Tales of the Road

who gets next to the goods. He checks them off when they come in, keeps the dust off of them every day, sells them to the people and often he does the selecting of t

neglect his business; if the traveling man ign

the merchant begins to think the traveling man is influencing the clerks unduly, down co

-shelf. I didn't like this. If you want to get your goods sold, get them where they are easy to reach. Clerks, and merchants too, usually follow the line of

crease it. One of the clerks came up. He was very friendly. They usually are. They like to brush up agai

a beaut. I didn't know we had a swell thing like that in the h

d the crown out of it over my heel, handed him the hat I had taken out of the box

ll right, all rig

dent came up with his old hat and asked, l

dollars. Before I got through, eight clerks had ne

ttention of a large dealer. Twenty-four dollars are made in a minute and a half

in. When I dropped in that afternoon,

To be plain with you, I do not like the way in

have put an end to me. But this was the moment I wanted. In fact, I

re your face. You can now see how stylish they are. In six months you will learn how well they wear. I would feel like a sneak had I stealthily slipped a twenty dollar gold piece into the hand of your hat man and told him to push my goods. But I haven't done this. In fact I gave a hat to nearly every clerk you have except your hat man. He was away.

ight down with you.' After Hobson had, in a few minutes, given me a

is to go straight to the head of the establishment. The man I like to do business with is the man whose money pays for my goods. He is not pulled out of line by guy ropes

in my department. Now, this is a risky thing, you know, for a merchant to do unless the buyer gets an interest in the business and becomes, in truth, a merchant himself. It usually mea

him a part of his old trip. In one of the towns he made he struck the new buyer and, of co

hat my goods were right; all I needed was unprejudiced attention. Prejudice anyway buys most of the goods sold; merit is a minor partner. Were merc

what my line of business was. It was Saturday afternoon. I would rather go out making business on Saturday than any other day because the merchant

,' said he. 'Hereafter we are going to b

aight back at him. 'Where do you suppose my hats come from?' said I. 'My factory is the leading

eant that he wanted to look at my samples. T

I'll bring in a small bunch of samples tonight about the time you close up.' Merchants like to deal with a man who

he hat buyer-I overheard the words-'Large Eastern factory'-and together they began to look at my samples. The new buyer went to the shelves and got out some of the goods which had come from my house to com

it was a fat one, t

from Orange Valley

k that?' asked

hat I represent, and I do not want one who has favored me to pay any extra freight. You will pardon me, I'm sure,

rchant. "Come-boys, you are in

y of cranks. The so- called crank is the easies

not, however, very "strange," for the cosmopolitan life of the road breeds a good fellowship and a sort of secret society fraternity am

there who's any good except old man Duke and he's the biggest crank o

but will not this comment apply

d these many years and, if my observation counts for anything, those we meet are, to a great extent, but reflections of oursel

he clacking of the car wheels, I heard myself saying over and over agai

to do. Maybe he has an urgent bill or sight draft to meet; maybe he has a rush order to get off in the next mail; maybe he is figuring up his profit or his loss on some transaction. Then is not the time to state your business if you wish to make your point. The traveling man must not forget

he stove and, as he approached, politely said t

saying finally, "As this is my first time in your town and as my house is perhaps new to you, possibly, if you can find the time to do so, you may wish to see what I have." Recalling that one

get him to do this, keep out of his way until he is ready to fulfil his engagement. Then, when you have done your business, pack your goods and leave town. What the merchant wants chiefly with the traveling man is to do business with hi

dle of the street. He was a crank about keeping his engagements promptly. I respect a man who does this. The old gentleman looked carefully, but

njoyed giving me one more than he would have enjoyed smoking one of mine. In fact, it flatters any man more to accept a favor from him than to do one for him. Many traveling men spend two dollars a day on cigars which they give away. They are not only throwing away money but

f his peculiarities. I was out of money. I asked him if he wou

was once swindled that way and I no

tuck in m

, "I shall gladly lend you a hundr

friends. More than once did he drop business and go out fishing with me. Since the first day we met I have ofte

to draw on the house or else to have the firm keep him a hundred or two ahead in checks, put him down as no good. The man who is habitually broke on the road is generally the man who thinks he has the "gentle finger," and that he can play in

used one of the boys on the road a favor in all my life. Many a time I've dug up a bill and helped out some chap who was broke and I knew, at the time, t

n prepay your excess baggage all the way from a coast point clear back to Chicago and have the right to drop your trunks off anywhere you will along the route. This makes a great saving. Well, when I went to check in I saw that I was short about four dollars. I did not have time to ru

atured fellow-I shall always remember his sandy whiskers and pair

rough to Walla

, "can I do an

ve mentioned it, yo

Mason-how I was fixed and that I would give him a note to my custom

a lead pencil on the back of an envel

see McPherson the first thing I said to him, handing him

r?" said

e short. Why, that four I gave a traveli

d to be standing near the cashier's de

here with an order on you for four dollars, but it was written with a lead pencil on the back of

"Why, I've known this man (referring to m

he clerk in my department were out of town. When the new cashier told Mason that he did not know me, Ma

imself that night told this jok

ason: "Why that fellow's good for four hundred;" and

became well acquainted with him, and with a friend of his named Dickey, who was along with us. Yet I did not ask Mason

ough it for those sandy whiskers. It was lucky that he wore that color; it made the search easy. I even looked for him after midnight-not only going through the day coaches, but asking the Pullman porters if such a man was aboard. I woke up more than one red- whiskered man out of hi

g friend when, several weeks after a letter bearing the pen marks of

Walla,

Dear

esented your request for an advance. They all began to look askance at me as if I were a suspicious character. I ought to hav

o. My train goes soon. I am writing you care of your house as

firm's cash and will stand as an I. O. U. against me until I hear from you. Ev

t and you should come to

've brought you

avat and say: "What's that?"

chingl

on, "Denve

oomed to be in error with him. I wrote him insisting that

the four dollars; but, since I pressed th

beaver to Mason. But somehow he got

hile I stated that my size was seven and one-fourth your hatter sent a seven and one-half-two sizes too big under ordinary circu