1898 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



451 



cards. I employed this clerk expressly to see 

 that a postal card went to ez'ery customer just 

 as soon as the goods were put on the train ; 

 then our friends did not have to wait for the 

 bill of lading, which is sometimes several mails 

 behind, in getting copied, recorded, etc. 



I fear our good friend Foster does not recog- 

 nize the fact that he is only one of a thousand. 

 It is our duty to consider each and all, as well 

 as any particular person. Our expression 

 that "small orders receive the same attention 

 as large ones," is true. Friend Foster, if you 

 were to interview the clerks here in our oflfice, 

 and all over the establishment, they would be 

 astonished at the charge you make, that there 

 is afiybody around here who is pushing the 

 large orders more than the small ones. If a 

 carload is almost ready to go, of course we 

 make extra efTort to get that car started. To 

 do this our packers have frequently worked 

 till m'dnight, and then been at their posts at 

 the regular hour in the morning. But it was 

 not because we got more money for the car- 

 load, for really we do not get as much for the 

 same goods, but because a great quantity was 

 held back just because of the lack of a few 

 things. Neither is anybody around here look- 

 ing over the orders to see which one gives us 

 the most profit. Every member of our force 

 is, I am sure, trying to get every thing off out 

 of the way that can be got out. Certain goods 

 are on hand, and can go as well as not. Oth- 

 ers have to be made to order, and we must 

 wait for them. Dear brother, it certainly was 

 not a love of money that delayed your order. 

 In fact, that never entered into the considera- 

 tion. Every member of The A. I. Root Co. is 

 a professing Christian, and you do not know 

 how it pains us when we hear the suggestion 

 that money is our god. God forbid ! I am 

 sure you do not mean that, dear brother, 

 and that you will feel sorry you said it when 

 you see this 



Yes, you will probably find our advertise- 

 ments running in the agricultural and bee 

 papers. Our contracts for advertising were 

 all made up last fall, and paid for in advance, 

 for that is the way we do business. We could 

 perhaps have these advertisements taken out 

 and put in at a later date, and we have seriously 

 considered doing so. We are not now send- 

 ing out catalogs except to people who call for 

 them. You may say we should stop doing 

 this. But, dear brother, our catalogs contain 

 a vast amount of information that is of great 

 value to many people, even if they do not 

 trade with us. Another thing, a great variety 

 of goods are ready to go by the -first train. 

 Spray-pumps, smokers, wheelbarrows, enamel 

 cloth, seeds, etc. — in short, almost every thing 

 that we do not manufacture is kept in stock 

 in great quantities ready to go off 1)y the first 

 train. Bee-hives and sections, and other 

 things made in the wood-working depart- 

 ments, are the only things in the line of goods 

 that we have to wait for. We have kept 

 ahead pretty well on sections by purchasing 

 almost all that any manufacturer in the United 

 States had to spare. 



Associated as I am with my sons and sons- 

 in-law, it would ill become me to shirk re- 



sponsibility by saying the delays and mistakes 

 were "the boys' fault." I have never said 

 that yet, and, God helping me, I do not mean 

 to. If they make mistakes, even in doing 

 things that I sometimes disapprove of, I 

 expect to stand by them and help them out; 

 and I hope God will give me grace so that I 

 may forbear even saying, "I told you so." 

 The state of affairs just now is bad in the 

 respect you mention; but there is no civil war 

 in our ranks, thank God. The boys have 

 been trained to love righteousness and to hate 

 iniquit}^ even if I did not have the training of 

 them all; and, so far as becomes me, I expect 

 to train them every day in God's ways. One 

 of my pleasant surprises of late, however, is 

 that these boys are beginning to train me 

 sometimes in better ways; and I hope I shall 

 never be above accepting wholesome truths 

 from those who are younger than I. 



I am afraid it is true that you and others 

 have written several times to hurry up orders, 

 vdthout getting a reply. But this is a new 

 departure in our business. I do not know 

 but I shall have to get still another clerk and 

 another lot of postal cards, and when a com- 

 plaint comes in regard to delay I will have 

 this new clerk send a card saying we can not 

 help the delay, and that we positively can not 

 spare a clerk, who has the ability and experi- 

 ence, to go into the mass of unfilled orders, 

 search out a certain one, and tell just why it 

 can not go. Dear friend, you seem to think 

 it is a simple matter to ship your order at 

 once, and let all the rest go. We would gladly 

 do it if we could, and still keep right before 

 us the golden rule — that is, be just to all, and 

 not put the man ahead who complains the 

 loudest. 



In writing this I have considered that, by 

 the time it gets before our readers, we shall 

 perhaps be getting out of the woods — at least 

 I hope so. May God give grace and wisdom 

 and patience and forbearance all around dur- 

 ing this busy season; and may he help us to 

 be helpful one to another in the very widest 

 and best way. 



Tobacco Column. 



The following was handed me on a slip of 

 paper. I do not believe there need be very 

 much discussion in regard to it. Some may 

 think it is too strong ; but let every one con- 

 sider it carefully according to the dictates of 

 his own conscience. I think it will do good : 



Curse 

 Curse 

 Curse 

 Curse 

 Curse 

 Curse 

 Curse 

 Curse 

 Curse 

 Curse' 

 Curse 

 Curse 

 Curse 



TOB 



in the postoffice, 

 in the depot, 

 on the train, 

 to 5'our land, 

 to your health, 

 to j'our income, 

 to your body, 

 to your country, 

 to your teeth, 

 to your breath, 

 to your life, 

 to your clothing, 

 to your family. 



ACCO IS A 



Curse 

 Curse 

 Curse 

 Curse 

 Curse 

 Curse 

 Curse 

 Curse 

 Curse 

 Curse 

 Curse 

 Curse 

 Curse 



to your good name, 



to your manners. 



to your religion, 



to your church, 



to your boys, 



to your morals, 



to missionary ■work, 



to the air, 



to men, 



to an office, 



on the street, 



to man's rights, 



to God's rights. 



By the way, our daily papers, which are cer- 

 tainly not biased very much in the matter, 



