--even the        
settlement of their family affairs--over

 to their secretaries4 ,it is a personal
 matter1 and the secretary's part in it 
is to carry out the wishes of his       
employer4  ,by the time the mail is     
sorted the president has come in4  ,he  
rings for his secretary1 telephones for 
him1 sends a messenger for him1 or else 
goes to his desk himself and asks him to
 come in and take dictation4 ,there is  
no special courtesy or discourtesy in   
any of these methods4 ,it depends on how
 far apart the desks are1 how busy he   
is1 and a number of other things4 ,he   
does not yell for his secretary to come 
in4 ,he manages to get him there        
quietly4 ,it is not necessary for him to
 rise when the secretary enters 7even if
 the secretary is a woman7 though he may
 do so 7and it is a very gracious thing1
 especially if the secretary is a woman7
 but he should greet him 7or her7 with a
 pleasant ,good-morning4  ,the secretary
 takes his place in the comfortable     
chair that has been provided for him1   
with notebook and pencil in hand and at 

least one pencil in reserve4 ,he waits  
for the president to begin1 and listens 
closely so that he may transcribe as    
rapidly as he speaks4 ,if he fails to   
understand he waits until they come to  
the end of a sentence before asking his 
employer to repeat4 ,it is much better  
to do so then than to depend on puzzling
 it out later or coming back and asking 
him after he has forgotten what was     
said4  ,telephone interruptions and     
others may come during the dictation but
 the secretary waits until he is        
dismissed or until the pile of letters  
has disappeared4  ,when the president   
has finished it is the secretary's time 
to begin talking4 ,he consults him about
 the various letters upon which he needs
 his advice and makes notations in      
shorthand on them4 ,he reports on the   
various calls that have come in and the 
house memoranda4 ,a good secretary reads
 and digests these before turning them  
over to his employer1 and in most cases 
gives the gist of the memorandum instead

 of the memorandum itself4 ,it saves    
time4  ,the president's secretary       
usually has a secretary of his own1 a   
woman1 let us say1 or a girl whose      
preliminary training has been good and  
whose record for the year and a half she
 has been with the company has been     
excellent4  ,she comes to her desk on   
time every morning as fresh as a daisy  
and as inconspicuous4 ,the relation that
 she bears to the president's secretary 
is much the same as the relation that he
 bears to the president4 ,she gets the  
letters that are addressed to him and   
sorts them in the same way that he does 
those of the president4 ,on days when he
 is absent she takes care of all of his 
work1 in so far as she is able1 as well 
as her own4  ,her employer is           
considerate of her always4 ,he does not 
make a practice of taking ten or fifteen
 minutes of her lunch hour or five or   
ten minutes overtime at the close of the
 day1 but when there is a good reason   
why he should ask her to remain he does 

so1 asking courteously if she would mind
 staying4 ,if she is genuinely          
interested in her work--and this young  
lady is--she will stay1 but if she has  
an even better reason why she should go 
she explains briefly that it is         
impossible to stay4 ,he never imposes   
heavier burdens upon her than she can   
bear1 but he does not hesitate to ask   
her to do whatever needs to be done1 and
 he does it with a ,please and a ,thank 
you1 and not with a ,see1 here and a    
,say1 listen to me1 now4 ,she is a very 
pretty and attractive girl1 but the man 
she is working for is a gentleman4 ,to  
him she is his secretary1 and if he were
 ever in danger of forgetting it she    
would be quick to remind him4 ,she does 
not go around with a chip on her        
shoulder all the time1 and she talks    
freely with the various men around the  
office just as she does with the women  
and girls1 but it is in an impersonal   
way4 ,she never permits intimate        
attentions from her immediate employer  

or any one else4  ,executives4          
,executive is a large1 loose word which 
rolls smoothly off the tongue of far too
 many business men to-day4 ,office boys 
begin to think in terms of it before    
they are out of knee trousers4 ,i could 
hold down the job1 said a youngster who 
had hurt his hand and whose business was
 to carry a bag of mail from a suburban 
factory into ,new ,york1 if ,i could get
 some one to carry the bag4 ,i can do   
the work1 say smart young men in the    
infant twenties 7and many others--there 
is no age limit71 but ,i must have a man
 to look after the details4  ,the way to
 an executive position is through       
details4 ,work1 plain hard work1 is the 
foundation of every enduring job1 and   
the executive who thinks he can do      
without it has a sharp reckoning day    
ahead4 ,in most places the executives   
have worked their way up slowly1 and at 
no time along the way have they had that
 large contempt for small jobs which    
characterizes so many young men in      

business4 ,they have been perfectly     
willing to do whatever came to hand4    
,but after all this is said1 the fact   
remains that an executive is successful 
not so much because of his own ability  
as because of his power to recognize    
ability in other men4 ,he is--and this  
is true of every executive from the     
president down--the servant of his      
people in much the same way that the    
,president of the ,united ,states is the
 servant of the ,american people4 ,this 
means that he must be readily accessible
 to them1 and must listen as courteously
 to them as if they were important      
visitors from across the sea or         
somewhere else4  ,many executives--and  
this was true especially during the     
war--have surrounded themselves with a  
tangle of red tape which has to be      
unwound every time an employee 7or any  
one else7 wants to get near enough to   
ask a question4 ,this is absurd4        
,sensible men destroy elaborate plans of
 management and find they get along     

better without them4 ,the ,baldwin      
,locomotive ,works1 which has a hundred 
years of solid reputation behind it1 has
 no management plans4 ,there is about   
the place an atmosphere of work1 and    
work without frills or feathers1 and    
this is essentially true of every       
business that is built to last4 ,look at
 the organizations which1 because of war
 conditions1 rose into a prosperity they
 had never enjoyed before4 ,most of them
 have collapsed1 and the little men who 
rose with them 7so many of them and so  
much too small for their jobs7 have     
collapsed with them4  ,in the big       
reliable concerns1 and the small ones1  
too1 the high executives are easily     
approached1 especially by the members of
 the organization4 ,in many of the open 
offices--and open offices have done much
 to create a feeling of comradeship     
among workers--the desk of the general  
manager is out on the floor with the    
desks of the rank and file of the       
employees with nothing to distinguish it

 from theirs except the fact that there 
is a bigger man behind it4 ,a real man  
does not need a lot of elaborate        
decorations4 ,they annoy him4  ,there   
are two sides to this1 however4         
,visitors from the outside are not the  
only ones who are likely to waste the   
time of other people1 and a busy man has
 to protect himself from indoor         
nuisances as well as those that drift in
 from the outside4 ,some do it by means 
of secretaries1 but a good executive    
needs no barrier at all between himself 
and his own men4 ,they learn soon       
enough--we are speaking now of a good   
executive1 remember--that there is no   
use in going to him unless there is some
 definite reason why they should1 and   
that the more briefly and directly they 
present their problem the more likely   
they are to have it settled4  ,when an  
executive receives a caller 7or when any
 man in a business house receives a     
caller7 he should receive him and not   
merely tolerate him4 ,a young           

advertising man who began several years 
ago had two very interesting experiences
 with two gruff executives in two       
different companies4 ,both consented to 
see him1 both kept on writing at their  
desks after he entered and gave him     
scant attention throughout the          
interview4 ,apparently they were both   
successful business men4 ,certainly they
 both held positions that would indicate
 it4 ,yet both of them a few years later
 came to the young advertising man at   
different times looking for jobs4       
,needless to say neither found a place  
with him1 not because he held a grudge  
against them1 but simply because he knew
 what kind of men they were and that    
they could not help in the kind of      
business he was trying to build4  ,from 
the beginning of the interview the host 
should do all he can to make his visitor
 comfortable4 ,you see a lot in certain 
magazines about setting the visitor at a
 disadvantage by giving him an awkward  
chair1 making him face the light and    

grilling him with questions4 ,it is pure
 nonsense4  ,it is very gracious for a  
man to rise to greet a caller and extend
 his hand1 especially if the caller is  
young and ill at ease4 ,it is imperative
 if it is an old man or a woman4 ,he    
should ask the visitor to be seated     
before he sits down himself4  ,well1    
young man1 what can ,i do for you8 is   
hardly a polite way of opening an       
interview4 ,the host should wait with a 
cordially receptive air until his guest 
begins1 unless he is in a great hurry4  
,then he frankly tells the caller so and
 asks him to make his business brief4   
,interruptions come even in the midst of
 conversations with important visitors1 
but no visitor is so important as to    
permit neglect of one's employees4      
,these should be met courteously and    
dispatched quickly4 ,the host must      
always ask the pardon of the guest      
before turning to the telephone or to a 
messenger1 and if the guest is an       
employee the rule is the same4  ,at the 

conclusion of the interview the host    
rises and shakes hands with the         
departing visitor but does not          
necessarily go with him 7or her7 to the 
door or the elevator1 as the case may   
be4 ,this is an additional courtesy in  
which a busy man cannot always indulge4 
,the essential part of every interview  
is that the visitor shall state what he 
wants1 that the host shall give the best
 answer in his power1 and then the      
sooner the visitor departs the better   
for all concerned4  ,the ,rank and      
,file4 ,this is the largest group in    
every business4 ,it is the one that     
fluctuates most4 ,it is the one from    
which the discards are made4 ,it is the 
one from which officers are chosen4 ,it 
is the one in which the real growth of a
 business takes place4 ,and by the same 
token it is the one1 generally speaking1
 where there is most discourtesy4       
,promotion depends upon the possession  
of this quality much more than people   
realize4 ,many a man with actual ability

 to hold a high position is not given an
 opportunity to do so because the men   
who employ him realize that he would    
antagonize those who worked under him4  
,there are among the body of employees  
in every concern 7even the very best7   
discontented members4 ,in most cases1   
indeed1 in nearly all cases except where
 there is a chronic grudge against life 
which is not affected by external       
circumstances1 these are weeded out1 and
 those with habitual grudges are weeded 
out along with the others or else are   
kept in minor places4 ,perhaps it would 
be more nearly correct to say they keep 
themselves there4 ,sometimes a          
subordinate feels that he is unfairly   
treated by his immediate superior4 ,he  
wishes to go to the man above him in    
authority4 ,is it right for him to do   
so8  ,it is an unwritten law that each  
worker shall be loyal to the head of his
 department4 ,suppose the head does not 
deserve it8  ,there are three courses   
open to the worker4 ,he can leave the   

job and find another in a different     
organization4 ,he can go to the head of 
the department and state the case to    
him4 ,if this should fail he may appeal 
to the man above him1 but he should     
never go over the head of his own       
immediate superior without first telling
 him that he intends to do it4  ,this is
 an important rule4 ,it holds whether   
one has a grievance to present or a     
suggestion4 ,constructive plans should  
first be talked over with one's         
immediate superior1 and with his        
approval carried to the next man1 or he 
may carry them himself4 ,if this        
superior is the sort of man with whom   
you are constantly at loggerheads1 you  
had much better get out and get a place 
somewhere else4 ,and if you find that   
continually you are in hot water with   
the men who have authority over you1 you
 may be very sure that the fault is not 
altogether theirs4  ,subordinates       
usually have an idea that the heads of  
their departments leave all of the work 

to them4 ,well1 as a matter of fact1    
they do leave a large part of it4 ,if   
they did not they would have no excuse  
for having subordinates4 ,the reward of 
good work is more work4 ,this is less of
 a hardship than it sounds4 ,sir ,james 
,barrie once quoted ,dr4 ,johnson's     
statement that doubtless the ,lord could
 have made a better fruit than the      
strawberry1 but that he doubtless never 
did1 and added to it that ,he doubtless 
could have created something that was   
more fun than hard work1 but that ,he   
doubtless never did4  ,the subway guards
 in ,new ,york ,city say that the rush  
which comes just before five o'clock    
7the closing time of most of the        
business houses7 is as great as the one 
which comes just after4 ,they call the  
persons in the former rush the clock    
watchers4 ,they have left work about    
fifteen minutes early1 and to-morrow    
morning--business experience has taught 
this--they will come in fifteen minutes 
late4 ,for the most part these are the  

discontented workers who spend #fj per  
cent of their time in doing their job1  
and #dj per cent in doing the boss4  ,it
 has always been considered a breach of 
good manners to pull out one's watch and
 look at it in company4 ,it is true in  
the office as well as in the drawing    
room4 ,the clock watchers are impolite4 
,it has also been considered a breach of
 good manners to hold a guest against   
his will against the conventional hour  
for his departure4 ,the employers who   
habitually keep their employees after   
closing hours are equally impolite4 ,it 
is a question of honor1 too4 ,time is   
money1 and the time grafters1 whether   
employers or employees1 are dishonest4  
,when one employee goes over to the desk
 of another it is not necessary for the 
second to rise4 ,the first should wait  
until the one at the desk looks up      
before speaking unless he is so absorbed
 in his work that he does not glance up 
after a minute or two4 ,then he should  
interrupt with ,i beg your pardon4 ,it  

makes no difference if one of the       
employees is a woman and the other is a 
man4 ,work at an office can be seriously
 impeded if every time one person goes  
to the desk of another the other rises4 
,so many times the whole conversation   
covers less time than it takes to get   
out of one's chair and sit back down    
again4 ,in some places subordinates are 
required to stand when a superior speaks
 to them1 but as a general thing it is  
not necessary4 ,in such houses it is    
correct to play the game according to   
the general standard and to act         
according to the rules set down by the  
men who are in charge of affairs4       
,there is no person so wretched or so   
poor or so miserable but that he can    
find other people who are more wretched1
 poorer1 or more miserable4 ,at the same
 time there is no person so superior1 so
 wealthy1 or gifted but that he can find
 other people who are more superior1    
more wealthy1 and more gifted4 ,it is a 
part of good manners to recognize       

superiority when one finds it4          
,youngsters entering business can sit at
 the feet of the older men in the same  
business and learn a great deal4        
,knowledge did not enter the world with 
the present generation any more than it 
will depart from it when the present    
generation dies4 ,it is just as well for
 young people to realize this4 ,age has 
much to teach them4 ,experience has much
 to teach them1 and so have men and     
women of extraordinary ability4 ,i have 
never met a man1 says a teacher of      
business men1 from whom ,i could not    
learn something4 ,all of us are born    
with the capacity to learn4 ,it is those
 who develop it who amount to something4
  ,petty quarrels should be disregarded 
and grudges should be forgotten4 ,this  
piece of advice is needed more by women 
in business than by men4 ,men have      
learned--it has taken them several      
thousand years--to fight and shake      
hands4 ,they have a happy way of        
forgetting their squabbles--this is a   

general truth--after a little while1 and
 two men who were yesterday abusing one 
another with hot and angry words are    
to-day walking together down the hall   
smiling and talking as gently as you    
please4  ,the ,office ,boy4 ,if the     
office boy in a big business house where
 much of the work is done at a white-hot
 tension--the office boy in a busy ,wall
 ,street office during the peak of the  
day's rush1 for example--could write his
 intimate impressions they would make   
good reading4  ,the temper of the great 
,american business man is an uncertain  
quantity4 ,famous for good humor and    
generosity as a general thing1 he is1   
for all that1 at his worst moments the  
terror of the office boy's life4        
,nervous1 worried1 tired1 and           
exasperated1 he is likely to take it out
 on the office boy if there is no one   
else at hand4 ,there is no defense for  
such conduct--even the man who is guilty
 would not1 the next day in his calmer  
moments1 defend it4 ,meantime1 what     

shall the office boy do8  ,a hot1 tired 
man with papers fluttering over his     
desk1 his telephone ringing1 and three  
men waiting in line to talk to him about
 serious problems connected with the    
business1 yells1 ,what do you want8 when
 the office boy comes to answer the     
bell4  ,you rang for me1 the boy        
answers4  ,i rang half an hour ago1 the 
man snaps4  ,in reality he rang two     
minutes before4 ,shall the office boy   
remind him of this8  ,not if he values  
his job6  ,of course it is unjust1 but  
one of the first laws of discipline is  
to learn to be composed in the face of  
injustice1 and the first law of courtesy
 for the office boy 7and other employees
 would do just as well to follow7 is3   
,don't be too harsh with the boss6  ,it 
is said that the grizzly bear1 who is a 
very strict mother1 often spanks her    
cubs when she herself has done something
 foolish4 ,julia ,ellen ,rogers tells a 
story of an explorer who came suddenly  
upon a bear with two cubs4 ,he was so   

frightened that he stood still for a    
minute or two before he could decide    
which way to run4 ,meantime the bear1   
fully as frightened as he1 turned and   
fled1 spanking the two cubs at every    
jump in spite of the fact that each was 
already going as fast as its legs could 
carry it4 ,it was so unexpected1        
continues ,miss ,rogers1 and so funny to
 see those little bears look around     
reproachfully at their angry parent     
every time they felt the weight of her  
paw1 helping them to hurry1 that the man
 sat down and laughed until he cried4   
,it was not funny to the cubs4  ,cases  
in which the office boy is maltreated   
are exceptional1 though cases in which  
he is misunderstood are not4 ,most      
office boys have not one boss but many4 
,there should always be one person from 
whom they receive their general orders  
and to whom they go with their troubles4
 7,a youngster should have very few     
troubles to report4 ,it is usually the  
worthless ones who report47  ,in most   

places the several office boys are      
stationed at a certain point1 a desk or 
a table1 with one of their number more  
or less in charge4 ,the rule is that one
 person be always at the desk4  ,all    
right4 ,six office boys4 ,five out on   
errands4 ,one at the desk4 ,the bell    
rings4 ,the boy keeps his place4 ,the   
bell rings again4 ,the boy keeps his    
place4 ,the bell rings a third time1    
long and insistently1 but the youngster1
 with a steadfastness worthy of the boy 
who stood on the burning deck1 still    
keeps his place4  ,a second later an    
angry official bounces out and wants to 
know what on earth is the matter and    
declares that he will report the desk to
 the manager4 ,meanwhile one of the     
missing five has returned1 and the      
youngster who had held the place so long
 under fire takes the message from the  
man and delivers it4  ,if the boy should
 see an opening--and most business men  
except those funny little executives    
puffed up with their own importance are 

ready enough to listen--he may explain  
how it happened1 but if he has to enter 
a shouting contest it is best to stay   
silent4  ,the law of business           
courtesy--no matter how far away from   
this a discussion goes it always swings 
back--is the ,golden ,rule4 ,the        
subordinate who feels himself neglected 
by the men in positions above him might 
check himself by honestly asking himself
 how he appears to those beneath him4   
,it is interesting to know that the one 
who complains most is usually the one   
who is haughtiest when he enters into   
conversation with the employees1 who1 he
 thinks1 are not quite worth his notice4
 ,he feels blighted because the         
president does not stop to say          
,good-morning in the hall1 but it is    
beneath his dignity to say ,good-morning
 to the girl who collects his mail or   
,good-night to the janitor who comes to 
dust his desk when the day's work is    
over4 ,the means of attaining           
courtesy--and if you have it yourself   

you will find it in other people--is by 
watching your own actions4 ,teach no one
 but yourself4 ,worry about no one's    
behavior but your own4 ,that is job     
enough for any one4     ,,xi  ,,in ,a   
,,department ,,store   ,let us now see  
courtesy at work in a big department    
store4  ,mr4 ,hopkins has taken a       
morning off to do a little shopping     
before he goes away on his summer       
vacation4 ,he wants to buy two shirts1 a
 trunk1 a toy for his baby1 and a       
present for his wife4 ,he is not sure   
what he wants for the wife and baby4    
,mr4 ,hopkins does not like to shop4 ,he
 remembers his last expedition4 ,a      
haberdashery had sent him a cordial     
letter asking him to open an account4   
,he did so1 but one morning later when  
he went in to buy a waistcoat the rude  
and inefficient service he met disgusted
 him so that he has not been back since4
 ,he knew exactly what he wanted and    
asked for it4 ,oh1 no1 answered the     
smart young clerk4 ,you don't want that4

 ,people have not been wearing          
waistcoats like that for years4 ,this is
 what you want1 and he exhibited a      
different style altogether4 ,it happened
 that ,mr4 ,hopkins knew better than the
 clerk what he wanted1 and the fact that
 people had not been wearing waistcoats 
like it made no difference to him4 ,as a
 matter of fact1 the only reason the    
clerk made the remark was that he did   
not have them in stock1 and thought     
perhaps he could sell by substituting4  
,there are other haberdasheries where   
the service is distinctly good1 but ,mr4
 ,hopkins decides to go to a department 
store instead4 ,haberdasheries1 however 
excellent1 do not carry toys for one's  
baby nor presents for one's wife4       
,helpem's store has been warmly         
recommended4 ,he will go there4 ,it is  
his first visit4  ,when he enters the   
door he is bewildered by an array of    
women's scarfs and gloves and perfume   
bottles1 handkerchiefs and parasols1    
handbags1 petticoats1 knick-knacks1 and 

whatnot4 ,he almost loses courage and   
begins backing toward the door when he  
catches sight of a man in uniform       
standing near the entrance4 ,he sees    
that this man is directing the tides of 
shoppers that are surging in1 and       
approaches him4  ,where can ,i find the 
trunks8  ,third floor4 ,elevator in the 
rear1 the man answers briefly 7but not  
gruffly74 ,people who have to answer    
thousands of questions must be brief4   
,as he passes down the aisle ,mr4       
,hopkins1 who is very observant1 notices
 that all of the girls--most of the     
clerks are girls--are dressed in a      
pleasant gray4 ,this gives an agreeable 
uniform tone to a large establishment   
which would break up into jarring       
patches of color if each clerk were     
allowed to wear whatever color happened 
to strike her fancy4 ,good idea1 ,mr4   
,hopkins thinks1 very necessary where   
there are many1 many clerks4  ,he does  
not have much trouble getting the trunk4
 ,he knows pretty well what he wants1   

and the obliging salesman convinces him 
that the trunk will probably last       
forever by assuring him that an elephant
 could dance a jig on it and never make 
a dent4 ,he asks ,mr4 ,hopkins if he    
wants his name on it4 ,mr4 ,hopkins had 
not thought of it1 but he does4 ,no1    
upon second thought1 he will have only  
his initials stenciled on in dull red1  
,w4 ,h4 ,h4 ,the trunk will be delivered
 in the afternoon and he goes away well 
satisfied4  ,the shirts are somewhat    
more difficult4 ,he is attached to a    
certain kind of collar and he likes     
madras shirts with little black stripes 
or figures in them4 ,the man shows him  
white ones and wide striped ones and    
colored ones with the right collar1 and 
he almost decides that the place does   
not keep madras shirts with little black
 figures in them1 when he suddenly      
realizes that he was so intent on       
getting the collar that he forgot to say
 anything about the material or color4  
,he begins again1 tells the clerk       

exactly what he wants1 and in a few     
minutes the proper shirts are before him
 and he is happy4 ,while the clerk is   
folding them1 he asks about ties4 ,it is
 a good thing4 ,mr4 ,hopkins remembers  
that he has forgotten ties4 ,they have  
great bargains in ties4 ,he drifts over 
to the counter and presently has three  
lovely ones4 ,one is red1 and ,mr4      
,hopkins resolves to be more careful    
than he was with the last red one4 ,his 
wife burned it4 ,he must keep this      
hidden4  ,the ties remind him that he   
needs a bathrobe4 ,an agreeable clerk   
sells him a dull figured bathrobe1      
comfortable and light for summer and    
guaranteed to wash1 and tells him that a
 pajama sale is in progress about four  
counters away4  ,when he has bought six 
pairs of pajamas he begins to think of  
the baby's present4 ,toys are on the top
 floor4 ,the girl there--a wise         
department store always chooses         
carefully for this place--is very       
helpful4 ,she asks about the baby1 how  

old he is1 what toys he has1 what toys  
he has asked for1 and so on4 ,mr4       
,hopkins tells her1 and after showing   
him several ingenious mechanical        
contrivances1 she suggests a train with 
a real track to run on4 ,mr4 ,hopkins is
 delighted4 ,the girl asks if the       
youngster likes to read4 ,he does not1  
but he likes to be read to4 ,why don't  
you take him a book8 and in a few       
minutes he has the ,just-,so ,stories   
tucked under his arm4 ,as he leaves the 
girl smiles1 ,come back to see us1 she  
says4  ,all the clerks have said this4  
,the clerk who sold the shirts said1    
while they stood waiting for the change1
 that he could depend on them4 ,they    
would not shrink and the colors would   
not run4 ,we are here in the city1 he   
continued 7the store was in ,new ,york71
 but we have our regular customers just 
as if we were in a small town4 ,we don't
 try to make just one sale and get by   
with it4 ,we want you to come back4     
,the girl at the toy counter tells ,mr4 

,hopkins that there is a woman          
downstairs who will help him select     
something for his wife4 ,he goes back to
 the man in uniform to locate her and   
finds her in a secluded booth on the    
first floor4 ,she asks several questions
 about whether he would like china or   
silver1 furniture or linen1 but ,mr4    
,hopkins wants to give his wife         
something personal--something she can   
use or wear4 ,he has been married       
several years but not long enough to    
know that this is a dangerous thing to  
do1 but the woman is wise4 ,she suggests
 a silk parasol1 a kimono1 or a dozen   
handkerchiefs4  ,such a service as this 
is not possible except in very large    
shops1 but in most places clerks are    
quick to respond with suggestions for   
gifts4 ,there is a pleasure about buying
 them and selling them that does not go 
with ordinary transactions4  ,when he   
buys a parasol the clerk suggests that  
they have a very large assortment of    
handbags1 but ,mr4 ,hopkins's day's work

 is done1 and the clerk does not insist4
 ,none of the clerks in a good          
department store is insistent4 ,they    
offer suggestions and stand ready to    
serve1 but they do not try to impose    
their ideas or their goods upon the     
customers4 ,mr4 ,hopkins leaves well    
satisfied with himself and his          
purchases4 ,he will come back4  ,the    
trunk is delivered in the afternoon1 not
 by the regular wagon1 but by an express
 company4 ,it is a busy season4 ,mr4    
,hopkins is still further delighted4    
,these people keep their promises4 ,and 
as he tips the man who brought it up--he
 had to climb three flights of          
stairs--the man gives him a card4       
,here's one of the boss's cards1 he     
says1 in case you want any hauling done4
 ,without doubt the man has been        
instructed by the boss to distribute his
 cards1 but he does it with such a grace
 that it seems to be on his own         
initiative4  ,it rarely happens that a  
business man or woman can shop in the   

leisurely manner described above4 ,most 
of their shopping has to be done during 
the half hour after lunch or during a   
frantic few minutes snatched at the     
beginning or the end of the day's work4 
,one morning ,mr4 ,hopkins had to leave 
home without a collar because he forgot 
to send the dirty ones to the laundry   
7his wife was away that week7 and dashed
 into a little shop to get one on the   
way to the office4 ,he would have felt  
like murdering a clerk who wanted to    
show him something nice in the way of   
gloves or mufflers1 and he would have   
had a hard time to restrain himself from
 violence if the clerk had started in on
 a eulogy of a new shipment of ,english 
tweeds4  ,an intelligent clerk can      
usually tell when his customer is in a  
tearing hurry4 ,it is an unpropitious   
time to make suggestions4 ,the clerk    
must see things from the customer's     
point of view4 ,it is permissible to    
suggest something else in place of the  
thing he has asked for but it is not    

good manners to make fun of it or to    
insist upon a substitute4 ,recently a   
woman wanted to buy a rug for her       
automobile4 ,she knew just what she     
wanted1 but the bright young clerk      
insisted that she wanted something else4
 ,she finally bought the rug1 but it was
 in spite of the clerk rather than      
because of him4 ,too many salesmen kill 
their sales by thinking and talking only
 of their product4 ,the customer is not 
half so interested in that as he is in  
himself4 ,good salesmanship relates the 
product to the customer1 and does it in 
such a way that the customer is hardly  
aware of how it is done4     ,,xii  ,a  
,,while ,,with ,a ,,traveling ,,man     
,in a ,big ,city4 ,we will suppose that 
our traveling man has his headquarters  
in some big city--,new ,york1 ,chicago1 
,san ,francisco1 it does not matter--and
 that he has several calls to make      
before he goes out on the road4  ,there 
are two kinds of salesmen1 those who    
make only one sale to a customer and    

those who sell something that has to be 
renewed periodically4 ,the first sell   
pianos1 real estate1 encyclopedias1 and 
so on2 the second sell raw materials and
 supplies4 ,the salesman whom we are to 
follow is in the second group4  ,he     
has--and so have most men who do this   
kind of selling--a regular routine that 
he follows1 adding new names to the list
 and deleting old ones as seems         
expedient4 ,at this particular time he  
has several old customers to visit and  
one or two new prospects to investigate 
before he leaves town4  ,it is          
unnecessary for him to make arrangements
 beforehand to gain access to the old   
customers4 ,they know him and they are  
always glad to see him4 ,but if there is
 a chance that the customer may be out  
of town1 or if it is during a busy      
season1 he telephones ahead to make     
sure4 ,he prefers indefinite to definite
 appointments1 especially if he has to  
see two or three people during the      
course of a morning or an afternoon2    

that is1 he would rather have an        
appointment to come some time between   
ten and eleven or between three and four
 than to have one for exactly half past 
ten or a quarter of three4 ,it is       
impossible to tell how long interviews  
will last4 ,sometimes when the salesman 
counts on staying an hour he is through 
in five minutes and sometimes when he   
thinks he can arrange things in fifteen 
minutes he finds himself strung up for  
half a day4  ,the new prospects--there  
are three on this particular morning--he
 handles in different ways4 ,to one he  
has a note of introduction from a mutual
 friend4 ,to another he has written a   
letter stating why he wishes to call and
 asking when it will be convenient for  
him to do so4 ,the third1 whom he knows 
by reputation as a hard customer 7in the
 slang sense of the word7 who will have 
nothing to do with salesmen of any sort1
 he decides to approach directly1       
trusting to his own presence to get past
 the girl at the front door and         

whomsoever else stands between him and  
the man he wants to see4 ,he does not   
write1 because he knows that the man    
would tear up the letter and he does not
 telephone1 because he knows that the   
man would not promise to see him and    
that if he were to call after such a    
telephone conversation his chances for  
success would be lessened4  ,our        
salesman is careful with his appearance4
 ,he bathes and shaves every morning and
 takes special care that his linen is   
clean and that his shoes are polished4  
,he does not ornament himself with a lot
 of jewelry1 and the material of which  
his suit is made is plain4 ,he presents1
 if you should see him on the street1   
the appearance of a clean1 solid1       
healthy1 progressive ,american citizen4 
,he is poised but he is not aggressive4 
,he is persistent but he is not         
obstinate4  ,the best public speakers1  
it is said1 never get over a sinking    
feeling of fear during the few minutes  
just before time for them to speak4 ,it 

vanishes as soon as they get to their   
feet or a very few minutes afterward1   
and1 strange as it may seem1 it is this 
very fear that gives them their power on
 the platform4 ,the fact that they have 
the dreadful feeling nerves them to     
strenuous effort1 and it is this effort 
that makes the orator4 ,in the same way 
the best salesmen are those who never   
get over the fear that perhaps they have
 not thought out the best way to handle 
the situation ahead of them4 ,they      
forget the fear as they begin to talk to
 the prospect1 but the fact that it is  
subconsciously present makes the        
difference between the real salesman and
 the dub4  ,did you ever get to the door
 of a house you were about to enter and 
then turn and walk around the block     
before you rang the bell8 ,did you ever 
walk around the block six or eight      
times8 ,so have we4 ,especially on those
 ,wednesday and ,sunday evenings when we
 used to go calling4 ,there are not many
 salesmen who have not had this         

experience and who have not1 upon       
hearing that a prospect they dreaded was
 out1 turned away from the door with a  
prayer of deep thanksgiving4 ,all of    
which is by way of saying that selling  
is not an easy job4  ,the salesman whose
 career we are following for a short    
time always has that little feeling of  
nervousness before an interview4 ,it is 
deeper than ever when he approaches the 
hard customer1 and it is not lessened in
 the least degree when he finds a       
painted and marceled flapper at the door
 who looks at him without a word4       
7,incidentally1 she likes his looks47   
,he takes out his card and asks her to  
give it to ,mr4 ,green and say that he  
is calling4  ,he won't see you1 the girl
 says4  ,will you tell him1 please1 that
 ,i am here1 all the same8 ,wait a      
minute4  ,he takes the card and         
scribbles on it1 ,i want only five      
minutes of your time1 and hands it to   
the girl again4  ,she carries it away   
and presently returns saying that ,mr4  

,green is busy and cannot see him4  ,i  
knew he wouldn't1 she adds4  ,he must be
 very busy1 the salesman says4 ,when    
shall ,i be most likely to find him     
free8  ,he's no busier now than usual1  
the girl responds4 ,he's smoking a cigar
 and looking out the window4  ,will you 
tell him1 please1 that ,i am coming back
 to-morrow at the same time8  ,the girl 
sees that he is very much in earnest4   
,she respects him for his quiet         
persistence and because he has not tried
 to kid her4 ,she would most likely have
 joined in heartily if he had1 but he   
would never have got past her4  ,she    
goes back into the office and returns   
with word that the salesman may come in 
if he will not take more than five      
minutes4 ,he thanks the girl and goes   
into the office where the hard customer 
is seated4 ,he does not rise1 he does   
not say ,good morning1 and he does not  
take the cigar out of his mouth1 but    
this does not disconcert the salesman4  
,he wastes no time in preliminaries1 but

 after a brief greeting1 plunges at once
 into his proposition1 stating the      
essential points clearly and in terms of
 this man's business4 ,he knows what the
 customer needs pretty accurately for he
 has taken the trouble to find out4 ,he 
is not broadcasting4 ,he is using line  
radio1 and everything he says is        
directed against a single mark4 ,the    
prospect is interested4 ,he puts the    
cigar aside4 ,the salesman concludes4   
,i'm sorry1 he says1 but my five minutes
 are up4 ,will you let me come back some
 day when you are not so busy and tell  
you more about it8  ,sit where you are1 
the other says1 and begins firing       
questions4  ,half an hour later the     
salesman pockets the order he wanted and
 makes ready to depart1 feeling that he 
has found another friend4 ,the hard     
customer is ashamed of his gruff        
reception and apologizes for it4 ,i've  
been so bothered with agents and        
drummers and traveling men that ,i've   
promised myself never to see another one

 as long as ,i live1 he says4  ,i can   
well understand that1 the salesman      
answers4 ,it is one of the hardest      
things we are up against1 the fact that 
there are so many four-flushers out     
trying to sell things4  ,he goes next to
 see the man with whom he has made an   
appointment by mail and finds that he   
has been called out of town on business4
 ,he talks with his secretary1 who      
expresses a polite regret that they were
 unable to locate him in time to tell   
him that his visit would be of no use4  
,he asks if there is some one else who  
can take charge of the matter1 but the  
girl replies that all such things have  
to come before ,mr4 ,thompson4 ,he will 
not be back until next week1 and by that
 time the salesman will be out on the   
road4  ,i'll have another representative
 of our house1 ,mr4 ,hamilton1 call1 he 
says4 ,he will write to find out when it
 will be convenient for him to come4    
,the third man on his list is the one to
 whom he has the letter of introduction4

 ,this is one of his best prospects4    
,that is why he took such pains to arm  
himself with the letter4 ,he has no     
trouble getting inside4 ,the man is very
 busy but he thrusts it completely aside
 for the moment4 ,he does not have to   
say ,be brief4 ,our salesman has been in
 the game long enough to know that he   
must not be anything else4  ,frankly1 he
 says at the end of the talk1 ,i am not 
interested4 ,i have no doubt that what  
you say is true4 ,in fact1 ,i have heard
 of your firm before and know that its  
reputation is good4 ,but ,i buy my      
material1 and have for years1 from      
,hicks and ,hicks4  ,it is a good       
reliable concern1 the salesman responds1
 and there is no reason why you should  
desert them4 ,they depend upon you as   
much as you do upon them4 ,but if they  
happen to be short of something you want
 in a hurry1 please remember that our   
product is as good as theirs4 ,you can  
depend upon it with as much certainty4  
,thank you1 ,i will1 the prospect       

answers and the interview is over4  ,did
 the salesman act wisely8 ,would he have
 gained anything by proving that his    
house was superior to ,hicks and ,hicks8
 ,not if the customer was worth having4 
,this salesman never forgets that his   
part of the job is to build up business 
for his own firm1 and not to tear down  
business for other firms4 ,as it stands1
 he has in this case established a      
feeling of good will for the house he   
represents1 and has placed it in such a 
light that if the rival concern should  
be afflicted with a strike or a fire or 
any of a hundred or two disasters which 
might lessen or suspend its output1 the 
customer will probably turn to the      
salesman's house4 ,and if ,hicks and    
,hicks should sell out or go into       
bankruptcy the salesman will have won   
for his own house a steady customer of  
great value4  ,in the ,sleeping ,car4   
,the wise traveling man--and our        
salesman is wise--always engages        
sleeping accommodations on the train in 

advance4 ,this time he has the lower    
berth in ,no4 #i4  ,when he comes in to 
take his seat he finds that a woman has 
the upper berth in the same compartment4
 ,he is reading a newspaper and she is  
reading a magazine4 ,he says nothing    
until toward evening1 and then he offers
 to exchange places with her4 ,she      
thanks him cordially1 explains that she 
was late in securing a berth and that   
this was all she could get4 ,she is very
 grateful and the transfer is made4  ,he
 goes into the smoking car and meets    
there several men who are talking       
together4 ,he joins them and the        
conversation runs along pleasantly      
enough until one of the number begins to
 retail dirty stories4 ,some of the     
others try to switch him off to another 
subject but he is wound up and nothing  
short of a sledge hammer will stop him  
until he has run down4 ,our salesman has
 a healthy loathing for this sort of    
thing4 ,he has a good fund of stories   
himself--most traveling men have--and in

 the course of his journeyings he has   
heard many of the kind that the         
foul-minded man in the smoking car is   
retailing with such delight4 ,he never  
retells stories of that nature1 and he  
never1 when he can avoid it1 listens to 
them4 ,he knows that he cannot stop the 
man1 but after a little while he gets up
 quietly and leaves4 ,another man       
follows him and the two stand on the    
rear platform of the train until time to
 go to bed4  ,men who are traveling     
together often converse without knowing 
one another's names1 and it is correct  
that they should4 ,only a prig refuses  
to speak to a man on a train or a boat  
because he does not know his name4      
,opening conversation with a stranger is
 not always easy1 and should be avoided 
unless it comes about in a natural way4 
,the stranger may not want to converse4 
,it is correct for a man who wishes to  
talk to another first to introduce      
himself4 ,my name is ,hammond1 he says1 
and the man to whom he says it responds 

by holding out his hand 7this is the    
more gracious way1 but he may omit this 
part of it1 if he likes7 and pronouncing
 his own name4 ,the same rule holds when
 the travelers are women4  ,our salesman
 goes to bed early4  ,two men have the  
compartment across from his4 ,they seem 
very much interested in each other1 for 
they continue to talk after they have   
gone to bed4 ,in order to make          
themselves heard they have almost to    
scream1 and the raucous sound of their  
voices is much more disturbing than the 
sound of the wheels grinding against the
 rails4 ,it is hard to sleep on a train 
even under favorable circumstances4 ,our
 salesman has a strenuous day ahead of  
him--most of his days are strenuous--and
 the noise is keeping him awake4  ,he   
could throw on his bathrobe1 climb down 
and remonstrate with the two men across 
the way4 ,it would be correct for him to
 do so1 but it would hardly be          
expedient4 ,people who are thoughtless  
enough to be noisy late at night are    

often rude enough to be very unpleasant 
when any one interferes4 ,the salesman  
has no real authority over them1 but the
 porter on duty at night is supposed to 
see that a certain amount of peace and  
quiet is maintained4 ,the salesman rings
 the bell1 and when the porter appears1 
asks him if he would mind begging the   
two men across the aisle to lower their 
voices4 ,the porter has had years of    
experience4 ,he has developed a soft1   
pleasant way of asking people to be     
quiet1 and in a few minutes the car is  
still except for the inevitable sound of
 the train and the snoring of an old    
lady near the end of the car4 ,this last
 cannot be helped4 ,it must be endured1 
and our salesman composes himself into a
 deep slumber4  ,dressing and undressing
 in a sleeping car are among the most   
difficult operations to perform         
gracefully4 ,there are no rules4 ,most  
men prefer staying in their berths to   
making the attempt in the crowded       
dressing rooms4 ,some divide the process

 between the two1 but no gentleman ever 
goes streaking down the aisle           
half-dressed4 ,he is either fully       
clothed or else he is wrapped in a      
bathrobe or a dressing gown4  ,when our 
salesman comes in to breakfast the next 
morning there is only one vacant place1 
a seat opposite a young woman at a table
 for two4 ,he crosses over and sits     
down1 first asking if he may do so4 ,in 
well-managed dining cars and            
restaurants1 the seating is taken care  
of by the head waiter4 ,he never places 
a person at a table with some one else  
without asking permission of the one who
 is already seated4 ,it is never        
permissible for a stranger to go to a   
table that is already taken if there is 
a vacant one available4 ,the young lady 
bows and smiles4 ,she has already sent  
in her order4 ,they talk during the meal
 quite as if they had been introduced   
and had met by appointment instead of by
 accident4 ,she does not introduce      
herself1 nor does he introduce himself4 

,when she has finished she asks the     
waiter for her bill4 ,she pays it       
herself--our salesman has too much      
delicacy to offer to do so--and tips the
 waiter4 ,then with a nod and a smile   
she is gone4  ,this salesman is a       
chivalrous traveler4 ,whenever there is 
an opportunity to render a service to a 
woman 7or to any one else7 he takes     
pleasure in doing it4 ,he does not place
 women under financial obligation to    
him1 however1 and he is careful not to  
annoy them with attentions4 ,he has many
 times found a taxi for a woman         
traveling alone or with children when   
they have had the same destination2 he  
has helped women decipher time tables2  
he has carried bundles and suitcases and
 baskets and boxes for old ladies who   
have not yet learned in all their long1 
long lives that the way to travel is    
with as little1 instead of with as much1
 baggage as possible2 and he has helped 
young mothers establish themselves      
comfortably in place with their         

children4 ,but he has never--and he has 
been traveling a good many years        
now--thrust himself upon a woman and he 
has never embarrassed one by his        
attentions4  ,he does not treat the men 
whom he meets by accident during his    
travels4 ,they often go in to meals     
together but each one settles his own   
bill1 and when they come to the end of  
the journey they are without obligations
 toward one another4 ,it is much        
pleasanter so4  ,the salesman does not1 
as a rule1 tip the porter until he      
leaves the train1 and the amount that he
 gives then is according to what the    
porter has done for him4 ,if he has been
 in the car a good many hours and if he 
has had to ask the porter for many      
things1 such as bringing ice water at   
night1 silencing objectionable          
travelers1 bringing pillows and tables  
during the day1 not to mention polishing
 his shoes and brushing his coat every  
morning1 he is much more generous than  
if he had been on the car only a few    

hours and had not asked for any special 
service4 ,unless the trip is long he    
never gives more than a dollar4         
,twenty-five cents is the minimum4  ,by 
,automobile4 ,from an economic point of 
view this problem has come to be almost 
as large as the railroad problem1 and   
the part the automobile1 including      
trucks and taxis1 plays in business is  
growing larger and larger every year4   
,motorists have a code of their own4    
,they--when they do as they             
should--drive to the right in the       
,united ,states1 to the left in certain 
other countries4 ,they take up no more  
of the road than is necessary1 and they 
observe local traffic regulations       
scrupulously1 not only because they will
 be fined if they do not but because it 
is impolite in ,rome to do other than   
the ,romans do4 ,they hold out their    
hands to indicate that they are about to
 turn1 they slow down at crossings1 and 
they sound their horns as a warning     
signal but never for any other reason4  

,it is often necessary for a man who is 
trying to sell a piece of property to   
take out to look at it the man who      
thinks he will buy it4 ,needless to say1
 it is the former who pays for the trip4
 ,other business trips are arranged by  
groups1 the benefit or pleasure which is
 to result to be shared among them4     
,under such conditions it is wise 7and  
polite7 for them to divide expenses4    
,these matters should be arranged ahead 
of time4 ,if one is to furnish the      
machine1 and one the gasoline1 and      
another is to pay for the lunch1 it     
should be understood at the outset4  ,in
 a ,small ,town4 ,the salesman is now   
completely out of the metropolitan      
district4 ,he is in a small town like   
hundreds of others over the ,united     
,states4 ,the hotel is very good in     
itself1 but compared with the one in the
 city1 which he has just left1 it is    
inconvenient4 ,he has better judgment   
than to remind the people of this4      
,instead1 when he is talking to         

them--and he likes to talk with the     
people in the towns he is serving--he   
talks about what they have rather than  
what they have not and about what they  
can do in the future rather than what   
they have failed to do in the past4 ,it 
is in this way that he discovers how he 
can best be useful to them4  ,he likes  
to work at the quick pace set by the big
 cities but he knows it will not do     
here4 ,he goes around to see ,mr4       
,carter4 ,mr4 ,carter is glad to see    
him1 but he has had a bad year4 ,the    
crops have not been good1 the banks have
 not been generous1 his wife has been   
sick1 and one of his children has broken
 a leg4 ,the salesman listens           
sympathetically to this tale of woe1    
leads the conversation away from the bad
 year behind to the good year ahead1 and
 in a little while they are eagerly     
discussing plans for business in the    
next month or so4 ,the salesman shows   
how he can help1 and convinces ,mr4     
,carter that the best time to begin is  

right now and gets an order for supplies
 from him4 ,it has taken the better part
 of the morning1 and ,mr4 ,carter asks  
him to go home with him to lunch4 ,the  
salesman would prefer going back to the 
hotel1 but he knows that it will give   
,mr4 ,carter great pleasure to have     
him--his invitation is unmistakably     
hearty--so he accepts4  ,before he came 
the salesman had discovered1 through    
consulting the directories and by       
talking with friends of his who knew the
 town1 who were worth going to see and  
who were not4 ,mr4 ,carter he had       
learned was immensely worth while and   
that is why he was willing to spend so  
much time with him4 ,no salesman can    
afford to stop and talk with everybody  
who can give him the inside story of why
 business is no good4 ,this salesman    
always finds out as much as possible    
about a man before he goes to see him4  
,he never leaps blindly ahead when there
 is any way to get a gleam of light     
first4  ,once in ,south ,carolina he was

 anxious to get a large order from a    
wealthy old man who1 he felt sure1 would
 be a regular customer if he could once 
be persuaded to buy4 ,the old man paid  
no attention to what he was saying until
 he mentioned the picture of a hunting  
dog that hung above the desk4 ,the old  
man's eyes kindled4 ,this was his hobby 
and he forgot all about business while  
he talked about hunting1 and ended by   
asking the salesman to go home with him 
and spend the night4 ,the salesman      
accepted gladly1 and the next morning   
they went rabbit hunting instead of     
going back to the office4 ,the salesman 
was out of practice in handling a gun   
but it was great fun1 and the upshot of 
it all was that he landed the order he  
wanted4  ,this method is pleasant but   
wasteful4 ,the salesman never uses it   
except as a last resource4  ,much of the
 success of this salesman 7and of the   
others who are successful7 lies in the  
fact that he can put himself so         
completely into the place of the man he 

is trying to sell4 ,he talks in terms of
 that man's work1 and he tries to sell  
only where he believes the sale will    
result in mutual satisfaction4 ,he never
 says anything about serving humanity1  
but his life is shaped around this idea1
 which is1 when all is said and done1   
the biggest idea that any of us can lay 
ourselves out to follow4  ,he is working
 for a firm that he knows is honest--no 
self-respecting man will work for any   
other kind--and he wants its financial  
rating to stand solid4 ,he does not sell
 to every man who wants to buy4 ,he     
investigates his credit first1 and if   
there is to be a delay while the        
investigation is under way he frankly   
tells the man so1 and assures him that  
it is for his protection as well as for 
that of the house that is selling the   
goods4 ,it is a form we go through with 
every new customer1 he says4 ,if we did 
not we'd find ourselves swamped with men
 who would not pay4 ,and that would work
 hardship on those who do4 ,every       

business man knows that this is the only
 way in which reliable business can be  
carried on4 ,and it is reliable business
 that we are interested in4     ,,xiii  
,,tables ,,for ,,two ,,or ,,more   ,a   
young banker from ,smithville is in ,new
 ,york4 ,it is his first trip4  ,you    
would like him if you could see him4    
,tall1 sun-burned1 clean-cut1           
well-dressed1 thoroughly alive and      
interested in everything4 ,he is a bit  
confused by the city but he is          
determined to learn everything that it  
has to teach him4 ,he does not hesitate 
to ask questions but he likes to find   
out without1 whenever possible4  ,he    
goes into the dining room of the great  
hotel where he is staying1 and for the  
first time in his life is confronted    
with an array of silver on both sides of
 his plate4 ,at home he always has a    
knife1 fork1 and spoon laid together at 
the right of his plate1 by which you can
 see that he has not lived among people 
who place much emphasis on having food  

daintily or correctly served4 ,he is not
 exactly prepared for this4 ,when he    
left ,smithville he was thinking more of
 his business connections than of what  
he was going to eat1 and how4 ,he is    
embarrassed because1 like every sanely  
balanced person1 he likes to do things  
as they should be done1 and not just    
blunder through them4 ,there is no one  
he can ask except the waiter1 and the   
waiter seems such a superior person that
 he is afraid to ask him 7though it     
would have been perfectly correct for   
him to do so74 ,he gets through the meal
 the best way he can and finds that when
 the ice cream is brought the only thing
 he has left to eat it with is a slender
 fork with a long handle and three very 
tiny prongs4 ,he knows that he has      
tripped up somewhere along the line1 but
 he asks the waiter to bring him a spoon
 7he should have asked for a fork7 and  
goes ahead4  ,the next day he is invited
 out to dinner with a man who has all of
 his life been accustomed to first-class

 hotels and restaurants and the dining  
tables of wealthy and cultured people4  
,he is somewhat older than our young    
banker and he has had a great deal of   
experience in entertaining men who have 
come into the city from small towns4 ,he
 is thoughtful1 sympathetic1 an         
excellent host4 ,he leads the way into  
the dining room 7though they stand      
together in such a way that it seems    
that neither is leading7 and chooses a  
table4 ,this nearly always means        
accepting the one the head waiter       
indicates1 though it is quite correct   
for the host to suggest the table he    
would like to have4  ,does this suit    
you8 he asks the young banker before    
they sit down4  ,it suits him exactly4  
,he says as much4  ,now1 what will you  
have to eat8  ,the waiter has given him 
a menu card1 containing1 so it seems to 
the young man1 a million things that he 
might have4 ,a dinner served in courses 
was something beyond his knowledge until
 the night before1 and the dinner then  

was table d'hote instead of a la carte4 
,he flounders through the card and is   
about ready to thrust it aside and say1 
,just bring me some ham and eggs when   
his host sees his predicament4  ,blue   
,points are usually good at this time of
 the year1 he says4 ,shall we try them8 
,the young man has not the remotest idea
 what ,blue ,points are but he thinks it
 will be very delightful to try them4   
,what kind of soup do you like8 the host
 continues when the waiter has departed4
 ,i see they have vegetable soup and    
consomme4  ,the young man clutches at   
the familiar straw4 ,he will have       
vegetable soup4  ,throughout the meal   
the host makes comments and suggestions 
and guides his guest through to the end1
 and does it so graciously that the     
young man from ,smithville is not aware 
that he is doing it1 and feels that it  
is all due to his own quick observation 
that he is getting along so well4 ,no   
business man is a perfect host until he 
can accomplish this4  ,our young man    

knows already that one should sit up at 
a table and not lean forward or lounge  
back1 that he should not take large     
mouthfuls and that he should not snap at
 his food1 that he should eat without   
noise and with great cleanliness4 ,he   
knows that his napkin should be unfolded
 7it should be unfolded once and not    
spread out7 and laid across his lap1 not
 tucked into his collar or the top of   
his vest4 ,he knows that he should not  
eat with his knife4  ,he has never seen 
a finger bowl before but he has heard of
 them1 so that when one is placed before
 him he knows that he should dip the    
ends of his fingers into it and dry them
 on his napkin4 ,he has also heard that 
toothpicks are never used by gentlemen1 
at least in public1 and he is not       
surprised when he does not see them4    
,he has read somewhere that when a knife
 or a fork is dropped to the floor he   
should not pick it up himself but should
 allow the waiter to do so1 and that the
 waiter should be allowed to clear away 

the damage when something is upset on   
the table4 ,he knows that long apologies
 are out of order anywhere1 and he is   
not likely to say anything more than    
,excuse me or ,i beg your pardon if he  
should by a clumsy movement break a     
glass or overturn a plate of soup4  ,but
 he does not know about the various     
knives and forks or about how courses   
are arranged1 and he does not know about
 tips4  ,it is correct for him to       
explain to his host1 just as ,pip did   
when he was dining for the first time   
with ,herbert ,pocket1 that he is unused
 to such things and beg him to give him 
a few hints as they go along4 ,but it is
 less embarrassing to consult a book of 
etiquette about fundamentals and to pick
 up the other knowledge by close        
observation4  ,he discovers--our young  
friend uses both methods--that knives   
are laid at the right of the plate in   
the order in which they are to be used1 
beginning at the outside1 and that the  
spoons are laid just beyond the knives  

in the same order4 ,the butter knife    
7which rarely appears at dinner time7 is
 usually laid across the little bread   
plate at the left of the dinner plate4  
,forks are placed at the left of the    
plate in the order in which they are to 
be used1 except the oyster fork1 which  
is laid across the knives or else is    
brought in with the oysters4 ,the steel 
knife is for cutting meats4 ,the flat   
fork with the short prongs is for       
salads4 ,salads are always eaten with a 
fork4 ,it is sometimes not very easy to 
do1 but it is the only correct way4     
,this is the general standard1 but there
 are deviations from it4 ,nothing but   
experience in dining--and a great deal  
of it--will teach one to know always    
what fork or what knife or what spoon to
 use when the table service is highly   
elaborate4 ,the best policy for a       
stranger under such conditions is that  
of watchful and unobtrusive waiting4    
,the dinners that business men choose   
for themselves are rarely divided into  

numerous courses4 ,often they have only 
two3 meat and vegetables1 and dessert4  
,the regular order for a six-course     
dinner is3 first1 an appetizer such as  
oyster cocktail1 grapefruit1            
strawberries1 or something of the sort1 
followed by soup1 fish1 meat and        
vegetables1 salad1 dessert1 cheese and  
crackers4 ,one or more of the courses is
 often omitted4  ,the rule for tipping  
is universally the same3 ,ten per cent  
of the bill4         99       99        
99       99       99  ,suppose the cases
 had been reversed and the man from the 
city had been in ,smithville to take    
dinner with the young banker4  ,he is   
not accustomed to seeing all of the food
 put on the table at one time1 nor to   
having to use the same fork throughout  
the meal4 ,but he is a gentleman4 ,he   
adapts himself to their standard so     
readily that not one of the people at   
the table could tell but that he had    
always lived that way4  ,the young      
banker is a gentleman1 too4 ,when his   

friends from the city come to visit him 
he gives them the best he has and does  
not apologize for it4 ,he does not begin
 by saying1 ,i know you are used to     
having better things than this but ,i   
suppose you can stand it for one meal4  
,he simply ushers his guest into the    
dining room as cordially and with as    
little affectation as if he were the    
paying teller of the ,smithville bank4  
,no one need ever apologize when he has 
done or given his best4  ,it is         
interesting to know that the standard of
 our young banker is growing higher and 
higher all the time4 ,he likes to know  
how the people who have had time to make
 an art of dining do it and to adapt his
 ways to theirs whenever he can4        
99       99       99       99       99  
,it is a grave mistake for a business   
man to feel that he must entertain      
another to the standard to which the    
second is accustomed4 ,a poor man who   
finds himself under the necessity of    
entertaining a rich one should not feel 

that he must do it on a grand scale if  
he has been so entertained by a rich    
one4 ,aside from the moral question     
involved the great game of bluff is too 
silly and vulgar a one for grown men to 
play4  ,but business men play it and    
their wives join in4 ,suppose ,mrs4     
,davis1 whose husband is an assistant of
 ,mr4 ,burke1 wishes to invite ,mrs4    
,burke to her home to dinner4 ,she and  
,mr4 ,davis have been formally          
entertained in the other home1 and the  
dinner they had there was superintended 
by a butler and carefully manipulated by
 two maids4 ,now ,mrs4 ,davis has no    
maid1 her china is very simple1 and the 
food that she and her husband have1 even
 when they entertain their friends1 is  
plain and wholesome4 ,should she1 for   
the great occasion1 hire more beautiful 
china and engage servants8 ,should she  
draw on the savings bank for more       
delicate viands8  ,to begin with1 ,mr4  
,burke knows exactly what salary ,mr4   
,davis gets4 ,he knows whether it will  

warrant such expenditure4 ,will it make 
him feel like placing more              
responsibility on his assistant's       
shoulders to see him living beyond his  
means8 ,is it not1 after all1 much      
better for people to meet face to face  
instead of hiding themselves behind     
masks8 ,the masks are not pretty1 and in
 most cases deceive only the persons who
 wear them4  ,men who are friends in    
business often like their wives to be   
friends as well4 ,it is many times      
possible to bring about a meeting at the
 home of a common friend1 but when this 
is not convenient1 one of the women may 
invite the other4 ,if the invitation is 
to dinner1 it is not correct for ,mr4   
,gardner to invite ,mrs4 ,shandon even  
if he knows her and his wife does not4  
,the invitation should go from ,mrs4    
,gardner and should be addressed to ,mr4
 and ,mrs4 ,shandon4 ,if the invitation 
is for tea1 ,mrs4 ,gardner simply       
invites ,mrs4 ,shandon1 and the nature  
of the invitation depends upon whether  

the affair is formal or informal4  ,as  
to which of two women should proffer the
 first invitation there might be some   
discussion4 ,usually it is the wife of  
the man whose position is superior1 if  
they both work for the same concern4 ,it
 frequently happens that a man whose    
position in business is high is married 
to a woman whose social standing is not 
of corresponding importance4 ,perhaps   
such a man has a subordinate whose wife 
is a social leader4 ,in this case which 
of the women should extend the first    
invitation8  ,most women of eminent     
social rank realize and appreciate the  
fact thoroughly4 ,the social leader     
knows that the other woman might be     
embarrassed and hesitant about inviting 
her to her home4 ,if she does apprehend 
this it is only gracious for her to     
extend the first invitation herself4    
,in small towns the rule is for the old 
residents to call upon the new1 and the 
wife of a business man who has recently 
established himself in a community must 

wait until the women who live there have
 called upon her before she begins to   
entertain them4  ,in large cities where 
it is impossible to know everyone this  
rule is practically disregarded1 and    
business men invite one another and ask 
their wives to do the same according to 
the way convenience and chance make most
 natural4 ,women whose husbands are     
longest in the employ of a firm1 or     
whose husbands hold high positions1 as a
 rule call first on the wives of        
newcomers or subordinates4  ,it all     
comes to the same thing whether it is in
 a city or a small town or the country4 
,those who are already established in   
the neighborhood or the business extend 
the right hand of welcome and good      
fellowship to those who are not4  ,in   
order to bring their employees together 
socially most big houses now give       
various entertainments such as picnics1 
parties1 dances1 and banquets4 ,they are
 in no way different from other         
entertainments of the same kind so far  

as the etiquette of behavior is         
concerned4 ,formal dances and banquets  
in the evening require evening dress    
just the same1 except with that very    
enormous group 7to which most of us     
belong7 who do not own evening dress4   
,this does not mean that evening parties
 must be foregone by this group or that 
they should hire gala attire for the    
occasion1 but simply that the men wear  
their business suits and the girls their
 ,sunday dresses4 ,it is just as        
correct1 it is just as much fun1 and it 
is infinitely wiser than giving a dollar
 down and a dollar a week for a         
decollete gown or a swallow-tail outfit4
     ,,xiv  ,,ladies ,,first8   ,most   
girls who are in business are there to  
earn a living4  ,it is true that an     
increasing number of wealthy girls who  
are under no necessity to work but who  
want a definite place in the economic   
life of the world are entering business 
every year1 but the great army of       
workers is made up of those who enter   

business because they are driven into it
 7driven1 many of them1 while they are  
yet very young71 because it is the only 
way in which they can have their own    
money1 or because it is the only way in 
which they can raise their standard of  
living4  ,the majority of business girls
 come from the homes of parents in      
moderate circumstances4 ,they have had  
advantages--a high-school or a college  
diploma1 a certificate from a business  
school1 travel1 specialized             
training--and all these they have added 
to their business capital4 ,in many     
instances the opportunities they have   
had have not been brilliant1 but every  
opportunity1 however small1 carries with
 it the responsibility to make the best 
of it4 ,upon these girls1 since they    
outnumber the others and because they   
have had advantages 7a high-school      
education is an enormous advantage if   
you are looking at it from the point of 
view of a person who wanted one but was 
not able to get it71 rests the          

responsibility of setting the pace for  
others4 ,and the standard of behavior   
for the business girl1 whether she be   
rich or poor or in between1 is the same4
  ,the wealthy girls who enter business 
deliberately are usually followed by the
 same sensible impulse that started them
 on their careers1 and1 as a rule1 they 
conduct themselves with dignity and     
modesty4 ,the wealthy girls who1 through
 a turn of fortune have been forced into
 work and have gone unwillingly1 are    
another matter4 ,the rudest girls we    
have1 is the testimony of most people   
who have to deal with them4             
,conventional social charm and poise    
they may have but they are without that 
finer sense of courtesy which makes them
 accept whatever fate gives them and    
make the best of it4 ,the fading        
splendor of the days of plenty envelops 
them like a cloud--remember that we are 
speaking of the unwilling ones--they    
lose themselves in self-pity1 and the   
great fun that comes from good work they

 miss entirely4  ,many of the poor girls
 in business have never known anything  
but poverty1 and their lives have been  
cast among people who have never known  
anything else4 ,they have had no home   
training in the art of behavior 7for the
 people at home did not know how to give
 it to them74 ,no one has ever told them
 how to dress or act but there have     
never been lacking those to condemn them
 when they dressed foolishly or acted   
indiscreetly4 ,the silly little things1 
they say 7and oh1 how superior they are 
when they say it74 ,employers agree1    
for1 after all1 it is true1 and the     
silly little things hold their jobs     
until they are married1 until they are  
fired1 or 7and this happens frequently7 
until they wake up1 and then they are   
promoted to something better4 ,we cannot
 expect girls like these1 who have grown
 up without contact with the gentler    
side of life1 to begin with a high      
standard of behavior1 but we can 7and   
do7 expect them1 once they have been    

brought into touch with better things1  
to raise their standard4 ,it is no      
disgrace for a girl to begin in         
ignorance and squalor2 the disgrace lies
 in staying there4  ,first of all1 the  
dress of the business girl4 ,most of the
 ill-breeding in the world is due to    
ignorance4 ,ignorance of the laws of    
beauty and taste causes one to make a   
display of finery1 and over-dressing is 
a mark of vulgarity whether one can     
afford it or not4  ,the girl does not   
live--we believe this is right--who does
 not love pretty clothes4 ,but the      
average girl does not have money to     
spend lavishly for them4 ,her salary1 as
 a rule1 is not princely1 and there are 
often financial as well as moral        
obligations to the people at home4 ,she 
cannot have ,sunday clothes and everyday
 clothes4 ,she must combine the two with
 the emphasis on the latter4  ,a few    
years ago it was almost impossible to   
accomplish this1 but manufacturers have 
recognized her needs and are now making 

clothes especially for her--plain       
dresses in bright colors and dark       
dresses with a happy bit of trimming    
here and there1 neat enough to pass the 
censorship of the strictest employer1   
pretty enough to please the most        
exacting young girl4  ,a woman is no    
longer thought eccentric if she wears   
low heels4 ,the modern flapper is too   
sensible for such nonsense as ,french   
heels for standing all day behind the   
counter4 ,manufacturers have discovered 
this also1 and are making shoes with low
 heels and broad toes quite as pleasing 
as the ,french monstrosities and        
infinitely more comfortable4  ,a        
business girl--or any girl1 for that    
matter--should take pains with her hands
 and her hair4 ,coiffures that might be 
appropriate in a ball room are out of   
place in an office1 and heavily jeweled 
hands1 whether the jewels are real or   
imitation1 are grotesquely unsuited to  
office work4 7,so are dirty ones47      
,hair that is glossy and tidy1 hands    

that are clean and capable1 dress that  
is trim and inconspicuous--add to these 
intelligence1 willingness1 good health1 
and good manners and there is not much  
left to be desired4  ,certain positions 
expose girls to the temptation of dress 
more than others4 ,she1 for instance1   
who all day handles lovely garments or  
she who all day poses before long       
mirrors in exquisite gowns that other   
women are to wear--can one expect these 
girls to go merrily home at night to a  
hall bedroom with a one-burner gas jet  
and a mournful array of old furniture8  
,they have a problem that the girl in a 
glue factory or a fish cannery does not 
have to meet--at least not in so        
concrete a form4 ,at the same time they 
have an opportunity that these other    
girls do not have1 and it rests with    
them whether the opportunity or the     
temptation gets the upper hand4         
,positions in which girls are thrown    
into close contact with men expose them 
to temptation of another sort4 ,it is in

 its most acute form when it brings a   
poor girl into more or less intimate    
association with a rich man4 ,once1 a   
very long time ago1 a king married a    
beggar maid and they lived happily ever 
after4 ,people have not stopped writing 
and talking about it yet1 although it is
 many centuries since it happened4 ,it  
is true that once in a very great while 
a girl marries her father's chauffeur or
 her brother's valet and finds later    
that she has acted wisely2 but these are
 rare exceptions to the general rule1   
for the result usually is unhappiness4  
,such marriages are always the occasion 
for big headlines in the paper1 usually 
a double set of them1 for1 in most      
instances1 the divorce follows within a 
year or so4  ,it is a dangerous thing   
for a girl to receive attentions        
indiscriminately from men1 especially   
those who drift across her horizon from 
the great world outside4 ,it is         
dangerous 7is it necessary to add that  
it is incorrect87 for a manicurist to   

accept presents from the millionaire    
whose hands she looks after4 ,it is     
unwise for any girl to accept expensive 
gifts from a man who is not her fiance4 
,there are exceptions to this rule1 as  
indeed to every other4 ,at ,christmas or
 at the time a ceremony or an           
anniversary employers sometimes give    
their secretaries or another trusted    
employee a beautiful gift1 and it is    
within the bounds of propriety for the  
employee to accept it4 ,often when he   
has been away from the office for       
several weeks a man presents his        
secretary a gift to express his         
gratitude for the capable way in which  
she has managed affairs in his absence1 
and this gift the secretary is          
privileged to accept4 ,gifts are seldom 
presented except where the association  
has been a long and highly satisfactory 
one4  ,but the girl who goes to the     
theatre with a man about whom she knows 
nothing except that he has the price of 
the tickets is running a serious risk4  

,she is violating one of the most rigid 
principles of etiquette and she is      
skating perilously out beyond the line  
marked off by common sense4 ,nearly     
every man can1 and does1 if he is the   
right sort1 present credentials before  
asking a girl if he may call or if he   
may escort her to a place of amusement4 
,there are instances in romantic stories
 and in real life where a man and a maid
 have met without the help of a third   
party and have entered upon a charming  
friendship4 ,they are rare1 rarer in    
fact than in fiction4 ,it is banal to   
say that a girl can usually tell4 ,but  
she can1 and if she has any doubt 7and  
this is true of all her relations with  
men7 she should have no doubt4 ,she     
should stop where she is4  ,where men   
and girls work together in the same     
building or in buildings near one       
another they often go to the same       
restaurant for lunch4 ,it is natural    
that they should sometimes sit together 
at the same tables4 ,it is correct for a

 man to sit at a table where there are  
already only girls 7if the girls are    
willing71 but it is not correct for a   
girl to sit at a table where there are  
already only men 7however willing the   
men may be74 ,in these mixed groups each
 person pays for his or her own lunch4  
,it is not even necessary for the man1  
or the men1 as the case may be1 to offer
 to do so1 and it is a distinct breach  
of the rules of etiquette for a girl to 
allow a man to pay for her lunch under  
such circumstances4  ,the only time when
 it is correct for a man and a girl who 
are associated together in business to  
have lunch1 with him the host and her   
the guest1 is when the engagement is    
made ahead of time as for any other     
social affair4 ,on such an occasion he  
should be as attentive as he would in   
any other circumstances1 taking care of 
her wraps and placing her chair if the  
waiter is not at hand to do it1         
suggesting dishes he thinks perhaps she 
will like1 and making himself as        

generally useful and agreeable as it is 
possible for him to be4 ,a point about  
which considerable breath is wasted is  
whether a man should enter a restaurant 
with the girl following or whether he   
should allow her to lead the way4 ,it   
makes no material difference one way or 
the other1 but usually he permits her to
 go ahead and follows closely enough    
behind to open the doors for her and to 
receive whatever instructions the head  
waiter has to offer4  ,if a man should  
enter a restaurant and find a girl whom 
he knows already seated he may join her 
if he thinks he will be not unwelcome1  
but this does not make it incumbent upon
 him to pay for her lunch4 ,he may offer
 to do it1 but it is a matter that rests
 with the girl4 ,if she does not care to
 develop his acquaintance she should not
 permit it1 but if the two are good     
friends or if she feels that he is a man
 she would like to know1 she may give   
him her check to settle along with his  
own4 ,a girl is herself the best judge  

of what to do under such conditions1 and
 if common sense does not show her the  
way out etiquette will not help4  ,women
 in business sometimes bring up         
perplexing questions and create awkward 
situations4 ,suppose a man has asked a  
girl several times to a business-social 
lunch and she has accepted every time4  
,it seems that she should1 as a man     
would in the same position1 make some   
return4 ,if she works for a house where 
there is a dining room in which checks  
do not have to be settled at the end of 
every meal she may do so without the    
slightest difficulty1 but if she is     
compelled to take him to a place where  
the check must be given to the waiter or
 paid at the desk before they leave1 she
 must look out for a different way of   
managing things4 ,business luncheons are
 usually paid for by the firm in whose  
interests they are brought about1 and if
 the girl works for an organization     
where there are several men employed she
 may ask one of them to take her friend 

out to lunch4 ,then1 even if she is not 
present1 her social duty is done4 ,the  
easiest way out of such a predicament1  
it is superfluous to say1 is never to   
get into it4  ,a girl who enters        
business presumably accepts the same    
conditions that men have to meet4 ,she  
has no right to expect special favors   
because she is a woman4 ,she does get a 
certain amount of consideration1 as     
indeed she should1 but she is very      
foolish and childish if she feels       
resentful when a busy man fails to hold 
open a door for her to pass through1    
when he rushes into his office ahead of 
her1 or when he cuts short an interview 
when she has said only half of what she 
had on her mind4  ,much is said about   
the man who keeps his seat on a train   
while a woman stands4 ,his defense rests
 upon two arguments1 first1 that his    
need is greater than hers 7which is not 
true7 and1 second1 that she does not    
appreciate it even when he does give it 
to her 7which is not true either74      

,unfortunately1 there are as many rude  
women in the world--and this statement  
is not made carelessly--as there are    
rude men1 and in almost half the cases  
where a man rises to give a woman his   
place the woman sits down without even a
 glance toward her benefactor1 as if the
 act1 which is no small sacrifice on the
 part of a tired man1 were not worth    
noticing4 ,every act of civility or     
thoughtfulness should be rewarded with  
at least a ,thank you and a good hearty 
one at that4  ,old people1 cripples1 and
 invalids rarely fail to secure seats1  
however crowded a car may be4 ,a man    
seldom offers his place to another man  
unless it is evident that the other1    
because of age1 infirmity1 or extreme   
fatigue is greatly in need of it4       
,well-bred girls resign their seats to  
old men1 but if they refuse to accept1  
the girls do not insist4 ,at a reunion  
of ,confederate veterans several years  
ago a girl rose from her place on a     
street car to allow a feeble old man to 

sit down4 ,he gripped the strap         
fiercely4  ,i ain't dead yet1 he        
responded sturdily4  ,one of the chief  
petty complaints brought against women  
is that they do not keep their places in
 line4 ,some of them appear to have     
neither conscience nor compunction about
 dashing up to a ticket window ahead of 
twenty or thirty people who are waiting 
for their turn4 ,men would do the same  
thing 7so men themselves say7 but they  
know very well that the other men in the
 line would make them regret it in short
 order4 ,two or three minutes is all one
 can save by such methods and it is not 
worth it4 ,even if it were more it would
 still not be worth it4  ,when a woman  
breaks into a line it is quite          
permissible for the person behind her   
7whoever he or she may be7 to say1 ,i   
beg your pardon1 ,i was here first4     
,this should be enough4 ,sometimes there
 is an almost desperate reason why one  
should get to a window4 ,many times     
everybody in the line has the same      

desperate reason for being in a hurry1  
but now and then in individual cases it 
is allowable for a woman 7or a man7 to  
ask for another person's place4 ,but    
only if there is a most urgent reason   
for it4 ,much of courtesy is made up of 
petty sacrifices1 and most of the great 
sacrifices are only a larger form of    
courtesy4 ,it all comes back to ,sir    
,philip ,sidney's principle of ,thy need
 is greater than mine1 but it is only   
extraordinary circumstances which       
warrant one's saying1 ,my need is       
greater than thine4  ,since the         
beginning of time1 and before 7if there 
was any before7 women have done their   
share of the work of the world4         
,formerly their part of it centered in  
the home but now that machinery has     
taken it out of the home they have come 
out of the home too1 to stand in the    
fields and factories of industry by the 
side of their fathers and husbands and  
brothers4 ,because they have recently   
been thrown into closer association in  

their hours of work than ever before    
there has sprung up a certain amount of 
strife between men and women1 and a     
great deal is said about how superior   
men are to women and how superior women 
are to men4 ,it is pure nonsense4 ,if   
all the men in the world were put on one
 side of a scale and all the women on   
the other1 the scale would probably     
stand perfectly still4  ,the woman in   
business should never forget that she is
 a woman but she must remember that     
above all things she is a citizen1 and  
that she herself has value and her work 
has value only as they contribute to her
 community and her community as it      
contributes to her country4 ,courtesy is
 one of her strongest allies1 this      
quality which1 alone1 can do nothing1   
but1 united to the solid virtues that   
make character1 can move mountains4  ,we
 have said a good deal as we came along 
about courtesy toward oneself and other 
people1 but perhaps the most valuable of
 all courtesies in business is          

politeness toward one's job4 ,it is     
desirable for every woman to be pretty1 
well-dressed1 and well-groomed1 but it  
is much more desirable for the woman in 
business to be able to do capable and   
efficient work4 ,she may be ornamental  
but she must be useful1 and while she is
 at the office her chief concern should 
be with her job and not with herself4   
,the end of business is accomplishment1 
and courtesy is valuable because it is a
 means of making accomplishment easy and
 pleasant4 ,it is this that gives us the
 grace to accept whatever comes1 if not 
gladly1 at least bravely4  ,it is a poor
 workman who quarrels with his tools 7or
 with his job71 so the proverb says1 and
 there are two lines of ,mr4 ,kipling's 
that might be added4 ,he was speaking of
 a king1 but in a democracy we are all  
kings3      ,the wisest thing1 we       
suppose1 that a king can do for his land
     ,is the work that lies under his   
nose1 with the tools that lie under     
his hand4  ,and the lines are just as   

true when girl is substituted for king  
and the pronouns are changed            
accordingly4  ,,the ,,end